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Poor Quality Furniture and Customer Service
By -

FAIRLAWN, OHIO -- I WILL NEVER BUY FROM SOFA EXPRESS AGAIN. QUALITY IS HORRIBLE AND "CUSTOMER CARE" SERVICE IS NON-EXISTENT. I bought 2 sofas from Sofa Express (S.E.). Since I didn't want the cheap, shiny material that was stock, I custom ordered material, paid for stain guard and the $70 delivery charge for a total of $1200. Store manager promised the delivery people would move old furniture (not take it with them, just move aside).

Had to bribe delivery people with cash as they said they weren't allowed to move old furniture due to insurance prohibiting moving furniture down steps due to accidents. (I live in a ranch house WITHOUT STEPS.) After pocketing money, they said insurance stipulation in effect for prior 2+ years but sales representatives still "promising" the service.

Before ordering sofas, I found a cushion on display that was extremely hard in comparison to other cushions on sofa. Sales rep & asst manager both told me that they had no idea why cushion was so hard, but IF a customer received such a piece, it would immediately be replaced with no questions asked. NOT SO!

Furniture delivered was embarrassingly poor quality -- seat cushions extremely hard and stiff, arms not fully padded producing wrinkles, my feet did not touch floor as they did in show room, back cushions flat, etc. FURNITURE WAS NOT AT ALL AS REPRESENTED IN DISPLAY ROOM. Furniture delivered at 8:30 AM and I was at the store waiting for them to open at 10:00 AM. My new furniture FELT HORRIBLE WHEN SITTING ON! When quality issues presented, sales rep & asst mgr said I couldn't expect my new furniture to look or feel the same as the display furniture as the displays were 3 years old.

I was advised the display furniture had been "stuffed and restuffed" until they were at their current [comfortable] level. All new furniture is "expected to decrease in density up to 30%" within the first 30 days according to S.E. I was not advised of this fact when placing order. It basically means your cushions will decompress or "flatten out" approx. 2-3 inches "and then your feet will touch the floor!" Of course, then the seat cushion material will pucker and bag, you'll have to put in numerous calls to service, take time off work to meet them, or buy stuffing and manually restuff yourself, etc.

Pleas note that cushion stuffing and quality were discussed in detail before the sale and I was assured I would receive same quality as on display. It was only later that I was informed the stuffing was actually recycled Coke bottles and there was a decompression or "memory" issue with stuffing holding up. According to S.E., this was acceptable as they were "meeting manufacturer's specifications." When I pointed out that S.E. did not give me access to a mfg rep, they did not have mfg spec sheet available, and the only thing I had to go on was the display pieces, I again hit a brick wall with "we're in accordance with mfg specs."

After just a couple calls, the local store advised my account was "closed and would not assist me." The customer service rep put a notation on my account "DO NOT PICK UP" if customer requests return. I filed a claim dispute with Visa, worked with the Better Business Bureau, and again attempted to work with S.E. The customer service rep flat out REFUSED TO TALK TO ME. Instead she sent standard form letters to BBB that made it clear she had not even read the complaints or attempted to address the quality issue. It was strictly a matter of "CYA".

After researching on-line and reading the numerous complaints regarding both the quality and customer service from this company, I felt it was not worth the time, effort and FRUSTRATION of attempting to resolve this issue with S.E. I learned an expensive lesson ($400) regarding thoroughly reading anything that is put before me to sign. Even though I was assured when placing my order the "30% restocking fee was hardly ever charged" and the "if taken to court, customer MUST PAY S.E. court fees" clauses in contract were "just standard" this should have raised some major red flags. How naive of me!

With the advent of "Sofa Express and More" and the popular designer Genevie Gorder from Trading Spaces as new spokesperson, I foresee many more complaints regarding this company. Just wish I had checked them out on-line before foolishly ordering from them. Regards - **.

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Beware
By -

COLUMBUS, OHIO -- My e mail to the CEO, Mack Peters: I have found out later that Sofa Express is no longer owned by the Quinn Family as of a few years ago. Now the Kalussner Company owns this company.-- Mr. Peters: I am contacting you as a courtesy to inform of the experience I am having with your firm. I have the ability to relay this information to Randy Quinn, however do not have the strong desire to trouble a good friend with this issue to achieve that.

