Eames Lounge Chair copies... worth it?

[MikeDT]



Even Amazon is selling Eames lounge copies so I doubt it's illegal here in the states...

FYI Amazon is only an agent, rather like Ebay these days. There's plenty of KIRF products listed on there from many vendors outside of the US, e.g. the infamous Bianco Brioni suits. Amazon does their own products, like Kindle, music and movies. But most most of what's on there comes from many sources, in many countries. Some legal in the US, some not so legal. And unlike Ebay, Amazon doesn't actually tell you where the vendor is or what country the product is shipping from.

 

[Brittany Paris]



FYI Amazon is only an agent, rather like Ebay these days. There's plenty of KIRF products listed on there from many vendors outside of the US, e.g. the infamous Bianco Brioni suits. Amazon does their own products, like Kindle, music and movies. But most most of what's on there comes from many sources, in many countries. Some legal in the US, some not so legal. And unlike Ebay, Amazon doesn't actually tell you where the vendor is or what country the product is shipping from.

Amazon wouldn't support illegal activity. Even though Amazon is an "agent", they could still get in trouble for any kind of illegal activity on their site. There are soooooo many reproductions being sold through Amazon, so again. I highly doubt it is illegal to sell a reproduction. There are brick and mortar stores here in the US that sell reproductions. They aren't being shut down. Please have evidence on hand if you are going to make such claims.

 

[Kaplan]

From October England will have the same laws as Denmark regarding furniture copyright, meaning that you can't copy/reproduce until 70 years after the designer's death (opposed to the current 25 years after the design was made).

 

[Find Finn]

Okay, that is a good bit faster than I expected.

 

[gomestar]



There are brick and mortar stores here in the US that sell reproductions. They aren't being shut down. Please have evidence on hand if you are going to make such claims.

DWR used to make fake Barcelona chairs. Now they can't.



I'm all for brushing off the trademark infringement part, I just find it to be in very poor taste to knowingly buy counterfeit items. I'm sure in NYC one can find some fakes in Chinatown. Fake Eames chair to match the fake Rolex Submariner to match that very fine glass of two buck chuck wine (which is authentic!)

 

[Find Finn]

Beijing Chang "All fake evevything"

 

[MikeDT]

Just search for Bianco Brioni on Amazon, for kirf suits.

 

[Intrepident]

.

 

[Intrepident]

I'm really glad I stumbled onto this thread. I've been debating for months on whether or not to get a Herman Miller Eames Lounge Chair or the one from Rove Concepts. I found an authorized dealer that I talked into giving me a brand new Walnut/Black Leather for $3400 shipped/after tax or with MCL leather upgrade for $3600. (I believe the full retail is $5,000 + for both of these models). Rove Concepts copy would be $1400. I don't know what do to. What do you all think of the price point of the Herman Miller one that I got quoted? If it's a steal I think I will jump on the Herman Miller one...

Edit...I'm glad I stumbled upon this thread BEFORE it got over-run with nonsensical discussions that help no one in making an informed decision about buying the real Herman Miller Eames or a reproduction.

I bought the Herman Miller and don't regret it at all. Went Black MCL leather and got a screaming deal. The comfort and quality of the Herman Miller is indescribable. I personally do not want to trick anyone (including myself) into believing that a replica is the same as the original. While not truly proprietary from a patent standpoint, the secret formula Herman Miller uses to build this chair is not able to be copied.

If you cannot afford the original, save your $1,000 and keep saving until you can get the original.

 

[Find Finn]

 

[ES670]

So anything from Brittany about her purchase? I'm curious to know.

 

[Brittany Paris]



So anything from Brittany about her purchase? I'm curious to know. 

Yes, I do have an update. Rove Concepts had an annoying delay in sending me the chair, so it ended up being shipped while I was on vacation. My husband was able to sign for it instead of the apartment office, thank goodness. The box wouldn't fit in the front door! I will be back from vaca on Sunday so it will be opened then. I made my hubs take a pic of the box. Lol. Anyway, I will post a pic of it put together when it's all settled in my living room.

 

[ES670]

I'll keep my fingers crossed for you. Here's my experience with a knock off. I got interested in the Eames Lounge Chair but was deterred by the price tag, so I started looking at the knock offs. I actually thought they looked pretty close to the original, at least based on the online pictures. I finally pulled the trigger and ordered one from somaclassics.com. Talked to someone named, Matt (coincident?), and found him helpful with the order. Chair arrived a week late; no big deal. Upon inspection, I noticed a few issues. One was there was a staple sticking out of the inside of the plywood below the arm rest. Another issue was a piece of split plywood on the seat pan. To make a long story short. I had to return the chair 4 times. No, it wasn't a typo. 4 times. Still each and every chair I received some some issues here and there. One had a scratched up ottoman. Another two had screws sticking out of the inside of the plywood where the originals put the shocks units. In the end, I asked for a refund. I'm sure they lost money with altogether 8 rounds of shipping a 100lb chair from the east coast to the west coast.
I'm by no means trying to scare you. In fact, I'm thankful for that experience because it allowed me to appreciate the original Eames Lounge Chair that much more. Anyway, that's another story which I'd be happy to share on the future. What I'm thinking is if you're happy with your chair, great. If not, get a refund and like someone else said save up until you can get an original. Please keep us posted. I really enjoyed reading your posts!!

