Meet Alison | She Bought Her Delcor Sofa in 1978!

At Delcor, each and every one of our sofas comes with a lifetime guarantee. You’ll treasure your timeless piece for years to come, and when the time comes to recover your handmade-to-measure piece, Delcor’s Furniture Refurbishment Service will restore your luxury sofas and armchairs to their former glory. So, you can fall in love all over again.

A true testament to our ethics, heritage and bespoke craftsmanship, we would love to share this wonderful story with you.

Meeting Alison

Recently we met Alison from Whitley Bay, North Tyneside; around 10 miles east of Newcastle Upon Tyne, and some fewer miles away from Delcor’s Seaton Delaval Furniture Workshop, nestled in the heart of Northumberland. However, this wasn’t the first time that Delcor had met Alison. In 1978, she bought her very first sofa from us.

We asked Chris, our Brand Manager, to document Alison’s Delcor Journey.

Memories of 1978

In 1978, “Grease was the must-see film that year. The Ford Cortina was the UK’s best-selling car. Kate Bush was in the charts with Wuthering Heights, and Britain’s Prime Minister was James Callaghan.” Alison recounts. And, in the Spring of 1978, Alison visited the Delcor showroom in Newcastle to buy her first sofa. She recalls, “we were impressed by the design, the comfort and the fact the furniture was made for you. You didn’t just have to buy what they had in the shop!”

The sofa that Alison chose was called the Stiletto and was one of Delcor’s latest designs in 1978 – very futuristic, modern, and presented in brown Dralon Velvet. The “must have” choice for the time! Looking back, Alison said, “my husband Andy and I had trawled round all the shops in Newcastle. Up until then, we had made do with hand me downs and second-hand furniture. We didn’t believe in buying cheap items – we saved up (as you did in those days) and then bought something you thought would last!”

Alison’s Delcor Experience

Alison’s recent return to our showroom in Seaton Delaval was to ask if we had a retirement home for her beloved Delcor sofa. She recalls choosing the sofa and a matching chair, in 1978, and then waiting for them to be made whilst her lounge was decorated. She then had her first child in 1981 and moved to a larger home. She loved the sofa and chair she had but wanted to enlarge the set, so they returned to Delcor to purchase another chair to stand proudly alongside her existing Delcor pieces.

Delcor’s Refurbishment Service

It is not unusual for us to discuss our Refurbishment Service with our customers. We have always offered a refurbish and recovery service for older Delcor furniture. People come back to us to have their well-loved Delcor furniture fully restored and back in their homes. Sometimes, customers will even pass their Delcor furniture down to other family members to enjoy.

Alison reflected, “the suite lasted very well, and we only got it recovered when we changed our decor around the year 2000. After our children flew the nest, we downsized and as my husband became quite disabled, he needed a rising recliner chair, so we gave away the chairs. In 2020, my husband died, Covid came, and life stopped.

At the beginning of this year, I decided to redecorate. As I started to think about my lounge, I realized my wonderful Delcor settee was really looking like it needed renewing as the fabric was starting to show its age (mainly because my Grandchildren had been using it as a trampoline!) I had decided to look for a sofa bed for the room and started looking around for something suitable. I had not realized Delcor sold sofa beds!

I felt like I’d come home.”

So, Alison called into Delcor’s Seaton Delaval Showroom and met with Chris.

“I must admit I won’t need a sofa bed to last another 45 years, but now I’ll have a fantastic piece of furniture to leave to my children knowing it will give many years of good service! I was so well received during my visit. I felt like I’d come ‘home’. I knew your products were excellent and really didn’t need any persuasion to think about buying from you again.”

Alison is now looking forward to receiving her new Designer Sofa Bed for her newly redecorated living room. What about her well-loved Stiletto sofa? Well, we have adopted it and will be refurbishing it and giving it a new home, in our boardroom.

Stay tuned on our social platforms to see Alison’s Stiletto sofa when it is finished!

Delcor’s History Creating Sofas of Distinction

Alison’s wonderful story is truly a testament of the Delcor Difference. Here in Northumberland, Delcor has been creating handmade upholstered furniture to our customers’ individual specifications since 1967! One of our earliest marketing lines described us as ‘the manufacturer who sells direct to the customer.’ Handmade-to-measure was a very innovative concept, and soon Delcor became well-known throughout the North East.

Later, through other showrooms in the UK, Delcor solidified its reputation as a high-quality specialist manufacturer and retailer of the very best furniture.

Visit Your Delcor Showroom

Now, Delcor proudly has showrooms in Seaton Delaval, Stamford, London, Altrincham and Witney. When we spoke to Alison about her experience at Delcor, she said, “you seem to have such a good working atmosphere, those that I’ve met all seem to like working at Delcor. You made me feel I was an important and valued customer. And, after you expressed such interest in my vintage sofa, how could I not agree to buy another piece of furniture from you!

Would I recommend Delcor? A resounding yes!”

Don’t forget our Autumn Promotion is now on in all our showrooms and features 20% off all handmade-to-order furniture and 40% off refurbishment of existing Delcor furniture.

Order now for Pre-Christmas delivery. Find your showroom.