This is the letter I will be using to communicate the details of the last 3 months interacting with your Polaris store manager ** and district manager **: I would appreciate your help to communicate the most insulting retail experience I have ever had. The story I have to tell concerning a local furniture sales firm is quite unbelievable, but true.

On new years eve 3 months past I had just moved into my new home and needed to find furniture to furnish it. Having shopped around for about three months prior to this time, I knew the pieces I wanted to purchase. I arrived at Sofa Express located on Polaris Parkway in the afternoon and selected 2 chairs, couch, coffee table, two end tables, two console tables, and a dining room table with 6 chairs.

When purchasing these items I was told when it came to the fabrics which I desired to have custom ordered on two pieces would arrive straight away if I did not do so. In the interest of furnishing my home prior to a pre determined house warming party I agreed this was a good idea. The service I received was good. I set up for a six month/same as cash account to be set up with Beneficial (whom has been great and very professional through this whole process) with was a promotion the store was offering at the time.

After ordering I had been notified that the couch, one chair, and the dining table would be delivered the following week. The other items I ordered to obtain quickly were out of stock now and would be delivered as soon as possible. After one month I finally received all the items I purchased. Granted these type of things happen, I was not excited about the way all of this was handled and I did not have all my furniture for the party but no big deal.

The big deal began when I found that Sofa Express had set up two different loan accounts for me. One which I signed up for and the other being completely set up without permissible purpose. Understandably I was not pleased knowing that until these accounts are at 50% or lower of their respective balances the extra account harmed my credit score. After finding that Sofa Express cannot do anything about this as the loans had been processed, I was now less than pleased with my experience. If this stopped there I would not have reason to contact you, however:

Now I find that the 2 loan amounts total to almost $1,000 more than the price of the combined furniture. I called a representative at this store (** - store manager) whom I had been speaking to quite a bit, having to exchange 2 chairs and my dining table because that they were either damaged or not assembled properly. ** already had built quite a poor reputation with me so far of not being reliable and needed to constantly be followed up on to ensure my exchanges would actually happen and I would know when they would be delivered (this is where this story may seem a bit far fetched) as she had a tendency to set up deliveries without my knowledge.

I informed ** that I was being overcharged and later that day I called back to check and she ensured me that the issue was corrected. Know that by now ** makes it no mystery telling in her demeanor that she does not want to deal with me anymore as my issues had become many.

It is mid February and I find that my accounts are still over charged by calling the financial institution handling the loans and confirming after being assured a week ago by ** this was taken care of. I now have had enough of ** and have moved on to corporate, my new contact now, district manager **. ** got the overcharge taken care of and is quite apologetic and openly frustrated with his employee. We are now also at my 4th dining table which turns into the 5th, 6th, involving more issues with the lack of responsiveness of the Polaris store, more open frustration on ** part and now is where I come to you for help.

Between table 4 and 6 I had still been sent back to the Polaris store to have deliveries set up and received the same treatment as prior, no call backs, having to call the store 2 and 3 days after initially speaking to ** to inform of the newest defect. It is now to the point that the delivery personnel are finding the issues before even bringing it in my home, presenting them to me, and I confirm and apologies that they had to make so many trips.

Last night I received a call from ** again stating that they would like me to travel to their warehouse to pick a table that would satisfy me. Their sentiment was that I have had many tables they cannot find issue with. Remember it was their drivers whom found the last two issues.

In speaking to ** about this minutes ago I find that now he simply desires to take the merchandise back and wash his hands of me. This is an experience which has been appalling damaging, and wasteful.. I need to share my story about this experience to shield potential buyers from the possible frustration this store may cause them. Can you help me? I am sad to inform you that your personnel have gone from unreliable and inaccurate to blameful of other departments and direct subordinates. A pure debacle. Thank you for your time. After much more time and effort was spent on this problem, 2 months after this post I now finally have the furniture and credited $500. To be fair I wanted to post this fact.

