Ethan Allen — Local services in Viera

You asked for my review, so here it is: The sharp-tongued "office person" at the Viera, FL location called me a liar – well, she actually said “I don’t believe you” when, in fact, it was she that posed a scenario over the phone to me that was not in the context of our conversation intimating that I berated the salesperson's skills - apparently the salesperson (or another person who could corroborate her highly emphatic statement) walked to within hearing range of the phone conversation and this sharp-tongued “office person” woman obviously was trying to garner this person's attention, and favor, to be against me. Her words were "And (name of person) did a great job!!" What? We were not discussing the salesperson at all. The recliner with the broken mechanism that they "fixed" once already, and had broken again, was the true topic. In addition, the other recliner (we bought a matching set) was starting to exhibit the same problem. This is when she said she did not believe me. Such a nasty business. I also was explaining to the sharp-tongued “office person” that I had purchased Ethan Allen furniture in the past – Oh, Wait! – She rudely interrupted me and said “There you have it!” I was attempting to say that the quality of furniture had greatly changed over the 20 years since my last purchase. This rude and loud sharp-tongued “office person” was having none of it and that part of the conversation was closed because she had this very recliner in her own home. My experience is that the recliner on offer is way over-priced and of low quality. A $3,000+ recliner with scratchy fabric, weighs much more than a senior citizen can move to clean under, screws on the control mechanism are inserted incorrectly at an angle and stick out which scratch the hand of person in the chair does not comport with the price. By the way, the original chenille velvet-type fabric we had originally chosen for the recliners turned out to be something not actually offered for the Conover. So, when we went into the store to sign for the furniture we were told of the unavailability of our first choice and were then shown some pictures which seemed acceptable. Had we known it was uncomfortable (stiff & scratchy) we would have not placed that order. Also because of that fabric the welting on the arms is very rigid and the arms are not wide enough to comfortably find a place to rest your arms without leaving dents on your skin which also adds to the discomfort of this model and fabric. I wanted and still want to return these chairs. We are very unhappy with them. The sharp-tongued “office person” said that they have a right as a company to try to repair the item. And so, more time passes. We had to wait a week for the pickup of the chair because it could not be repaired on sight. I had to request a loaner since we threw out our old furniture and the very nice customer service lady said she would have to check to see if that would be possible. She called me back within a very short while and let me know that this could be accommodated, but it would not be a reclining chair. Thank you, we just needed a somewhat comfortable chair since we had nothing else. When the broken chair was picked up they also delivered the loaner. Then, we had to wait a week before the repaired chair could be delivered back to us. There is more, but I am too exasperated to go on. Stay away from Ethan Allen unless you want to waste your money and, of course, you must enjoy a verbal...

No complaints with the staff or the store, but not entirely pleased with the quality vs. price of one of the items we purchased. We did buy a large cabinet and a dresser and 6 chairs from EA and I am very pleased with all of those items. They look good and are made well. They are head and shoulders above most new furniture these days, and I feel like they will last.

That being said, the dining table we purchased that was about $2,500 (not including chairs) is absolute garbage. It is not wearing well and it has had very little and pretty darn careful use. It generally sits unused, has only had a literal handful of dinners on it, and on rare occasion people may lay something on it, mail, a couple books, a light package, a laptop, etc... We are an adult household, so no young kids brutalizing or having accidents with glue and markers, etc...I don't think we've had it two years yet, and sadly it doesn't really look nice upon inspection. It has a few scratches and odd marks on the top and today I noticed that it actually has a small area chipping away on the side at the front. This piece is stunningly indurable! Basically if you don't use it for anything it might be fine, but it's worn so poorly I'm not even sure then. It's worn worse than any table I've even owned, including the cheaper ones. That's pretty bad. I'd recommend steering clear of the "high quality veneer" (that I bought against my better judgment). If you're spending money on a table go ahead and get a decent solid wood table that will last, a solid wood one that can (generally) be repaired if damaged. My impression: you'll find more hits than misses at Ethan Allen, the staff is friendly and helpful, and you feel better buying furniture (likely) made in the USA. But also my impression: lead times can be delayed, not all of their furniture is good quality, and like everything else in the world, it...

5 stars.... during redecorating of our living room, we made our final stop at Ethan Allen. It should have been our first stop. We tried the higher end catalog stores, high prices, limited fabrics and not exactly what we wanted. Ethan Allen was no more expensive and slightly less expensive for custom made pieces. We worked with Jack, one of the interior designers. He helped us with fabric selections and gave us perfect advice to mix our fabric choices, there was a huge selection of fabrics from all grades, inexpensive to high-end choices, all design styles. We were able to choose leg styles, stain finish, metal finish on nail heads which could also be left on or off. The customizations and selections are way more than other stores. We also shopped at 2 other local furniture stores and the quality of furniture is no comparison even though the other stores' prices were in the same vicinity. We really thought our design advice helped steer our final selections to exactly the look we wanted. We couldn't find the right look of comfort, casual and elegance at any other store. The design suggestions and thoughts are helpful, low-key advice and not at all pressured, like shopping with a friend. We received one of our two furniture pieces 6 weeks early and they delivered the first piece with no additional charge. We are looking forward to our second piece of furniture due in a few weeks along w our custom pillows. The quality of our coffee table ottoman is superb, it is much more solidly built than the catalog stores and it is built in US. We will be going to see Jack at Ethan Allen when we are ready for our new family room...