This past Sunday I heard a knock at the door and opened it to find a guy who gave me a quick pitch about how he was in town from North Carolina with a tractor trailer loaded with furniture that they were liquidating as part of the “summer markdown.” He went on to say that they were selling it for $0.30 on the dollar and invited me to see what they had in the truck.
It turns out that they were going up and down the street trying to get people to come out to see their wares. We don’t need any furniture, and there’s no way I’m going to buy it off the back of a truck from a guy who cold called at my front door but, curious guy that I am, I went out to see what was up.
When I got out to the street, I noticed that the door of the truck said something about Thomasville Distributing Co. (or something like that) out of High Point, NC. While I’m familiar with the Thomasville brand of furniture, I somehow doubt that these guys were official representatives of Thomasville Furniture Industries, Inc. It seems more likely that they slapped some letters on a truck that made them sound official and then went out looking for some scammable souls.
Anyway, when I got to the truck, it was chock full of apparently new furniture, ranging from a grandfather clock to living room and bedroom sets. They had some slick brochures and official looking price lists, but it was unclear exactly what brand the furniture was. And what about those low, low bargain prices? Most of the full sets were ‘marked down’ down from ~$10k to ~$3k, which got me wondering…
How often do these guys stumble upon someone that’s willing to shell out three grand for furniture off the back of a truck from a total stranger who happened to knock on their door on a Sunday afternoon? It must work at least occasionally, otherwise they wouldn’t be doing it. Beyond this, I’m really curious as to what the underlying scam is – again, I’m assuming here that people with legitimate truckloads of Thomasville furniture don’t make a living by pulling into subdivisions and trying to unload their wares in the middle of the street. I’ve Googled around a bit looking for an answer, but I haven’t run across anything related to this.
Was this really Thomasville furniture, or some sort of knockoff? Were the pieces factory seconds, or perhaps otherwise damaged? Or maybe they were stolen? Then again, maybe it’s perfectly normal for roving furniture salesman to go door-to-door trying to offload a truckload of home furnishings on a Sunday afternoon.
Regardless, I think that I can safely add these guys to my list of people to whom I wouldn’t write a check.
Update: Reader ‘hoops4ever’ provided a link to the Thomasville FAQ page, which contains the following information:
Someone in my area claims they are selling Thomasville furniture off of a truck. Are they legitimate?No, we have heard of situations like this and would like to caution you about this furniture. While the truck may say that it is from Thomasville (the city in North Carolina), the furniture is not made by Thomasville Furniture Industries. Thomasville furniture is sold exclusively in retail stores – from Thomasville Home Furnishings stores to authorized galleries and dealers. To find the store nearest you, please visit our online Store Finder.
Nothing wrong with these guys and furniture. In fact it’s good quality furniture and they are just trying to earn living. They knocked on my door and entire neighbour’s doors. Never heard of them before but I just bought for the entire living room. It is not very discounted it is almost at par with most online sites but convenient because they came at the door and delivered right away.
There used to be 100 or more peddling out of High Point ..now that everything is imported theres only a few dozen running the road..they are legit but better check the pricing on the internet before you buy and use Paypal in case you have a grievance
Where you in Virginia yesterday in a neighborhood off 95?
This North Carolina Furniture Carriers of Thomasville N.C has been going through my neighbor hood for several months.
These guys are legit, I myself sold furniture off of a truck for 10 years. Most of the furniture comes out of North Carolina although they do not have Thomasville gallery furniture they do sale Ashley,bassett,singer,broyhill,howard Miller and Ridgeway and many more. These guys are just trying to make a living like you and I. Furniture is marked up 300 percent they buy straight from the factory and load it up and go town to town selling it. They have very low overhead cost that’s how they sale it so cheap. If it’s in the store for 1000 dollars the store cost is around 300 dollars so they profit 700. The peddler will sale it for 700 and profit 400 saving you 300 dollars. Remember all they have to do is go back nc and load up more. In some cases there are other trucks that shuttle loads to these guys that’s how they can take special orders and custom build your furniture for you. Alot of small businesses in High point NC depend on these trucks.
They are selling furniture. That’s the bottom
line…
A “Carolina Carriers” truck from High Point, NC pulled up to our office building in Temecula, CA on Friday letting us know they came to CA to deliver furniture COD, but the end-user did not pay. They want to liquidate their truck full of “Thomasville Furniture, grandfather clocks, mirrors, art” so that they don’t have to drive it back to NC. Some people from other office suites went out to look and I did see some people purchase things (the truck was parked right outside of our office). Guess what, it’s Monday and they are back! Seems fishy…
I have to say that 14 years ago I did buy a beautiful dinning set for 8 with an extra table leaf and 8 chairs. I also bought the buffet and china cabinet. I bought this off a truck from North Carolina and they said they were seconds The Thomasville stores auction off there seconds and they bought them and sold at a lower price. My furniture is still beautiful and completely functional today. May not always be a scam
I’ve been buying items from them for my business for many years. they come around about once every year. Never have had a problem. I use to work in the furniture industry and know full well they were not the “Thomasville” name brand, but many furniture manufacturers are from that area. Not fine furnishings but everything I’ve purchased has held up very well and I have had no problems. I prefer to not have to go to several stores every time I remodel. So it’s convenient. I know I’m paying regular price too. If I don’t see anything I need, I just say “try me again in another year”.
They were in Rancho Cordova,CA today trying to sell there furniture from the same big white truck. Tons of people in the area got asked but no one looked.
Well the are still at it. They knocked at my door yesterday, a Sunday afternoon and I said no thank you. Then they showed up at my work today in the same town…. Really. It was still a no thank you. Seemed fishy to me and then I found this site. They didn’t say anything about a brand but I would think the Thomasville, NC would trigger the thought that it is Thomasville brand. I’ve had door to door a lot of things but this was the first for furniture 🙂 I imagine it is cheap stuff you can find at any other cheap place and if someone wants/likes it…..go for it. Seems like they could come up,with a new story after so many years. … Hahaha.
wish they would pass through the neighborhood again! love what I bought 15 years ago for liv room, need new famroom furniture!! Where are you? Plainfied IL
This furniture comes out of Thomasville and High Point NC and is a great deal to the family that is in need of household furniture at a better price than the store. It is bought at a Truckload price strait out of factory. Great deals. Sales Permits. Everything is legit. With Warranty. Great deals if your in the market!!!
Y’all are talking about the bad ones there is bad business all over America. I used to do this but we told the truth and made right on every deal we made. There are some that do this like I used to that are hard working people that are selling furniture at price that you could not find any where else do to the supply we have in n.c. You know the furniture capital of the world high point take it to where the cost of living is allot more thank ours to make a living but also save the customer money. Unless you have the money to buy a million dollars at a time that’s how we make money buying in bulk. If you want to see real con s look at your bank government etc.thank you
I bought my bedroom suit from them a year ago. I still love it. It’s solid and good furniture. They threw in my kitchen nook dinette. Strong and sturdy wrought iron set. They came by two days ago and if I had the money. I would of bought a living room set. I didn’t feel ripped off. Felt like a great bargain. It really makes a difference if you do your research. Not every out of truck sale is great. But I felt like this was honest hard working people.
