Sit Yourself Down

 Our stock sofa

Talk to most RVers. They would likely agree that stock RV furniture is lacking, both in style and quality of construction. Many people wind up replacing their furniture within a year or two. Since ordering our RV we’ve learned that one usually has the option of ordering without any furniture at all (and get credited on the sale price of the RV). While we love our KZ, the living room (we call it “the great room”) furniture that came with it left much to be desired. Our sofa was definitely at the top of our short list to replace. But given the parameters of our living area and restrictions of size and weight of conventional furniture, what were we to do?

In December we stumbled across the Simplicitysofas.com web site. Their products were not only intriguing from a quality standpoint but they also fit our tastes in design, fabric and color. Simplicity Sofas appeared to be constructed with small spaces in mind, to fit through narrow doorways, and to be easily assembled, which encouraged us to dig further.

We ordered a catalog, some fabric samples, and exchanged emails and phone calls with the company, usually communicating directly with owner/president, Jeff Frank. Jeff was quick to respond to our every question, which left us with the impression that the company’s claim to first-rate 24/7 customer service was not sales hype. Heartening first steps.

After reviewing fabric samples and discussing/measuring what would be a good fit, along with reading many positive customer experiences, we opted to take the plunge. On December 26 we ordered our “apartment” sized sofa. Mind you – we’ve never sat on a Simplicity Sofa so we were more than a little nervous about ordering furniture sight unseen – or “unsat”.

We had an additional concern about ordering a sofa so close to our departure to Ecuador. Jeff assured us that even with the company’s Christmas and New Year’s holiday break schedules, it would arrive when we needed it to arrive. Jeff kept us updated on the sofa’s build process and delivery schedule via email. Sure enough, our sofa arrived from North Carolina via UPS freight in three boxes (total 160 pounds) on Friday January 22, less than a month after placing our order.

Prior to its arrival we found a home for our less than year-old RV sofa. Another couple in our RV park was looking to replace their aged sofa and were delighted to receive ours. Our one condition: in lieu of any payment to us, that they make a donation to a Haitian earthquake relief organization of their choice to which they heartily agreed.

Simplicity Sofa stated that their sofas are built using solid oak frames and may be assembled in less than fifteen minutes. Too good to be true? It took less than ten minutes to EASILY move the three pieces into the RV and assemble them following clear and concise instructions…without any tools. The frame is solid and well built as opposed to the stapled-together sofa that started to fall apart the moment we levered it out the door. Not only does the fabric look and feel great, it’s very comfortable to sit on. Add some throw pillows and we’re good to go. It took far longer to cut up the cardboard shipping boxes for recycling!

So what did we give up by making the swap? The old sofa had a slide out drawer for under-seat storage. However, the drawer was unwieldy to open and close and because it had already had come off one of the two rails, it was pretty useless. And we didn’t need the storage space anyway. The sofa folded out to accommodate an air mattress but when it was open, it took up too much space. The new sofa is not a sleeper sofa but we kept the air mattress and in a pinch, it will fit on the floor in front of the sofa. While it would not have worked for our situation, Simplicity Sofa offers an airbed option but only on their full-sized sofas.

And what did we gain? A great looking well-constructed sofa that fits nicely into the space allotted. It’s far more comfortable to sit on and our choice of fabric blends well with the colors of the RV interior. Alas, the photo of the new sofa doesn’t do the subtle "Pebble Sage" color justice.

We’re extremely pleased with Simplicity Sofa. A company that was easy to deal with, provided excellent customer service and delivered a product that was exactly what was promised. In fact, their products would fit well in numerous home settings regardless of space constraints. As for RVers looking to replace their stock RV furniture, we couldn’t recommend a better solution than Simplicity Sofa. Maybe it’s time to replace the swivel recliner…
 

new " Lorelei" sofa in place