More and more of today’s omnichannel customers are returning to physical brick-and-mortar retail stores to experience the sensory attribute of the products they’re shopping for. Yet with the constraints of expensive floor space, furniture retailers are often limited in the amount of merchandise they can display, especially for large items such as sofas and sectionals.
In response to the challenge, Universal Furniture has launched U|Choose, a custom design-your-own-upholstery solution that is the best of both worlds for retailers and their customers. The customizable product line, including all available options, can be displayed with a minimal footprint—in as little as 800 square feet.
Build-Your-Own Upholstery
The company’s new U|Choose custom offering provides a number of upholstery options for many of its sofas, sleepers, sectionals, loveseats, and accent and swivel chairs. The new program expands Universal’s current library of 500 cover options and 50 leathers by offering multiple arm and leg options, welted (piping) and nonwelted options, and multiple finishes. A selection of core frames and options in a neutral fabric and a choice of a modern Southeast coastal and Midwest design provides optimum opportunities to display the options at the retail level.
As global supply chains recover, the company believes that now is the right time for the program to take off. Current lead times are estimated to be at six to eight weeks.
A User-Friendly Order Process
The U|Choose special order product mix includes an armchair, ottoman, 80” and 88” sofa with small-scale arm options, loveseat, chaise, swivel chair, sleeper sofa and sectional.
Arm styles include pleated roll, padded track, scoop and slope. Cushion core options include uni-blend (soft), ultra-plush and spring down (firmest). Leg styles include round, turned, shaped, and tapered. And lastly, leg finishes include onyx, espresso, natural, brownstone, sand, slate, and picket fence.
Universal makes creating a custom-made design as simple as possible for designers, retailers and direct consumers alike. The four-step process includes: selecting an arm style and leg style, cushion base, and construction with or without welting.
Retailers are already finding that the U|Choose program offers significant benefits for their businesses. “The new U|Choose program from Universal Furniture is extremely user friendly,” says Jody Keister, owner of Art of Living Design Studio in Mifflinburg, Pennsylvania. “It is simple enough, yet it still offers enough customization to fill the needs of our projects. U|Choose fits perfectly in the layout of our design studio and will make our job easier as we take the design vision of our clients and make it a reality.”
Dealers and designers can purchase through Universal Furniture’s B2B portal and customize orders and pay online.
For more information, visit universalfurniture.com