 

[odee911]

I'll keep my fingers crossed for you. Here's my experience with a knock off. I got interested in the Eames Lounge Chair but was deterred by the price tag, so I started looking at the knock offs. I actually thought they looked pretty close to the original, at least based on the online pictures. I finally pulled the trigger and ordered one from somaclassics.com. Talked to someone named, Matt (coincident?), and found him helpful with the order. Chair arrived a week late; no big deal. Upon inspection, I noticed a few issues. One was there was a staple sticking out of the inside of the plywood below the arm rest. Another issue was a piece of split plywood on the seat pan. To make a long story short. I had to return the chair 4 times. No, it wasn't a typo. 4 times. Still each and every chair I received some some issues here and there. One had a scratched up ottoman. Another two had screws sticking out of the inside of the plywood where the originals put the shocks units. In the end, I asked for a refund. I'm sure they lost money with altogether 8 rounds of shipping a 100lb chair from the east coast to the west coast.
I'm by no means trying to scare you. In fact, I'm thankful for that experience because it allowed me to appreciate the original Eames Lounge Chair that much more. Anyway, that's another story which I'd be happy to share on the future. What I'm thinking is if you're happy with your chair, great. If not, get a refund and like someone else said save up until you can get an original. Please keep us posted. I really enjoyed reading your posts!!

Wow I just checked out soma classics, and just looking at the pictures you can tell this is a very bad reproduction. Sorry for the hassle you had, I have seen those pictures before from somaclassics from another website, a retailer use to sell this exact chair here in Vancouver and also another site called Kardiel. This is definitely a mass reproduced chair when someone can afford to ship it to you 4 times plus free shipping... that is a huge red flag for me. I have read the leather on this chair peels off over time and they don't use the proper shock mounts thus not having that flex when you lean back.

I think the best thing anyone can do is request swatches from a few retailers and at least compare first hand what leather will be used on the chair.

I am extremely happy with my chair at Rove, I have finally finish reading this thread. Good to see some other positive Rove feedbacks on here.

I wanted to note though they have made revisions to their chair 1 month ago and the price has gone up. The new chair now has the correct Herman Miller angle. They have also added more down/dacron over the pu foam. I actually called in and will be having mine swapped out next week.

I was just in their show room the other day and they showed me all the new features! Before this they actually took me to EQ3 ( herman miller dealer ) about 4 blocks down the road. They got me to sit on the chair to get a good feel of how it sits and the flex that makes this chair so comfortable! They then showed me how to detached the top cushion and pointed out how it was attached. I also made note that the Herman Miller shell is not finished on the inside. You can actually see the plywood near the arm area...just a small detail.

We went back to the Rove showroom after I sat on the chair some more, just to make sure I remember the feeling. At the Rove showroom first thing I did was used the same method to detached the top cushion, I was impressed how easy it was and the method and hooks /parts were just the same as the original I just sat on. ( cheaper replicas will glue, velcro or nail the cushion onto the shell, being able to attach and reattach means you can easily replace certain parts years down ). Also to note the inside shell was fully veneer with the Rove chair which was a nice touch.

After reattaching the top cushion I threw myself right onto the chair. First impressions were, WOW the down/dacron they added to the top layer was very apparent. It was soft and I sank into the chair nicely, at the same motion I effortlessly flexed the chair back when I got into the sweet spot. This was exactly the same feeling I had just at EQ3 sitting on the original, except the leather was much softer on the Rove chair. They told me this is because the base model for the Eames is in fact not an aniline leather ( aniline option is another $1000 option ).

They told me the all important rubber shock mount piece they use is exactly the same as the original and lots of the cheaper replicas are built with many incorrect parts and are built for looks and not comfort.

I really urge anyone in the Vancouver area to do exactly what I did, check out the original at EQ3 then pop by their showroom and get the full experience yourself. I feel like I've learned so much about this chair through all this and have a greater appreciation on how it is constructed.

I will be receiving the new chair next week and will be taking tons of pictures from how the box arrived to unpacking to the chair itself and all the features I pointed out. Hope this was informative for everyone!

Cheers
Ozzy

 

[ES670]

It's nice to hear that people have had positive experience buying reproductions of the Eames Lounge Chair. Certainly not my case. Sounds like Rove Concept is very spot on in terms if making every specification close to the original which makes me question why Herman Miller hasn't taken legal action against them. Not that I want them to get in trouble but I think Herman Miller has done that to a company that made Eames Lounge Chairs that were almost indistinguishable from the original. Anyway, original or repro, what matters most is comfort.