I been selling furniture for 22 years off back of truck . I am from high point nc . I can tell you fact certain if it says lane ,it’s lane if it says ashley like the previous women claims ,it’s ashley you can’t build a dining room as fake , it cost millions of dollars to build a plant .None of you guys got scammed maybe could have paid too much. Most guys are from thomasville or high point nc . But furniture is not made by tfi industries . I have hundreds of repeat customers and they get whatever warranty manufacturers offer. So guys you all can relax and enjoy your savings .Next time someone comes by don’t worry ,if you need something buy it more than likely good deal. I no all of these guys ,main thing is don’t leave big deposit ,I do 20.00 good faith deposit rest on delivery . Oh by the 85.00 to 125.00 savings on delivery plus more on setup. By the way the real scammers are the dam stores who take you for a ride sometimes . There overhead is tremendous .Oh by the way to the gentleman who said he truly sorry for what saving people ,but if you lie shame on you .Happy buying
Their is “NO SUCH THING” as a Thomasville Furniture Truck, that sells furniture. No matter what the letters on a furniture truck may say. As a matter of fact, Thomasville furniture is not made in Thomasville, NC anymore. That’s another story….
Dear Sir,
I am finally glad to see somebody post something positive about us, the honest guys that sell furniture off a truck for a living. Everyday there are hundred’s of people that buy furniture off furniture trucks. Its a fact that not all the guys that do this are honorable like any other profession. When you take in consideration there are hundreds of furniture trucks and yes a few negative comments then a ton of people that just want to say something negative with no substance or real experience. I think over all we do a good job. Google your local furniture store or favorite furniture brand for complaints. And you will see the furniture business as a whole has a lot of problems. And quite possible much fewer problems buying off a truck as compared. Again as any other purchase you have to look the salesman in the eye and gauge him based on what you see and know. We are all different. PS I once worked with a Danny, if this is the same guy. Thanks for your honesty and taking care of your customer as you should. For every hundred happy customers it does not equal the impact of one negative customer. Thanks for your time…
I came across this site after I bought some furniture off of a truck. I read through alot of the comments and decided to post my experience. On April 26th a tractor and trailer stopped by my home here in Londonderry, NH. A gentlemen came to the door and said they were up here from NC selling furniture and wanted to know if I was interested in looking. At first I said no and then I seen a few neighbors out at the truck. So my wife and I decided to go out and just see what they had. I spoke to a gentleman named Danny and he greeted my wife and I with a handshake. He said he had pictures of everything and to feel free to take a look. We had been looking for a bedroom set for a while and they had 3 different ones to choose from. I then started asking questions about why he was all the way up here from NC doing this. He told me that he owned all the furniture on the truck and basically went door to door trying to sell it and that’s how he made his living. Out of the 3 bedroom sets he had, he said only 1 of them was made in the US. My wife actually liked it but thought it was to dark. He told us that the pictures sometimes made it look that way and offered to take a piece out of the box so we could see the color and how it was made. He took a nightstand out and it was actually lighter than the picture and seemed to be decently constructed based on what we had previously seen at the stores. He gave us a fair price on the set and we decided to buy it. The guys with him actually moved all of our old bedroom furniture out and put the new set in. As they were putting the bed together Danny noticed that they didn’t have the side rails and needed to go to his storage building to see if he left them in there. He left 1 of his guys there named Bobby to touch up a few scatches. While he was gone, Bobby even touched up our old set so we could give it to our daughter. When Danny got back he informed me that the side rails had been left off the truck and he would have them sent by Fedex on Monday. I must say I was concerned about this because the bed couldn’t be put together without them. He assured us that we would get them. We went ahead and payed for the set and put our trust in him. Danny called me on Monday with a tracking number from Fedex and said they should be there on Wednesday. The bed rails arrived at our house on Wednesday just like he said. I called him and they came back out and finished putting the bed together. I must say that I was impressed with the professionalism that he displayed during the whole process. I actually sent him a text the next day thanking him for knocking on our door and wished him much success. If they are in our area ever again and we need something else, we will definitely buy it from him. I would say that my take on this would be that no matter what type of company you deal with you’re going to have positive and negative reviews. I would definitely say that this was a positive experience for us and didn’t feel it was any scam at all.
Yes, I know how you feel my wife and I bought a new car several years ago. And the transmission went out. As a matter of fact it went out THREE times. You know how these foreign car makers and dealers are. So when you see a foreign car dealership Honda Toyota and the such call the police. I want to see these criminals caught and punished. They are well “JUST” all the same. Just like most people.
I want to share our story, so no one else will be swindle by the “Thomasville Furniture Truck”. For the past 9 mos, my husband and I have thought we owned a $5,000 sofa and love seat set from Thomasville furniture. Today, I was vacuuming the inside of our loveseat and found a tag that called the set “Simmons Encore Vintage” and also said the sofa was made from vinyl/bonded leather. I immediately starting researching online and found your website. We are still in shock and very upset that our sofas are only worth $1000 rather than $5000. A Thomasville Truck came to my husband’s work in Cleveland, TN and said they were liquidating furniture. We purchased our set for $2500 thinking we were getting a 50% discount off the retail price of 5K. PLEASE, PLEASE be aware of this scam and never purchase furniture from a “Thomasville Truck”. In fact, if you come in contact with them, call the police. I would like to see these criminals caught and punished.
Savannah TN 9/26/14
A guy came by my office with a load of furniture from “Thomasville” He said they had delivered a load to a local furniture store and had some things left over. I did not look telling them my wife does not allow me to buy furniture. The guy was very polite and went back to his white truck. I saw another guy leaving the adjoining office and get in the truck and they left.
There are over 100 peddlers that load up here in High Point. Most go to area the of the country where dealers jack up the prices to high. You can buy a Ashley Home Store bedroom for a third of the price the store will sell it for. Most of the trucks load up around 25,000 dollars worth of furniture and go out and peddle it at the areas were dealers are overcharging consumers. The furniture is not stolen and you will always buy it cheaper than you can find in high overhead stores. Florida , Texas, Maryland Pennsylvania and Michigan consumers get ripped off the most at their local dealers..some of the peddlers I know sell out their trucks in 2 weeks and have been doing it for 20 years.
My mom bought furniture about 15 years ago off the back of A Truck. A grandfather clock a couch a chair two end tables and coffee table. It is still holding up and is in good condition. Where’s the scam?
23 years ago A Thomasville truck was in my area and we did buy 3 couches and 2 Queen Anne chairs Currently the 2 queen ann chairs are in my sister in laws family room, one of the couches is in my parents living room, one is in my nephews college apartment and we still have the other. Boy was that a rotten deal. Don’t knock it until you try it. I hope I see a truck of theirs again.
