Scandinavian Designs

Seems the reviews are right: I came here to buy a few pieces of furniture… like, today. I’ve been here for an hour. I’ve already picked out a few pieces I want to buy right now, and one of them is the couch I’m sitting on while writing this review.
I tracked someone down fifteen minutes after I walked into the store and she said someone would be right with me. No one else will make eye contact. After waiting for forty five minutes, I decided to take pictures of everything I wanted so I could buy it elsewhere. Wait, someone’s coming…
Nope. Briefest of eye contact, and just as I start to say something and stand up he scurries towards another couple to ask them if they need help. Hello? I’m an easy sale! I’m going to point to five or six things I’ve already decided to buy and give you a credit card… if you’ll just talk to me. :(
Update: on my way out of the store, someone asked if I had been helped yet. I explained what had happened from my perspective. They apologized a lot. I don’t want their apologies, I want to buy some furniture.
And they have wonderful furniture, they just don’t want to sell it to you.

Although I really like their furniture and their products, their service is horrible. We had initially bought our furniture from them approximately one year ago and the furniture was delivered on time as expected. On this location, we decided to purchase an expensive piece of furniture from them and placed the order via telephone. We have emailed and called them to confirm that the order was placed several weeks ago. However no one has responded to us to let us know of the status of the order. How difficult is it to call back a customer or to email back?!! Horrible customer service

I spent $ 4800 at Scandinavian Designs. We decided to look there again but for office furniture. We parked behind the store in the scan Design lot. Because the store had not yet opened, we went down the street a half block for coffee. When we came back, our car was towed. The manager was utterly unapologetic, saying people park there over night. Worse, he was an a-​hole about it. I vow never to go back.

Man, I love Scandinavian Designs. There’s always so many things that I want to bring home whenever I wander through, and while my budget might not allow me, tons of things are fairly reasonable priced, for what they are.
Last Friday, I finally bit the bullet and purchased their chrome arc lamp that I’ve been lusting after for years, and can’t wait until I pick it up tomorrow from their San Carlos warehouse.
The vast majority of their staff is friendly, outgoing, and very knowledgeable about their products, which is nice to see.
Definitely a fan of this place!

Cool furniture. The sales rep was willing to bargain without prompting from me. I suggest asking about any discounts. We ended up getting a large piece significantly discounted. It’s still more than ikea, but this is great stuff and prices are reasonable. Think 1000 for a couch instead of 500. Highly recommend stopping by if you are looking for something ikea style but more grown up.

I needed to buy furniture for my new apartment, traveling to the Bay area with only two suitcases. The team at Scandinavian Design was very helpful and patient, spending a couple of hours with me over the course of several days. My budget, size of my apartment under 700 sq ft) and my ideas re: «Style» were all considered. Furniture is good quality and the delivery staff very professional, they got the apartment all done in under two hours.

Alfred is the best! Service is top notch! My partner and I love to come here and just look at the fabulous and affordable furniture !!!

I picked up some furniture at the Scandinavian Design warehouse. I had a Toyota pickup so I was limited in space so I knew I would have to make two trips. The warehouse crew were really helpful in looking up the dimensions of the furniture I had ordered and helping me decide which pieces I could take on each trip that would work. Would never have figured this out on my own! They really went out of there way to make sure that my furniture was loaded properly and it was secured enough that I could drive home safely. Kudos to the warehouse staff — very much appreciated!

I have driven by this place literally 100’s of times and never gone inside.
When I first walked in, I was AMAZED on how big this place is… It is HUGE!
I was able to find what I was looking for… the staff was polite and willing to help, but not pushy…
I found their prices to be fair and the quality seemed to be there too. Looking for some furniture? Give this place a chance… You will be surprised by how much selection they have.

No longer a loyal customer. I’ve been a fan of this place for years. Needed a new sofa. Bought a floor sample after being told it was brand new. Apparently they have a new policy that they do not remove the old furniture. Ok, so I have to deal with getting rid of the stuff myself. The sofa show up with a HUGE RIP on the bottom. Call the store they tell me then will send someone out to fix it. Then the delivery guys move the sofa up one flight of stairs, and then stop. They refuse to lift the sofa up and make a turn into my house. They immediately move the sofa back into their truck. No, sorry about that, no effort to try to move it into my house. If this is your new business model, then good luck. You can blame the delivery guys as being 3^rd party contactors etc, I will never buy another piece of furniture from this place.

This is a great place to find nice quality furniture at a descent price. They aren’t the same as Room and Board or West Elm, but they do have some great pieces. We’ve ordered our couch and chair from here and love how they’re both timeless pieces.

Came here last weekend and checked this place out and I liked what I saw.
I browsed around for about 20 minutes until I saw exactly what I wanted. An awesome sized motorized desk for $ 500 sale, which is very hard to find.
I was immediately helped by a very friendly and informative sales guy and he made the purchase a breeze.
I was told that I had to pick up the desk at their San Carlos warehouse on Tuesday, which was only 10 minutes down the road.
I came in when I was told and they had it ready for me and helped me put it in my car and that was that.
I highly recommend Scandinavian Designs, because they make unique furniture and have some great prices. I love my desk and it’s a perfect fit for my home.
Thanks SD!!!