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Love Seat: Paid In Full, Let Down Heavily
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SPRINGDALE, OHIO -- For Christmas this year, my husband finally agreed to let me get my long-awaited loveseat for our family room. All day Vet's Day weekend, we journeyed to several different furniture stores when we ended up at Sofa Express & More in Tri-County (Springdale, Ohio). Much to my delight, they had a wide selection of sofas to choose from, one of which I adored! The sales rep was wonderful, she answered all my questions and was very courteous in handling our order. She advised me of the pickup date (10 days from the date of purchase) and was even kind enough to send a thank you note a week later. What's the problem you ask? Well...

10 days later I called to confirm an adequate pickup time only to find out that my sofa hadn't arrived. They assured me it was due to the overflow from the holiday weekend and that I would receive it no later than Friday of that week (this was Tuesday, mind you).

Friday, I call again to confirm a pickup time. What do you know... but my sofa isn't there! Now, I'm mad. The girl who answered the phone heard my complaint, offered to give me free delivery and said she'd get a manager on the phone to coordinate the reschedule. When speaking with the manager, who promptly told me that it wouldn't be wise to do delivery because they couldn't guarantee a delivery date, then advised me they'd take care of it right away and they'd even give me a $50 store credit since I'd paid cash for the sofa.

I accepted his offer, only to have him put me on hold for 30 minutes and never pick up the phone again. I hung up, called back, demanding to speak to the store manager, only to speak to a girl named **, who seemed to do all she could, placing me on hold periodically while she tried to get the loveseat to me within the next few days. She then advised me it was too late to have it for pickup Saturday, but she would have it to me by Tuesday (two days before Thanksgiving). I agreed, but I also mentioned to her that if the loveseat did not arrive as promised, I would cancel my order and expect a full refund immediately. She agreed and left it at that.

I anxiously awaited Tuesday, since I really wanted to have my loveseat for the holidays. On Tuesday morning, I called, for the last time, to schedule my pickup. THE LOVESEAT STILL WASN'T THERE! This time, they claimed ** didn't put it in the system in enough time to get it to me by Tuesday. I was irate at this point. I demanded to speak to the store manager. When ** got on the phone no better impression of indifference could have been demonstrated. Not only did he not apologize to me, he couldn't care less that my order had been repeatedly messed up. He told me that he could have it at the store by Friday (the day after Thanksgiving).

What do you think I told him. "Sorry, **. But I've given your company adequate time to give me my sofa and three times now you haven't delivered. I'm done waiting. I want my money back immediately." So far, I'm waiting for my refund to be processed on my VISA. Thank goodness I used that in case they don't follow through (again).
Fair warning to readers of my experience; I am not the only one who has had similar issues with this store. It was only today that I happened across this site to add to the list of complaints. Shop a more experienced and customer friendly store (Furniture Fair is a great example) for you furniture shopping needs. Sofa Express has lost a first time customer for good.

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Bought a bed and bad service
By -

TRI COUNTY & HQ, OHIO -- I bought a bed from Sofa Express in Tri County by Springdale Ohio. Realizing that my fiancée and I were going to have this be for at least 8 years, we bought a good one. Top end. We didn't know we bought it from a bottom end company. The purchase went fine. The sales rep was a nice guy who said that if we had any problems to give him a call. We had problems.

The bed was delivered, it looked a little worn but I figured in a warehouse some things are going to get a little dirty and banged up. But after sleeping on it for two nights my fiancée, who is pregnant, started complaining she was rolling into the middle of the bed. When I got on the ground to look at the frame and make sure it was level I saw that the middle support leg wasn't there.

I'm a Marine, not know for being the smartest of people, but even I can figure out 5 metal nubs need 5 plastic legs. So I call the sales man. He was too busy to talk to me. Then I called for a Manager, at which time the customer service girl answering the phone told me, "you don't need to talk to a manager sir. I will take care of you."

After restating that I wanted to talk to a manager 4 more times I was put on hold. TWENTY MINUTES LATER, the same lady came on the phone and told me that there were no managers available as they were at dinner. So I finally told her my issue. She connected me to the warehouse that set up a time to come out and put the leg on the middle of the bed, she apologized for my trouble and gave me a $75 credit.