I’ve made a great living buying furniture in High Point Nc where I live & taking it out of state selling it door to door. The furniture isn’t Thomasville inc furniture. But it’s made in Thomasville the town where the high end Thomasville furniture once was made until our country sold our manufacturing jobs out from under us. That’s another post I guess lol. The furniture on the trucks how ever are name brands like Howardmiller clocks or Ridgeway the bedrooms can be any thing from Bassett to Lexington all in all very nice furniture ! The point is I can sell it. Cheaper off of a truck rather then pay for a show room and all the exspences that come along with it. Everything isn’t a con or some one out to get you. There are people that think outside the box to make a honest living. I’ve put my 3 boys threw collage doing this. My income is unreal I probably make 300 to 400k a yr. with that being said there are some guys that do the same thing I do and try to pass of the living rooms as Thomasville inc because of the streamers attached to the sofas say Thomasville Nc. There not 8way hand tie as the claim but there drop in coil units. A good manufacturing spring method but no wear near the quality that 8way provides. If you like paying high prices for a nice showroom and the elevator music that so often accompanys with it. Then by all means go to Havertys and shop till you drop. But my advice to the family off sitting at the house on a weekend and are in the market for furniture and like to save a few hundred dollars or even a few thousand and get the chance to hear your door bell ring and it not be a jahovia witness but a traveling furniture peddler. Greet him with a smile and some southern hospitality. Go outside and look I mean these guys load and unload this truck by hand they set it up for you meaning free delivery. They stay in cheap motels away from there loved ones so that they can provide a good living for them. And they do this weekly,monthly,yearly most of them are really good people. Of course there making money or they wouldn’t be doing it. But your saving money & from where I come from That’s What we call a win win. We’ll I hope I have I lightend you and best of luck to you all. Who knows I maybe the one knocking or ringing Your doorbell Laughing Out Loud you never know .
This is just stupid. The uninformed making a comment without knowing the facts. Reminded me of the guy that went out getting reactions on the Presidents speech, before the speech was giving. Most were commenting on the speech as if they had listened to it. Not knowing the speech was the next day. Ok, so what do you think ? That they painted there truck and trailer ever week just to fool you or anybody else. When is the last time you had a car painted how about a tractor trailer, do you know how much that cost ? I don’t think so. If you don’t want to buy furniture from a truck, OK that’s your choice. Personally, I wouldn’t but meat from a truck. Have you seen those insurance commercials that end up with, well did you know. WELL, did you know all the furniture manufacturing went to China. No not just low-end but “ALL furniture manufacturing”. That’s where those guys jobs went. Another thing, they are not at home on the couch waiting on Obama Care or a government check. If you are the working class you show be happy these guys are working. Cause your taxes don’t have to support them. They are working doing what they can and most likely have children a family to support. Why would anybody work that hard. They have a family to support There is no more North Carolina furniture manufacturing all this furniture comes from the same factories, comes here on containers. Go to warehouses and then goes to distributors, stores or to trucks. Really its just that simple. Think about what you say and think. We need everybody in this country working and paying their way. Anyway they can that is legal. And buy selling furniture off a truck that alone supports all kinds of jobs. And for some provides a service. I hope somebody gets it.
They just came through southwest Gainesville, Florida again. Only this time they changed their name to Furniture Impressions, based out of North Carolina. A few thug looking guys drove up in a white semi trailer and went around knocking on doors.
Wouldn’t even think about buying anything from them. Giving them a check??? Letting them bring furniture into my house so they can scope the place??? I don’t think so! I will stick to the brick-and-morter companies for furniture… I even buy from discount furniture stores. Not as good quality but look half way decent.
I’d probably slam the door in the salespersons face. I hate cold callers. You might get a good deal however you’ll get caught out eventually.
What concerns me even more, with the price possibly being roughly $3000, would it not be dangerous for someone to into their home, off the street, in front of a total stranger, and whipping out $3000? With these people being criminals right off the bat I’m sure they don’t take checks. What would keep them from coming back at another time and personally “check” out your home to see if you have even more cash available? Just sayin..
The truck made it to Navarre, Florida this Sunday. Knocking at everybody’s door and trying to sell directly from the truck. Same white truck Thomasville Furniture, NC.
Does anyone knows if you can report them?
Everyone loves what you guys are up too.
This kind of clever work and reporting! Keep up the very good
works guys I’ve added you guys to my blogroll.
Tammy, We go the police dept to get a permit. It is all legal and usually we only contact a few businesses before we sell out. The drivers name was Jeff his phone number is 336-423-1850. He was probably the driver. Keep in mind their are many if not hundreds of furniture trucks. Basicly we sell furniture, clear warehouses.
I think the thing keeping everyone concerned about this activity is, as in your case, there’s always a lame story, usually the same one or two excuses about why they have been stuck with this furniture. Regardless of the quality or price of the furniture this puts people off as more and more have heard of their bogus sales tactics.
If they’d just be up front, park in a visible, (legal), location and maybe run an ad when they are coming advertising direct pricing for a limited time they might be surprised how much business they get. They probably don’t have the business license they need to do this – so again people are skeptical.
BTW I live in Midland, Tx
This happened to me today – they came by our office while I was at work. Story that someone was decorating and ran into money problems so that they had all this extra furniture. Thought it was odd they had lamanated pictures of all the furniture on the truck and hurried me to get out there so they could take it to my house and write them a check. Only form of payment they take. So I googled them while I was at stop lights and saw this link. Well I turn on my street expecting them to be behind me and they are nowhere to be found. How you loose an 18 wheeler in the middle of town in a residential neighborhood is beyond me. But dunno where they went or what happened. Which is fine because I was already very skeptical. The furniture looks very nice and even sat in the chair. So would the scam actually be that it isn’t well made or what? I could care less if its stolen at the prices I was getting it. But he assured me it wasn’t.
I live In suitland md, I seen the truck on the side of the road so I said let me so by and grab a card, when I got over to them the guy was so rude. I just took down the name off the truck and pulled off. he told me he not giving me a number and he don’t make cards.
Spotted in SUAMICO Wisconsin this evening!!
My boyfriend and were outside working on yard work this evening and we heard the sound of a truck and looked around to see a semi truck that said “furniture capital of the world” we had thought someone was getting furniture delivered we didn’t think much of it, we were uncertain of the time of day because of being outside working in the yard. The truck pulls down our road and parks a bit away from our house and a guy comes over to us asking if we would like to look at some furniture he stated they were from North Carolina bringing a truck load of furniture to a furniture store but the store had gone out of business and they had a truck full of furniture that they needed to sell because they had another load of something to take back to north Carolina. The furniture was to be 20% off retail. We politely declined and said we did not need any furniture. He continued to try and persuade us saying he had accessories as well, but we still declined. He could tell we were not buying what he was selling and thought it may be a scam. He proceeded to take out a piece of paper stating he had gotten a permit from Suamico stating he could sell furniture out of the truck. We watched him go to our neighbors house and knock on their door. We honestly thought he was going to ask us if we knew where such and such address was or this street name, that he was lost!! My significant other and I both talked about how strange we thought this was! As I glance back at the truck an unmarked police car from brown county sheriff’s department showed up to talk with the guys from the truck, and then a second cop car shows up. Unfortunately we were not able to hear what was going on. Shortly after the truck pulled away from the neighborhood and the cops left as well. Unsure if the sale of furniture was legal or not.
I would watch out for a suspicious truck in your neighborhood, especially if you live in a bit more of a newer neighborhood, or a newer subdivision because talking with our neighbors it seems like they are targeting people who can pay cash on the spot and not have to worry about financing!
Just something they say to speed the process up, if u spoke with them Im sure they would have told u what furniture was made at what. If u read these posts most of the furniture with big brand names are made over seas and they slap their brand on them and raise the price 10 times what it cost. They get it right from the makers or from local places at autions. their great deals, they are not crooks
They were in Mars, PA today. A semi truck was parked in our residential neighborhood. The Doorbell rang. So, I answered. The guy told me that they were from Thomasville, and had furniture discounted to 70% off. He wasn’t specific about whether he meant Thomasville Furniture or Thomasville, NC. Although I did assume that he meant Thomasville furniture. I told him that I was not interested. It seemed suspicious. So, I called the police. The police came and talked to them. The officer then informed me that they did have the proper permits.