This place really sucks for service. I asked 2 people for assistance and both told me they were busy in the same way they would probably respond to a homeless person. This actually wouldn’t have offended me that much if it wasn’t a furniture store but something about people dressed in bad polyester telling me they’re too busy to sell me a overpriced bed frame irked me. One of them was a middle age woman who looked as if she hadn’t smiled since they were still selling Peugeots in the US. Lady, if you read this, don’t wear brown polyester. I swear your life will improve.
The selection here isn’t bad and they do have a lot of stuff. Prices are hit or miss depending on the sale. Quality is hit or miss depending on the items. From other reviews I would say that finding the right sales person is the key to this place. Too bad it’s such a rare occurrence. This is not a bad place to just get some coffee and browse. They getting help and the actual buying is what’s difficult.

We recently worked with Alfred to get some furniture including an accent chair from overseas. We are impressed. He is knowledgeable, helpful and extremely honest.
On the morning of the delivery, he called to let us know that the factory has shipped one piece of furniture with a defective leg. He gave us choices and was willing to take the defective furniture back without any hesitation. Alfred always responds to our questions quickly. We paid for the quality furniture and with Alfred’s assistance we are happy with it.

Why are retail sales associates in furniture stores so snooty? It’s RETAIL. Took my teen son to Rooster’s for a haircut and then stopped in here to look at sectionals and swivel chairs. Several staff members at the counter but few customers. No greeting, nothing. I was wearing jeans and a hoodie, no makeup. I’m 48. Finally got the attention of one gentleman and asked a few questions. The whole time I felt like he was sizing me up deciding whether I was worth his time. I hate that feeling and it makes no sense at all given that in The Silicon Valley some of the wealthiest folks wear a daily uniform that consists of jeans and a T-​shirt. We bought a dining table here for a previous home a few years ago. I still am considering one of the sectionals but hated the vibe in the store. Their website is totally lame too — the only way to view other fabrics on an upholstered item is to view it as a pop-​up swatch but not on the actual furniture piece. What’s the point then?
Now, after reading other reviews, I just recalled something else that happened yesterday that was off-​putting. So, I like this one leather sectional because it was surprisingly comfortable and sized right. I asked to get the specs. So then Kelly, the sales rep who had been «helping» me, pointed out the black floor model, on discount, and suggested I go with that — but I had already stated that black is not the look we are going for for our teen/​family room. In light of the other comments, I find this insulting. At no point did I mention price other than to inquire whether other colors were available. I did mention price to my son while we were on our own viewing the sofa in the context of this is within budget if you like it too.. . I have never understood this attitude. Remember Pretty Woman.. . he also tried to steer me toward the purple model of a swivel chair I liked because it would soon be «discounted.» Gee, thanks! While purple is my son’s school’s colors, the appeal ends there. No thanks!

Barbara the district manager reached out to me and helped me get the rest of my desk.
She really made me feel appreciated, and took care of me appropriately.
I am looking forward to coming back here when I need something else.

I was sofa shopping and this place does have really comfortable sofas but for a price. They made it known to me several times that their stuff is made in Norway and not China. Ok i get it, I don’t need to hear it over 3 times. If you have the money to splurge go for it, but find a nice salesman

Great selection of mostly reasonably priced furniture.
We found one we like and bought it and the salesman was really nice and helpful with cleaning tips.
We also wanted lamps but their lamp selection was ONLY modern. Not my style.

Scandinavian Designs cover a whole range of quality furnitures and I find that the sales reps here are very honest. We worked with Anne today and she had no problem telling us which pieces were solid wood frames and which weren’t. Granted, I’m sure she just wanted to make a sale, but the fact that she actually listened to our opinions and tried to match us with quality pieces that «suit our taste» was refreshing.
Almost all of their pieces in their showrooms are arranged with design in mind. It would actually be a nice place to come to get some design ideas.

This place is SO different from the Berkeley location, you can definitely tell this place accommodates a totally different crowd. The Berkeley one is more geared toward college students, this one is more practical for families and businesses. HUGE selection in this very spacious store — felt like the furniture just never ends and there’s always another set of stairs or another room to explore! A lot of the chairs look very modern — made me think of The Jetsons cartoon… There were a couple paintings I liked, though I couldn’t quite figure out what they were depicting. Tons of tables and sofas and shelves and desks, yet I couldn’t manage to find anything that would fit my needs. Sigh. At least this location has a bathroom in the store for use (unlike the Berkeley one…).
The most memorable moment was when a customer inquired about a small table stand. The saleswoman asked the customer what she planned to use the table for. The customer said probably a cup or something. Oddly enough, the salesperson responded that the table is off-​balance/​slanted so anything you place on it will slip off. Whoa. Talk about honesty. What’s the point of even having the table anyway? Beats me. Just for looks even though it’s hardly anything to look at? At least she saved that lady from a useless purchase!