5 days later. The bed service technicians came out to fix our bed, BUT, upon close inspection were able to deduce, they didn't bring the part to fix it. OOOPS! 5 more days, and mind you this entire time my pregnant fiancée and I, who just bought a top end bed, are sleeping on the couch, and they come out with a whole new frame. to replace the one that was missing a $4 dollar leg and I was told we would get another $75 credit. Good. The second $75 credit hasn't shown up in 3 bills. Well the bed still didn't feel right. I spent another week calling to get a hold of a manager and when he finally returned my call his solution was to just try sleeping on the uncomfortable thing for a few weeks. So we did.

A few weeks later when all we could talk about was how bad our backs hurt I called back. No manager again. I left a message a day for 3 weeks. Finally my fiancée's grandmother went to the store irate. she got to talk to someone in the customer service dept. This lady told her she couldn't talk about the purchase to someone who wasn't involved with the purchase and to have me call her.

I left her 1-4 messages for 2 weeks. I went to the store. At this point all I want is my money back because I don't ever want to deal with anyone from this company again. I finally received a message on my cell stating that I needed to call to set up delivery of a new bed set. I went to the store and caught the manager, who told me a refund was out of his hands and he would talk to the district manager who was in the store that day, JUST OUT TO LUNCH! (ROFL) He said that he would have him call me in the next 4 days, never happened. I spent the next week calling for the District Manager and getting voicemail. I asked several times to speak to his boss, "he's on vacation".

Finally I got the CEO's secretary who walked down to the customer service manager and told her to call me. She did about 3 hours later. After hearing a disjointed recollection (I was trying to tell her everything without getting angry) she actually asked "Sir if you got this mattress so long ago why haven't you taken care of this sooner?" Well after we finally hashed that out she said she was going to look into this and call me back at the beginning of next week. Here it is Wednesday, the middle of the week, and no call, so I called her, and guess what, I got a voicemail.

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Interview No-Show!
By -

NORTH OLMSTED, OHIO -- I now think for sure that all the reviews from disgruntled customers on this site about Sofa Express are definitely true after what happened to me. I had been called by the District Manager for Sofa Express to see if I may be interested in coming to work for them as a manager in one of their stores in Northeast Ohio/Cleveland market. Since I have an extensive background in retail store management and was looking to get back into retail from what I am doing now, I agreed to go ahead with the process.

After a phone interview with this District Manager, we agreed to meet at the store in North Olmsted, Ohio for my interview on August 15 at 11AM. After driving 45 minutes to get to the store and upon entering the store for my interview, I met the Store Manager and told him I was here to have my interview with the District Manager.

The Store Manager told me the District Manager was not there in his store today and that he (the Store Manager) did not even know I was coming up for an interview. He called the DM on his cell phone while I was waiting for an answer as to where the DM was and why he was not there to meet me. No answer at all. I left my number with the Store Manager and asked him to have the DM give me a call to reschedule. I did not bother to hang around any longer and left.

After I got home I called the District Manager myself to reschedule. Got no answer at all and left a voicemail on his cell phone to have him return my call. It is now 4 weeks later and this guy has still never called me back to even apologize for standing me up and not showing up for the interview in the first place. I even called the Store Manager back up in North Olmsted and he never called me back either.

This District Manager just completely blew off the interview and did not have the courtesy to call me and say he was sorry and to even try to reschedule the appointment. He just left me hanging completely and I plan on making their corporate office in Columbus, Ohio aware of it. I am still mad about it. Just a completely bad way to deal with people. It is no wonder this company is in the shape it is in. It makes me wonder how they ever hire anyone.

So, I now agree with the other people who have complained about this company that Sofa Express is just plain and simple not a well-run company to do business with. I would recommend to friends and relatives to stay clear of this outfit. After the way I was treated on a human side of things and reading about their flawed merchandise, bad managers, rude customer service, and just all around place on the pecking order of furniture companies that are much better at what they do, I would have to give Sofa Express a huge THUMBS DOWN and a FAILING GRADE.

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POOR QUALITY & SERVICE
By -

FAIRLAWN, OHIO -- I recently purchased 2 sofas, which were delivered 11/18/05. I had to insist delivery people move old furniture for me as promised, which was done only after paying them. (Later told it was related to insurance concerns going up & down steps. I live in a ranch without steps.) Sofas skirts were extremely wrinkled, back cushions disgustingly lumpy & without sufficient filling, seat cushions extremely HARD, and throw pillows approx. 1-1/2" thin. Upon sitting on sofas, my feet do not touch the floor which is key criteria and had been discussed with the sales assoc before placing order.