I don’t like how they throw around the Thomasville name. Most people associate the name Thomasville with furniture, not North Carolina, especially when the salesperson uses the word Thomasville in the same sentence as the word furniture. Thomasville furniture needs to slap a lawsuit on them.
I have a business. But, I don’t need to use my competitors name to sell my products.
I just bought an absolutely awesome chair for living room…came in plastic wrap..not a ding on it…for $280 LEATHER can’t top that price….i think if u truly dont trust them don’t buy, but don’t complain on here to try and get other people to not buy especially if these are definitely good bargains. Heck i sure don’t want to finance anymore furniture especially if this can be paid in cash or a check…and if they scam my acct oh well i can close it and open another one…the men are just working for a living…seriously doubt the furniture is stolen. I cannot believe what ive been reading here …its like the saying goes ” TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE”…that is why i did a google search…
I can’t help but notice on this forum that there are a lot of people saying that selling furniture off the back of a truck is a scam and then you will see that other people say it’s a good idea. If you look closer you will notice that the people complaining never bought any furniture off a truck, but the people who say good things about it, did buy furniture off of a truck and they are happy with the purchases. The first group was passing judgment on something they were unfamiliar with based on fear and the second group passed judgment based on experience.
Sabunabu,
There will be some furniture trucks in the Denver area next spring. We will be there partially for business and to visit family and friends. Additionally, we are working on a web page for the furniture peddling business to inform customers of the facts and fictions of this business. There is just too much misleading information out there that can no longer be ignored. It will also be for customer service issues.
Can someone get a business card or phone number? I’d like them to come to Denver. I’ve asked a few times and would really appreciate it if someone would grab contact info.
I live in Pittsburgh , so I hear doorbell ringing, answer it guy says we got great furniture , we had a cancel and were selling great prices. As I walk to the truck there are like 3 kids ringing doorbells and as I come up the police come. Someone must have called on them, but the police let them go. they have great deals they say etc etc. Anyway I check out the grandfather clock, Howard Miller benjamin, they want $1,400 cost $2,100. I ask the questions, how do i know its real, what if their scratched etc etc Anyway I buy it, conclusion–its real, works great, looks great, kind of wish i would have bought more stuff.
the truck said High point Furniture High point NC, they also put it together, had original boxes etc and were very nice.–also the one kid kind of told me the truth, said we got furniture– load it on a trcuk and sell it to places that don’t have easy access to these type of deals. he said they were going to stay in a hotel till they sold everything.. The next day coming home from church i saw their truck on the high way, waved to them, they said they come once every five years or so–probably go to nicer neighborhoods where people can buy on the spot
Dear JoDee,
I am not assuming anything. I am looking at the truck. I own the truck and it says absolutely nothing about Wilmington. Furthermore, I am right here in Omaha, not five miles away. So you are welcome to verify your mistake. You can come right down the road at Walmart and look at it. Just let me know. AGAIN, this is how things get turned around. They start with something irrelevant then grow from there. Respectfully Your
Just saying that is what we saw on the truck…in large green script print on a whiet e truck. The neighbors have it on security cameras. Please don’t assume you could see what we were seeing.
My friend, you are right. There is “NO” hard luck story. They are just selling furniture. And no where on the truck does it say, Wilmington. That is a coastal town in North Carolina. It has nothing to do with, North Carolina Furniture and is “NOT” on the truck anywhere. That is a problem, misleading information. At least you did not say, when I told the guy no,he tried to force himself in the house kicked the dog and ran away with my lawnmower. Sorry, no punt intended. My point, some of these post are just that misleading. And not all these furniture trucks are from the same company. Whatever your job, for example President of the USA or sectary of state or even your local accountants. I’m sure they are not all the same.
They are in Gretna NE tonight, yes selling furniture off the truck at 6:40 pm…no hard luck story, but I had my inside door open and he was standing there looking in when I rounded the corner to sound of the door bell. The man must have rang the doorbell, looked in, and quickly left the porch because he was already walking through our lawn to his truck by the time I got to the door. The truck said North Carolina furniture, and on the lower portion rear of the vehicle it had printed, “Wilimington”.
Hopefully a detail or two will help others.
I also live in Ankeny, IA and got the same story about the order being cancelled. We live in the newer subdivision of Deer Creek, but have lived there for 2 years so we don’t need any furnuture.
It’s not the traditional way of selling furniture, but you pay a price for the good. It’s not rocket science. You take the same risk at a lot of places. Think that stuff they’re passing off at Taco Bell is 100% real beef? I’ve got bad news for you.
Yeah, they’re making up a story to make a buck. From someone who has worked in marketing for years, welcome to the game.
FYI there are hundreds probably thousands of loads of furniture sold off the back of a truck. And yes, its definitely not perfect. And yes there are some customer service issues with some of these guys because they are not all the same. Just like your local dentist, accountant or mechanic. Have you Goggled your local store or name brand furniture lately for example Thomasville or lazy boy furniture. All things being equal you will get a better deal and probably better customer service off a truck. Those without a dog in this fight are more apt to give a more honest opinion on the subject. Some things are not always as they seem, look closer at that expensive furniture, like the back of it. I think you will find something in common with those furniture trucks. I live in the old furniture capital of the world North Carolina.
I can say this, the guys HAVE to tell some kind of story, buyers cant believe the price these guys sell furniture at, they get suspicious if there isnt a reason for the low price.
Its a double edged sword, tell the customer that is what price they can sell the furniture for and make a profit. Or be accused by the customer of selling stolen goods, or, make up a reason for the low price and have happy customers.
All the replies on this thread and what is missing?? Stories of bad furniture, police investigations, news stories of furniture salesmen getting busted and disgruntled customers unhappy with service or the product. Its just a bunch of skeptical people making guesses.
I own a furniture store in High Point, NC. My Father peddled furniture on the road throughout the 70’s and 80’s, he made an honest living, never had to lie about his furniture, he explained he bought his furniture through the family furniture store and was able to sell it marked up 25-40% still well below the stores in the areas he sold in.
Drivers name is Tim. All furniture is made in China. when manufacturing went overseas All manufacturing went over seas. At one time there were local manufactures that Furniture peddlers sold for and from. Now all furniture comes from the same place with very few exceptions. And those brochures are given to the drivers to help sell furniture. Anybody that knows anything about trucks knows if you are not legal. You WILL NOT make it far. At a store you just don’t see the packing or boxes. Its very simple, they sell furniture. It keeps a small part of the economy moving and people employed. And it all comes from China or the like. Some major retailers don’t like to admit it but it does. Just look on the back of that expensive night stand. That was a lane sofa and luv set that driver was selling. At one time in the seventies and eighths there said to be 600 trucks leaving north carolina selling furniture. Now there are very few. The days of buying Howard Miller Clocks cable clocks off the back of a truck are truly coming to an end. As a former furniture peddler, furniture manufacturer and downtown thomasville store owner. I can say a lot. When manufacturing went over seas it leveled the playing field. Stores and furniture peddlers pay the same. The furniture cost the same to make and transport. They are simply selling furniture off a truck.
I can guarantee you these guys are legit. It was real Lane furniture, was most likely made overseas, still, good furniture. These guys had to go through a bunch of weigh stations, nobody would carry loads of stolen furniture across state lines. Also, they wouldnt go door to door, these guys get police called on them all the time by suspicious people.
