Abitare UK Blog

Summer Sale!!!

Summer is a great time to relax and chill. Its also a pretty good time to take advantage of some great offers. The Italians aren’t the most generous people in the world when it comes to discount, but a combination of a stronger pound and some discounts, means that now is a great time to buy and to expect delivery in say October.

The discounts vary from supplier to supplier but in some case we can offer upto a 35% discount off normal retail prices and we can still offer interest free credit!

Check out Natuzzi, Italsofa, Incanto, Calligaris, Cattelan Italia, Flos, Kartell, Jesse and Nolte on our website and call us for some great prices and some great offers.

Mad about Media!

Jesse, pronounced yesse, are a fab and not so small manufacturer of Livingroom and Diningroom furniture, based in the North of Italy. Check out the Jesse that we have on our website and pay special attention to the Jesse that we have in the Media section.

Every item produced is a stand-alone piece of furniture that can be added to other items and built to create the most complicated or simplest of cabinets.

As a media solution the Jesse range enables you to create a cable free environment, keeping all surfaces looking clean and sharp and making sure that you loose the utilitarian look of standard hi-fi tv cabinets.

Avid Audio @ Abitare

Robin from Avid Audio in Wigan has just installed 3 very cool display in the store. Mounted on Jesse Audio Visual displays, it gives clients the perfect way to visualise both the cabinets and the audio visual equipment combined.

In the Design Room we have the Brand New Monitor Audio Apex 5:1 Home Cinema System. Combined with this we have the Harmon Kardon AVR 255 5:1 Receiver. The total look gives the modern lines of the Jesse cabinets that Retro feel and offers amazing sound quality expecially when combined with a Sub Woofer.

Fixed into the Jesse Studio 2 display and in the store in general is the amazing Sonos Audio System. Hooked into a pair of powerful Audio Monitor tower speakers and a mid range sub, the Sonos gives wireless multi room function and at the touch of a button, access to 8 million tracks and 26,000 world wide radio stations. Controlled with either a hand set or as an I phone application. Have a look at www.avidaudio.co.uk or contact Robin direct on 07867 882214.

Surround yourself with Natuzzi Surround for the World Cup!

Gooooaaaaallllllll!

Natuzzi, Abitare and that Cresta thing….

Two weeks ago before I left for the Milan furniture show, I promised a few of the worst hit Cresta customers, that I would talk again with Natuzzi to see if there was any extra help coming from them. I spoke at length to the Natuzzi UK Managing Director that runs both the Natuzzi Stores in the UK and looks after all the Natuzzi Gallery Sales. I had hoped that there would be some extra offer of help, but that is not the case. Natuzzi UK is not going to offer any extra help to those people that have lost money in paying cash, cheque or Maestro to Cresta for furnishings they will never get. There offer is simple. They will honour Cresta sale price at the time of purchase….plus the 7% price increase we all had in March 2010.

Maybe because this has all happened on my doorstep or because I have spoken face to face with so many people, but I feel very strongly about how terribly these clients have been treated in buying what should be a great piece of home furnishings. Perhaps I shouldnt make it personal, but it is.

So my offer at Abitare is still this. We will honour the old sale prices on the worthless Cresta contracts and we will NOT expect anyone to pay anything extra for the price increase. Also, I will do my very best and will work with all those clients that have lost money, to see if we can find a way to absorb their loss.

Cash Back!

I have further great news from some 13 ex Cresta clients that have now managed to get all their money back from their Credit Card suppliers. Some are now clients of Abitare and some are just thank ful that they have their money back and boy….furniture is the last thing they want to spend it on again. The important issue though is that as a joint effort we have managed to overcome the fraudsters that stood to make so much from so many unsuspecting people. There are still more clients out there that dont know of the Cresta situation and are still blindly waiting for delivery of sofas that will never arrive. They are our next challange!

Milan Magic

It feels like there is only one moment of magic each year when it coms to buying new trends for Abitare, and that is the Milan International Furniture Show. This years show has just proved the widening of the gap between Italy and the rest of the world when it comes to furnishings. And it means there is no turning back for me and Abitare. The trends that have influenced this years creations have influenced and inspired me and this years Summer 2010 Collection will be better than ever!

Madonna and the Natuzzi Sound Chair!

In a recent article in an Italian Magazine it was revealed that pop sensation Madonna and estranged husband Guy Ritchie used the Natuzzi Sound Chair for more than listening to popular music! GR was reported to have said that Madonna had a liking to making love whilst listening to her own back catalogue of hits! So much so that she bought 10 of the chairs to have in her various homes accross the globe! Now that the Natuzzi Sound chair has a bigger brother in the Surround Sofa…….

Natuzzi Prices

Natuzzi prices are going up. Not a lot but enough. Due to pressures of the £ v €, Natuzzi SPA will be increasing all of their prices for all of their products from the 1st March 2010. This means that everything sold from either Natuzzi Stores, Independent Natuzzi Gallery Shops and Stores that sell Italsofa and Additions will enjoy this price increase. This is not something that has come from retailers. It has come direct from Italy and is subject of the problems that the £ has suffered over the last 6 months. Abitare will continue to offer the best service and prices that we can. Any orders placed before the 1st March will NOT be subject to this price increase despite the goods being delivered after the 1st March.

Nightmare Continues

It seems that there is just no end to the troubles that many clients have had that have bought sofas from the local retailer featured heavily on www.complainstboard.com, to the point that despite all the press clients have been duped into paying balances and placing orders in December 2009 and even as late as January 2010.

There is till no news on who has been appointed as Administrator or when that will happen.

Abitare has continued to assist clients by taking orders and absorbing deposits paid, where possible, and to give added security to these clients we have accepted to take orders without clients paying us a deposit.

There are many many clients that I have spoken to that have placed for all over the Country. It seems fortunate that these clients are the ones secure as they have all paid on Credit Card. Those local to Preston have paid in cash and cheque and it seems less than likely that these local people will ever see anything back even if an Administrator finds assets.

It goes to show that really the only way to shop now is with the security of Credit Cards as they atleast offer insurance. There is NO benefit from paying cash if you are a legitimate business. The Banks charge to accept cash just as there is a charge to use a credit card. As a retailer we absorb these costs.

From this sorry situation perhaps the important lesson learned is that cash is no longer king.