Went back to store and talked to asst mgr. After several phone calls & visit by service technician, I was informed seat cushions would need to "age" from 30 days to longer depending on number of people in household, how often used, pets, etc. The cushions would EVENTUALLY age & decompress anywhere from 20-30% over time.

Service tech quite surprised issue was regarding hard cushions. He advised most of his calls are "from customers that have had their furniture 3-6 months [only!] and the cushions are TOO SOFT." Apparently, cushion filling is a major issue with Sofa Express. When I expressed my dissatisfaction with quality, the Service Technician immediately walked out without another word! Rescheduled service later for 9-12 AM; called at 11:00 and told they would be there at 1:00; waited until 2:30 and left home. Service showed up at 3:05 PM.

Contacted local store again same morning to arrange return of furniture. Eventually told mgr & asst mgr "not available" and that "it didn't matter any way as your [my] account was closed." I called service center to pick up furniture and customer care representative told me it was "up to the consumer" to ask questions regarding filling." I responded that I specifically did inquire as to filling and she told me there is a label under seat cushions explaining the density issue. I pointed out a consumer wouldn't have this information until AFTER THE FACT and she advised she had other customers to deal with and ended the call.

I feel I was a victim of bait & switch as the showroom furniture was not indicative of what I received. The mgr, asst mgr, and customer care rep all told me it was unreasonable to expect a new couch to be as comfortable as the display sofa which was 3 yrs old. If the showroom furniture isn't representative, why let customers sit on them? Would you buy a mattress and, after it was delivered, find it acceptable to sleep on it for a few months before it would be comfortable? Why should this logic apply to a sofa?

The furniture is uncomfortable for my husband and me to use on a daily basis, I am EMBARRASSED for visitors to sit on sofas,and I am ASHAMED I fell for this bait & switch tactic. Thing twice before buying anything from Sofa Express.

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Living Room Furniture
By -

COLUMBUS, OHIO -- This is a copy of the letter I sent to Sofa Express: I am disgusted with your product and your customer service. I have had nothing but problems since ordering and receiving your furniture. The legs were defective, the throw pillows were junk. The first service representative sent to our home was extremely rude and inexperienced. He also complained about his health problems the entire time. He was asked to leave. He had also left a mess in our living room.

My 3 year old daughter stepped on several staples he had left on the floor. We had left at least 2 dozen messages with the customer service center, with no return calls. We finally received the replacement legs and pillows for the furniture. The replacement pillows were in worse shape than the originals.

After at least 6 weeks of waiting for a response in regards to the problems with the furniture, we resorted to going to the store where we had made our purchase. Only by explaining the problem to our sales representative, did we receive a phone call from the manager of the store. While on vacation, the manager called and asked if we had heard from customer service. We had not. We informed the manager that we had received our replacement parts on our return from vacation. The only call we received from customer service, was to schedule the service call.

Another service rep was sent to our home. He was extremely professional and experienced. He did his best to rectify the problems we were having. He replaced 4 legs on the furniture. One is still defective. He assured us we would have a phone call from the customer service manager, **, within two days. That, of course, never happened. We have finally received the second set of replacement pillows. They are in worse shape than the first set of replacements. I am now tired of dealing with your company. I spent thousands of dollars on supposedly quality furniture, and have received junk. I no longer want this furniture in my home. I want a refund of my money for the purchase of this furniture. If I do not have satisfaction this time around, I will have no choice but to take other measures.

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Living Room Sectional
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GREENVILLE, SOUTH CAROLINA -- My wife and I have been on the lookout for a sectional for last 4 months and prefer a leather. We have been to several furniture stores and accidentally came across Sofa Express. We went around 5:30pm and store was closing at 6:00. Were met by a very nice Sales agent and that was her first day on the job. We went straight for the leather sectional sofas. It was just the perfect sectional we wanted, the size, the colors, the double recliners on each side and the new sales rep really did not know much about it she called the manager who explained about the type of leather etc etc.