As far as why arent they selling to a local store, the local stores can buy the same furniture a little cheaper than these guys are selling it for. The $4000 is retail, that is always highly inflated. They probably do wholesale off the remaining few pieces to a small mom n pop furniture store before heading home.
hope this helps! Get back in touch with them if you can, you missed a good deal, that price is about right for that brand, at peddlar prices, they sell real cheap because they only have gas, motel room and food for overhead, no rent, electricity etc.
Similar thing just happened to me too! It was not Thomasville, but a large truck that said North Carolina Furniture on the side. We just bought a newer house in a subdivision in Ankeny, IA and we legitimately need new sofas and other furniture, so after looking at their permit and seeing that they were going to my neighbor’s doors too, not just mine that had the “sold” sign still in the front yard, I decided to look in the truck. They had the same story (and southern accent) about a large order getting cancelled and needing to offload the truck before picking up a load in Des Moines the next day. Thought it was interesting though that they had laminated brochures of what was on the truck if they actually were “surprised” to have this order cancelled. Honestly, I would have bought the leather sofa and loveseat set if my husband would have let me. They were offering us both pieces for only $900. They said they were usually $4200 and that they were from Lane, built in High Point, NC. The leather looked and felt like a nice quality. They said it would come with a warranty and receipt as if we had bought it in their store in NC. I don’t care about the name brand, but I do love a deal, and $900 for any nice leather living room set is a good deal. Even if it did turn out to be from China, not NC, who cares? We have nothing to sit on in our living room right now! and whatever we end up with from a real store will probably be from China too. Ultimately, my husband completely shot the idea down, convinced the furniture was stolen or else they would be able to offload it at a local furniture store if they honestly just had to get rid of furniture at a low price. Comment if anyone else has had the guys from Carolina Furniture (not Thomasville) show up.
Just bought a recliner off the truck. Price was excellent, hardwood (oak) framing, robust swivel/recliner mechanism, durable fabric, etc.
Can’t people just ask themselves if the product warrants the price being charged?… And if it does, why does it warrant the word “scam”?
Here it is 2013 and this is still happening….. 3 guys are making it around our neighborhood going door to door… they are in a very nice truck that has Thomasville – High Point, NC. The man that came to the door said that they had a delivery that was cancelled. I did not look at the furniture as I was not in the market for furniture at this time…. I wish I had looked at it since I have ordered furniture from High Point in the past..
I had a group of these salesmen stay at our hotel when they were in town (Chicago burbs). They were nice, hard working guys and one even travelled with his wife. We bought two sofas for the hotel and they weren’t the best quality but held up well and that’s saying ALOT for hotel furniture which is used and abused.
I posted about Peddlers above, and wanted to say, another thing to point out is, these guys go through weigh stations every few hundred miles, they get checked by DOT all the time, if the furniture was stolen, it would be found very fast, think about this too, look how many people here have posted about visits to their neighborhood from these guys. This isnt one group of guys all of you are talking about. There are hundreds and thousands of people that do this to make a living, my father sold furniture door to door from one of these trucks with his friend for 20 years. They were making an honest living, he finally got tired of the road and we just took over his parents furniture store when they retired. Some of the stories im reading are making me laugh, my father never had to lie to sell his furniture, but many of these guys do. How many of you have went to a used car lot and believed everything the salesman there told you?? these guys have all kinds of stories to get you to buy, fact is, they bought it at wholesale price and they arent marking it way up like major chain stores do across america so they have to have a reason for selling it so cheap, they come up with some story that ends with them desperate to sell what they have as fast as possible. My father never had to do this, he was just honest and let them know he bought the furniture wholesale and he didnt need to mark it way up, so he was able to sell it at a very good price. hope this helps some of you realise all of these guys arent crooks or scammers. Oh, the clocks they sell are real too, they get them from furniture distributors here in high point. They typically have 1-2 Howard Miller Grandfather clocks on their truck and they sell them MUCH cheaper than you will EVER find a howard miller in a chain store, this is because Howard Miller Clocks are marked up 4-5 times what these chain store buy them for at wholesale. These guys can sell you one at a nice profit and you still are getting an awesome buy. Again, hope this helped sort it all out.
These guys are called Furniture Peddlers, they are not scammers. The furniture they are selling WAS made in Thomasville, NC a small town beside High Point, NC. High Point IS the furniture capital of the world, we have a Home Furnishings show every Spring and Fall. 60-70% of all furniture made in the United States is manufactured within 60 miles of High Point. These peddlers are guys that buy a truck, go to local furniture manufacturers and buy a truck load then drive out of state to sell it. It is not stolen, it is good quality furniture and its just a guy trying to make a living. That said, they are probably from Thomasville, NC even if you meet them in CA or AZ or even Idaho. Some of these operations have grown rather large, they send trucks with 2 driver/salesmen to the west coast with a loaded truck to sell then when they run low on furniture, a tractor trailer owned by the same operation will bring a load of furniture to them to restock their truck. These guys stay gone from home for 6-8 weeks at a time before typically flying home for a week or two then returning to sell for another month or two. ANY of these guys that tell you they are selling authentic Thomasville Furniture Industries furniture is either lying OR they got the TFI furniture from a store that carries that line or they got a few odd pieces a some auction where a furniture store went out of business. There are bad apples in every Profession, a few tips to buying from these guys is, haggle, you can easily get another 10-15% off what they are selling unless it is the last few pieces on the truck, then they are probably selling it near cost just to get it off the truck. Ask for a business card, call the phone number on the card to make sure its legit. Look at the brand of furniture, go look it up online, most likely you will find it listed in high point or thomasville or in NC. Call the manufacturer, most likely it is not the huge furniture plant you think it will be, it is a mom n pop business and they will answer any questions you have and will probably even know the guy you are dealing with at your house that is trying to sell you the furniture since he purchased the furniture from them. I know people want to believe these guys are selling stolen furniture or are running some kind of scam and occasionally that could be the case, but, most of the time, its just some well meaning guys that like the road and seeing America while out selling furniture.
It’s totally legite. As for the thomasville nc sign all that is, is a marketing tragedy. Their is nothing wrong with that. Everything you buy has a marketing stadegy. If u interpret that as thomasville furniture then u shouldn’t be on a truck buying furniture. When the packaging clearly has the name brand on it. Not to mention it obviously works, do u think its cheap driving a tractor trailer around when fuel costs 4 a gal. One more thing, u said sumn bout writing a check. Their ones that have to be careful. Taking a 3000 check from a stranger in another state. I wouldn’t do that. So get off your high horse. They have families too. Just trying to make a living. If it wasn’t legite they wouldn’t have permits FROM CITY HALL. IDIOT
I got a new home and just furnished my whole house from these guys, real thomasville furniture. I would recomend everyone to buy from these trucks. They saved me and my wife a bunch of money.
I got a new home and just furnished my whole house from these guys, real thomasville furniture. I would recomend everyone to buy from these trucks. They me and my wife a bunch of money.
That furniture was probably misrepresented. BUT it is still good furniture. AND more than likely name brand.
You just got his song and dance routine.
Thats Tommy Forester Carriers. He has a warehouse in Dallas, TX.
Can someone PLEASE get their phone number? I want to know if/when they are coming to Denver? Please let me know?!?!!?!?
