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Sustainable wood drives demand for quality oak furniture

A leading Midlands retailer is seeing strong sales of oak furniture as the trend for sourcing sustainable materials impacts on interior design.

Birmingham furniture specialist Lee Longlands says its Oak Room range is boosting sales, both in store and online, with both new and reclaimed wood pieces being sought by home-owners looking for natural materials to transform their rooms.

Director Robert Lee said the company has seen trends in styles and materials come and go throughout its 110 year history.

He said: “Around 20 or so years ago, everyone wanted pine, it was affordable softwood which could easily be painted or stripped to suit. But hardwoods have always proved popular and recently, there has undoubtedly been a resurgence in the demand for oak. It has the versatility to work well in a range of rooms and lends itself to contemporary and traditional themes.

“For hundreds of years carpenters and craftsmen have chosen oak to fashion beautiful items for the home. It is known for its strength and durability as well as having a distinctive and timeless beauty, ranging in rich colours which span from a light golden to mid brown shades.

“We are seeing that more and more customers are looking to buy sustainable and hard-wearing pieces, whether that’s oak bed frames, wardrobes or dressers for the bedroom.

“Sales of oak dining tables and chairs are also up, and although there will undoubtedly be a new style trend behind this increase, we believe there is also an environmental awareness factor driving demand.

“Our buyers work closely with all our suppliers and manufacturers to ensure all the timber used is carefully sourced from ethically sustainable forests. We are proud to offer quality oak products sourced by our buyers without harming the world in which we live.”

Mr Lee added: “Our oak collections are made from both 100 per cent solid oak but also combinations of solid oak and an oak veneer. This is a great combination as it gives the look of a solid product but reduces movement in the panels which can occur in modern centrally heated houses.

“We also offer reclaimed oak furniture which gives all the benefits of oak strength durability and style but using pieces of wood that were previously used for other furniture pieces. The beauty is in the rustic appearance achieved with no two pieces ever being the same due to the very nature of the different aged pieces being used.”

For more information about Lee Longlands visit www.leelonglands.co.uk or follow the store on facebook at www.facebook.com/leelonglands or on Twitter @leelonglands

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Lee Longlands .