Since the store is now under bankruptcy I bargained and the manager went away (usual sales tactics) and came back with a final offer that was little high and I suggested, I need coffee and end tables and a Queen mattress. The lady said I had 10 minutes to decide since they were closing. I figured if they want the biz, they can stay late but they were in a hurry to get out. Anyway I told the rep, while my wife and I go measure the Sectional, start writing the ticket. While I was measuring, I noticed a big tear on the edges. I asked the rep and the manager and the Sr Manager. They said they had no idea and were sorry for not knowing about it.

I cancelled the order right than and told them I need to think about that and will be back tomorrow. Before I went back I checked the review site and boy I am glad I did not buy that sofa, I would have had almost $2000 in the toilet. Never the less, I decided I will call the store and make an offer of $1000 and I would take my chance since it was exactly what we wanted, the sales rep told me she just sold the sofa and I asked her if the poor people who bought the sofa saw the rip. She said she did and I highly doubt it. I am glad this people are out of business.

I consider them to cheat consumers and not telling the truth. I know for a certain fact that 2 people (manager and Sr manager) were aware of the rip on that sofa and hid the truth. Honestly if the store was not closing at six, I probably would have missed the tear since I was supposed to pick the sofa the next day move my old furniture that evening. We were buying a lot of other stuff and we just let that go. Thanks for all the reviews. People should stop going to Sofa Express.

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Don't bother paying for stain protection!!!
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ASHEVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA -- My DH and I purchased the "Comfy" couch and chair in October 2006. We have three kids and specifically asked the salesperson about this couch and the fabric. He said it would hold up great to the kids and with the extra stain protection the fabric would just wipe clean. Well, that is soooo not true!! The salesman and the delivery guys told my husband and myself to just wipe spills, etc with a damp rag to clean.

Well, after I noticed discolorations on the fabric and after I was finally able to get through to customer service at Sofa Express, they said my fabric cannot have water on it. Hello!!! That is what we were told by the salesman and delivery guy to do and now you tell me that water will ruin the fabric!?!?!?!?? They sent a technician to "clean" the furniture. He made it worse and none of the spots came out! Then, he had the nerve to tell me that "baby spit" is not covered under the stain protection.

Well, then why would a salesman recommend this fabric and protection to a family of 5 whom were all present at the store when we purchased the furniture? Not only is our couch and chair covered with spots and stains, the cushions are losing shape and it has not even been a year yet! They did finally send a new back cushion for the chair to replace the one that lost it's shape the worst. Now, the new cushion has not even been on the chair for a month and it is doing the same thing!!! Sofa Express is a sorry company! They will not stand behind their products. Now I have a couch and chair that is not even a year old yet that looks TERRIBLE!! $1500 of TERRIBLE!!!!

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Poor quality and poor customer service
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GREENVILLE, OHIO -- I don't know how this company is still in business. I picked out furniture from the Huber Heights store in Feb. 2006. I purchased two couches, a glider chair, and ottoman. This was all delivered the end of March. The glider chair was defective from the beginning. A service tech came in May and decided that he could not fix it. The company gave me credit for the glider and ottoman(since they match) to pick out something else, they said they could not give me my money back. I live an hour away, so when I finally got back to the store I picked out another chair. This was in Aug. Then they call wanting to set up a delivery time. They tell me they can only deliver to my area on Fridays.

I can not take off work again so I told them to forget it. I have been calling customer service for weeks now and finally someone has called me back saying I have to take the new chair or keep the old one. This is after I called and told them to pick up this defective chair and give my money back. Oh, did I mention, this is OCTOBER 25, 2006. This all started in Feb. and I am still dealing with a broken chair in my house and they won't come pick it up and just give me my money back! I will never buy anything from them again.

I would also like to mention that their couch is very poor quality and only lasts for about a year until you need to buy a new one. I still can not take off work on Friday to receive my new chair that they are saying I have to take or keep the broken one. I just want to be done with Sofa Express. I just want my money back and someone please come pick up this defective chair. I'll even leave it on my porch.

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Sofa Express Rating:
20 reviews & complaints.
Contact Information:
Sofa Express
4600 S. Hamilton Rd
Groveport, OH 43125
614-836-4800 (ph)
614-836-4809 (fax)
www.sofaexpress.com
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