The same thing happened to me about an hour ago. It was practically identical to everyone else’s story; they knocked on my door with the big truck full of furniture Lane’s, Thomasville, Ashley’s, grandfather clocks etc offering a deal on wholesale brand name furniture with brochures and all. He offered me a Thomasville nail stud back leather sofa/love set for $1250 which sounded great though I was a bit skeptic if it was real leather or not i still decided to buy it as a house warming present for my daughter. After the truck left i told my daughter to look up the TFC Tranport company to see if they were legitimate and then i found this site. I called them and left a message explaining that they could come back and get the furniture and that i did not want it anymore because they mis-represented themselves as Thomasville, but i have yet to receive a call back. I feel so nieve for buying furniture off of a truck and preyed upon for being trusting in people. Now i dont know what to do or whats going to happen with this furniture i dont want, they have my check and no one will return my call.
Well the truck is rolling through South Carolina headed southbound. Heads up! We have 2 chairs and a love seat. Would love to hear from someone who bought from them in 2005. Seven years and they are still at it…I’ll repost in five and let you know how the furniture holds up..
I think the thing that has most of us leery of these guys is there’s always some sort of convoluted story with their approach. In my case they had been decorating a nearby office and there was more stuff on the truck than they needed and they didn’t want to haul it back to wherever they said they came from…etc. (note: the truck I delt with was all framed prints, not actual furniture). Why won’t they just say they have some nice stuff for you to look at and by reducing retail overhead they can pass the savings on to you?
This is to all you rocket scientists.. all furniture in a store is brought to them by ” truck”!!!! You only pay 600 to 800% mark up in a store….furniture is in the top 5 goods with highest mark unesp in the world along with jewelry and cars….i bet ur car dealer didnt advertise he wld sale u a car at 1% over invoice. … biggest scam ever ..hahaha! Sales are free enterprise..what our great country was founded on…and probly half the people on here screaming scam…are the ones scamming ppl some how
The people on here talking about being scammed don’t know the definition of scam! If you were saying things like, I paid for a piece of furniture in full and never received it. That would be a scam. The people going door to door in this white truck are working, making a living, if you don’t want to buy furniture from them just tell them no! There have been people saying they have been coming by selling Furn. For years from Boston to Miami wouldn’t the law have caught up to them if they were really scamming people don’t be STUPID! And by the way Thomasville furniture is now manufactured in china just like about every other furniture manufactor.
They are running around Fort Worth today. Same scam, “neighbor cancelled an order and we have to sell this stuff at wholesale now before we head back to NC.” OHHHH KAAAYYYY
Can someone please email me the website or the guy’s phone number? I’d really like to know if they come to Denver? Please please please!!!
i actually do this kinda work have 4 years…it is not a scam i know were the furniture comes from although it is not thomasville brand furniture it is made in high point and thomasville north carolina…main thing i can tell you is if you dont like saving money and dont need furniture then just tell them no thanks
oh, forgot to say what area.. near High Point.. and I ran across this site during my search for him and trying to find out how odd it is for someone to drive up to your house wanting to sell you furniture. I read this entire thread. I wasn’t familiar with furniture peddlers before hand or that Thomasville [not just the company – but the industry itself] had outsourced over seas. I’m not surprised, but it’s disappointing.
Man, y’all are lucky.. a guy came by my dads, directly onto the property, pulling into the back of house like he was a family member or something.
He had 3 recliners (cheaply made and cheaply priced) and one was even used though he tried to say it wasn’t. It was just a regular ole truck.. and I could tell he was shooting a line of bull hockey .. but that wasn’t even my issue.. my issue was that I thought he was an undercover FED. LOL. No way some dope head would have manicured nails and a tan that looked like he’d just got back from the Bahamas or somewhere and wearing what were probably $500 or more snake skin cowboy boots.
I worried my self to death since 4/21.. and finally got up the nerve to call the number he gave on this made up invoice [hey my old man needed a new one, his was falling apart , but b/c of his age and not being to stand for long periods and being hardheaded he kept putting it off.. so this was convenient and cheap].
Anyway.. the place on the header doesn’t exist – address comes up as a 64 [yes, 64 lol – it’s certainly wrong] bedroom ‘single family home’ on a google search.. and the phone number wasn’t listed, even on those reverse searches [wireless number].. so I thought.. ok – if I call this number and it’s inactive or belongs to someone else then I’ll know it was more than likely a FED OR since he too had a southern accent .. maybe a child of my dads that he didn’t even know about from way back when in his younger days who decided he wanted to meet him since he’s on up there in age and didn’t want to cause any issues (which would be fine by me and this could still possibly be the case – I don’t care).
Called and a man answered.. could tell I had woke him up – it was 6:30 AM.. and I asked for the name.. and he said it was him. A huge weight was lifted off my shoulders.
If you’re wondering the reason I thought it could’ve been a FED was .. I had just ordered a few controversial books.
This is the tale of a true southerner who has genetically inherited a [rightly so] distrust of the ‘guvment’ and revenuers. If nothing else.. maybe some of the other southerners here will get a laugh out of this.
I’m not giving the mans name.. he’s just making a living however he can. I’d rather he get the money than someone over seas.
Hi guys I have heard some of the concerns, let me say this truck is from the “Thomasville furniture co.” They are very common here in central Florida! You can fins then April – June on the highways unloading wharehouse pieces . Yes its all legal and the savings are very beneficial . So we now get brochures when they are getting ready to travel here.
Does anyone have a phone number? Or know when they’ll be coming to Denver?
If they come to your neighborhood, will someone please get their phone number? Thank you!
im really happy with the bedroom and dining room me and my wife bought off the truck, great prices and we will buy again.
I bought from them 14 years ago and it was great quality and reasonable prices! Does anyone know how to contact them? I’m ready for some new stuff!
I know that the trucks that come thru here in Northern Virginia have quality furntire at great prices. I have saved thousands and have NO PROBLEM with it or resaling it for what I paid 3 years later. Several of my neighbors have used them also with 100% satisfaction. I also had an attorney that works with me who just built a home and bought almost the entire truck and furnished their entire home and it looks GREAT!
Seems the only ones crying the sky is falling are the ones who did not buy furniture. Out of all these post’s each and everyone who did purchase is quite happy. Personaly you give me two shoes with no name on them and i can tell you which one is a quality shoe. Same with furniture, the tailoring, if the stripes match out, if the fabric is well padded, Do you think if they where outlaws they would make it this long before they got caught. gees people free enterprise is what this is all about. If they figure to cut the big mark up out of it from the store and pass that savings on. look at the furniture it is not a pig in a poke
There is a development(Waterhouse) in Clay, New York 13041 that would love this service.So if interested go take that drive to suburban Syracuse by April,2012. that truck will go back empty
I live in Thomasville and have worked as a peddler for years and now have moved on your right it is a scam just like Thomasville furniture u are led to bleieve its made in thomasville nc when its made in china hell the old t ville plants are shut down anymore no jobs t ville is owned by furniture brands in st louis as well as henry don drexel lexington all these are now made over seas the furniture sold off the back of those trucks is made by northcarolinians in thomasville and high point north carolina. So know that it is a great deal and if u guys knew a thing about furniture u would know this already. Also there is a process these guys have to follow and go through and thats getting the proper permits and tax numbers so ask to see them thats what u are suppose to do if your so worried if they cant show these things then they might be trying to scam u so wake up people u may have just let a deal slip right passed u but dont worry if u dont buy it ur neighbor will they always do….
That “off the wall stuff” is actually made in Thomasville and High Point, NC. The “Furniture Capital of the World”. The place “Brand Name Furniture Manufactures would have you believe their furniture is made, by local craftsmen.
The other name brand stuff like Ashley is made in China and always has been. I believe you are thinking too much and trying to read more into the situation than is necessary. The Ashley, Howard Miller and other name brands are sold to huge warehouses in NC, to be sold on trucks. What do you think, a manufacture that will put US citizens out of work by having its products made in china is too good that have these same products sold of a truck. Why do you think they went overseas, profits, why do you think these products can be sold off truck, PROFITS.
Let me break it down for you. They are selling furniture off a truck, that’s it. Hard to believe isn’t it. The scam “if you will” is the song and dance story they use”.
Other than that if you didn’t know, all the name brand furniture manufactures get their furniture made in China, Vietman or some other country. As a matter of fact, we don’t even own the factories anymore.
Another thing, (I Live in the furniture capital of the world) some furniture manufactures are looking to come back to the US. Some of the factories in High Point and Thomasville that still have the machinery are bringing a premium price.
Just one more thing, that no-name stuff they are willing to sell at a bargan keeps us citizens working here at home. Specifficly, in High Point and Thomasville, NC.
I personelly don’t care about this subject one way or another. But some of the things I read on this board are just stupid. Another thing, who do you thing sponsors this board ? Why do you think some post come and go, but the main post on top is always there.
No big deal,right.
They came to my house in Pittsburgh today. I was very skeptical, but they had a Howard Miller grandfather clock there. It was in original Howard Miller Packaging (well packaged), and they had the front of the box open so you could see in. Everything looked 100% authentic, and after a search on the net, I saw that they were selling it at 1/2 the price of the lowest online retailer. Well, I bought it, as well as an Ashley console(also looks 100% Authentic).
Quality is great on the console, with thick wooden doors and dove tailed construction. I paid $200 for it, and I’ve seen much lower quality for twice the price (brand name aside).
As for the clock. I am certain it is genuine. They went through the documentation on how to register it and get the free name plate, there was the Heirloom canister inside just like the real one. It looks identical to all pictures I can find…. and it sounds Wonderful (even keeps time).
Funny thing is that a neighbor came to my house and mentioned that they came by 4 years ago and they had also bought a very nice dining set.
There were lots of seating units (Couch, love seats, chairs), all from no-name furniture makers…. looked to be decent quality, but not a big bargain.
I think the “scam” is like this…. They buy a bunch of high end furniture at auction/close outs/returns etc from brand names like Ashley, Howard Miller, Lane etc… they the rest of their truck with second rate no-name furniture. They keep the high end stuff up front and make a small profit selling that, but if you buy the no-name furniture, they really make a killing!
In our case, they would not budge on the price of the clock, but were ready to drop the price of a sofa and love seat by 25% on the spot.
High Point N.C. is the furniture capital of the world. The furniture on the peddlers trucks might not be named brands but still manufactured in High Point / Thomasville area. As with any industry, I am sure that one might run into shady folks but I can tell you that the majority of furniture peddlers are good family people making a decent living. The service they offer to the public bring quality furniture with bargain prices to people around the country is a great service. I know families that are furniture manufactures some name bands some not that sell market samples and close outs to guys like you are decribing. Furniture Land South of High Point is one of the largest showroom in the world with all the major bands.
This group is now in Conroe, Texas with many different stories as to where the furniture is from and how they ended up here and when there leaving. There are four trucks with four different teams. Buyers beware, all that glitters isnt Gold. Dont encourage these selling practices.
They come here—Staten Island, NY—-every year. A very large truck. A sign on it says R % N Furniture, Thomasville, NC. The same guy (I remembered him) with a heavy southern accent knocks on the door and asks if you want to buy anything. This was about the third time in as many years. I don’t buy furniture this way, so there was no sale.
Do these guys ever come to Massachusettes? I have friends in CT that said they have seen this truck, but never have seen them in Western MA. I would totally buy off of them. If it’s a good deal and it’s not stolen, who cares? I’ll support my fellow Americans :o)
I just bought a beautiful leather sofa and look forward to seeing these guys again in the near future. Nothing beats having the store brought to you!
There appears to be many different companies doing this. I have worked as a designer/sales consultant in a showroom carrying only mid to high end custom furniture made in the USA. I know quality furniture when I see it and a close family member shocked me when she said she had bought her decade-old living room set from such a truck. Her set is beautiful and has held up really well. She said she paid around $1000 for a 2 large chair and halfs and 1 large sofa.
Bottom line: It’s really a calculated risk that works for those with a good eye. You may end up with a great knock-off set but you also may end up with a crappy set and no customer service to help you. Regardless, please do not call local showrooms that you did NOT buy from and ask them to help you! 😉 If it means anything, I would consider buying off a truck. Calculated risk….
After reading all the comments, I am not sure if I feel better or worse! We just bought several things off a truck from High Point (we’re in Atlanta, GA area). We were not given a story about an interior designer. The guy told us the distributors he works for were offloading excess inventory, newly discontinued items, etc.
I was able to find one piece online to verify the brand is legit. I am not sure we got a deal, but I at least don’t think we got ripped off. On the others, who knows. They do all have real looking sewn-in tags indicating they were made in towns in North Carolina (Lexington and Thomasville). Initially, the main guy tried to make it sound like it was Thomasville brand, but as soon as I started inspecting and asking questions he backed off that. (I have several real Thomasville pieces and know how they are marked.) I tried to find the supposed brand of 2 chairs online, and it doesn’t seem to exist. The furniture at least looks nice. We’ll see how it holds up.
Only red flag after reading all the posts is we were offered check or cash for payment. We got a receipt and the guy’s card with number. Not sure it matters if it’s not legit. Supposedly, he is calling us back about ottomans on the chairs. Keeping our fingers crossed…
I saw big truck named ‘ North Carolina Furniture’ in Dallas,TX area, and selling Chair, Sofa and Bedroom set, 9 pieces (head board, footer, dresser mirror, Chest, End table..) price around $3000.00 for the Cherry wood finish. It looks , it is a solid wood. I think, that is a good price,but still can we negotiate.
Have any one bought before…
These guys are not cons and are not criminals they are making a living selling furniture just like the guys at your local furniture store but they go out and find the customer instead of waiting on the customer to come in you may not be getting thomasville furniture but your getting other great brands and at a cheaper price. Because the furniture they are selling is over stock from the local warehouse in NC. and incase all you rich high class thomasville furniture lovers didnt know Thomasville Funiture Industries moved to china just like everyother furniture company (ashley, lane, boryhill, etc.) and cut thousands of jobs.
They JUST drove thru Holley By The Sea. Navarre, FL. LOL
I bought an overstuffed beautiful green chair from these guys in Abilene, TX. It was an incredibly low price. It is so comfortable to sit in…I love it. That was 25 years ago. I’ve seen the truck since then and wish I had the extra money to stop and get something.
How can I find out when they are going to be in or near Jupiter, FL? They were here a few weeks ago but timing was not right for me at the time. Now I’m ready.
This is a hard job. It takes these guys from their family and home. They work hard to provide for their family. My nephew works for them and yes, they are legal. You have a choice to buy or not to, to shop or not to. But you have no right to belittle someone for trying to support their family! At least they are working and not asking for a hand out. They take their job seriously and deserve to be treated with respect. And if you would actually take the time to look, the furniture is very nice and you save a bundle.
update- someone said it could be bonded leather, that is believable- just wish had been told that. oh well- white truck- white guy named jason
Bought something from ‘Classic Furniture Gallaries’ swore it was leather, but its not, at least ive never seen leather that has strings coming off of its edge that you can pull..
Folks, I was a peddler for 35 years,Every week around 1100 trucks leave the Thomasville-HighPoint NC area with loads of furniture headed all over the US. All this furnitue in hand made right in the little towns, except for the bedroon and dining room suites,which is assembled in a third world country. It is totally legal.Most of the guys are eager for you to look because the furniture sells itself,all brand new and up to date. If you are scared simply say no. If you do not believe this just call the Thomasville or High Point Police Dept. they get hundreds of calls a week. However if you are looking for a deal check it out most of the time if they don’t have a permit, you pay no freight or tax.
Two guys in a “Thomasville” truck came through my office park today, appearing at door one at a time. I’m in the reception area with door opening onto sidewalk, and one kept the door open while trying to persude me. High today here in Memphis is 29 degrees.
Gave a story about how they had a “big order” cancelled. This sent up a flag…why not take it back to the factory, then? When the co-worker at my desk and I said we weren’t interested, driver said “Aren’t you going to even ask ‘them’?” There were only 2 others in my office at the time and I just wanted the door closed without inviting this guy in. I agree with Jeff from Oct. 29, no matter the actual quality they appear to be spouting falsehoods so shouldn’t be trusted. Had a similar truckload of framed prints through here a year or so ago…their customer supposedly cancelled a large order too. I actually bought a print from these guys, but when they wouldn’t take a check I gave them a CC, then got cold feet and cancelled the sale. I can’t put my finger on it, but somethings fishy. They’re kinda pushy and I don’t belive the stories. No matter, but noticed postings seem to be mostly in south and southwest.
In northern suburbs of balitmore again…..white guy, jeans dark jacket trying to sell furniture from NC that someone supposedly could not pay for when delivered. saw them about month or so earlier in the next neighborhood over. white truck, could not see any markings on it.
Stopped by McAllen, Texas the other day. A white guy (I say that because like 90% of people here are Hispanic) with a Southern accent said he was selling furniture from Thomasville, NC. It was weird to see an 18-wheeler semitrailer snaking its way through my neighborhood, and the thought of buying furniture off the back of a truck seemed laughable. Like others said here, it was a white truck with “Thomasville, NC” printed on the side. I can’t conceive how a furniture company in NC would send its wares by semitrailer to the Mexican border, and then drive back to NC to pick up some more. Logistically and economically, it’s impossible. Despite the guy’s Southern accent and the “Thomasville, NC” printed on the side of the truck, they’re clearly operating out of the Texas area (and perhaps a few more hub areas throughout the country) and the furniture most likely has no origin from NC.
These guys were in Fayetteville, Arkansas today! I didn’t think their prices were a good deal AT ALL. They appeared to be EXACTLY retail price…
They’re In Baltimore “peddling” today. Legit business or not they lie about what they are doing. I don’t buy furniture from liars in stores. Why would I buy it from liars on a truck?
They stopped by my office in Oklahoma City and said they have a truckload of furniture from Carolina and flashed a city permit to sell it. A lot of people were going to look but something seemed strange about a semi parked in an office complex a man sitting in it and a you have to step on a toolbox to get in it. They had a ton of couches and chairs and clocks all stacked in this truck. He said couches were about $850 and Chairs $250… honestly there are so many realible furniture stores around here, that you can get better furniture for the same price and its not off the back of some random truck!! I would not feel comfortable giving them anything with my financial information on it, let alone my name!! People are free to do what they want thats for sure and this is definitely something I would not give my money too, at least at a local store your money goes to your city businesses and not some random truck just driving through!!
They just stopped by my house 5 minutes ago. (Edmond, OK) I was suspicious and didn’t even look, but they gave my same story.
The truck was in the Odessa-Midland, Texas area this weekend. I was sick Sunday (didn’t go to church with the family) and with recent home break-ins, I had my pistol on the end table. They opened my front screen door to knock hard on the window of my front door. Scared me to death. I went to the door with the gun mostly hidden behind my leg. That poor fellow must of thought I was going to shoot him. He could barely get out what he was trying to sell me. I told him about the recent break ins and that I wasn’t interested. However, I well-off friend of mine never turned down an opportunity to buy off the truck. Her house always looked like it was out of one of those home designer magazines. Go figure.
These guys are “furniture Peddlers”. That’s their job to sell furniture out of a truck. It is legal if they have a permit. Also, that truck does sell some furniture made locally in Thomasville, NC. along with other manufacturers.
It does “NOT” sell the brand Thomasville Furniture, which was bought in 1995 by Furniture Brands International, headquartered in St. Louis, Mo., and made in China. The brand “Thomasville Furniture†is not made locally in Thomasville, NC. And they (furniture peddlers) are not selling the brand Thomasville.
I personally do not have anything to do with that truck. But I am a furniture peddler or was. That’s why most people are confused. Many people think furniture made in Thomasville is the brand “Thomasvilleâ€, it’s not. It’s local knowledge in the High Point and Thomasville, NC area and the furniture industry. That not only is Thomasville the brand not made in Thomasville, NC. Ninety plus percent of all furniture is also made in China. No matter what the history of that brand. In a nut shell it’s the only way furniture brands can compete in this global economy.
There is something else to think about. When buying products off a truck or wherever. Cash is always good. But with a credit card you will have extra assurance of service after the sale, if you need it. Hope this information helps.
We just purchased two swivel recliners for $500 cash “taxes inclued.” Normally, the chairs would sell for $450-$500 each easy. In this economy, that’s quite steep. The truck came along today (Saturday afternoon) right in front of the house (as if they had a mailing list of names). We have purchased things out of NC before (we’re in NY). Seems legitimate, yet I would advise to keep your purchase price to three digits, use cash only, and do not assume that this furniture is produced by Thomasville Furniture. If you see something you need, buy it (you will avoid delivery charges). Something tells me that these guys are operating on behalf of some outlet/warehouse that’s looking to get rid of overflow or looking for another way to sell and avoid “paperwork.”
Dear Jane,
I hope this letter finds you in good spirits and you have had a good day.
If I have offended you, I Sincerely “APOLOGIZEâ€. May I tell you a story? Many years ago, I overheard Mr. White. Who ran a local old fashion gas station at the center of our town say, (Which was right beside my grandparents home at the time) telling a customer. Who asked, are their mean people in this town. Mr. White said. “Yes” there are mean people in this town. And he went in great detail about how really mean these people were. Later after much thought, I was 8. I told him that, I don’t know any mean people here. Everyone I came across and knew was really nice people. He told me that’s just it. You find what you look for. My email was mean to help solve your customer’s service issue. Not make you mad or upset. So if customer service is your issue, please let me help. For me, quarreling with a highly educated professional. Is a “no win” situation. So please except my apology and let me provide the customer service you deserve. IF that’s what you are after. Good Day and please don’t take it out on your North Carolina neighbors. FR English
To FR English: Well you had me until you called me stupid. As a matter of fact, I am a highly educated professional female (in the teaching profession). My original post, which has disappeared, was very fair. I simply stated the facts. I do not believe these “hardworking young men” represented themselves honestly as to why they were in our area. I also believe they were not honest about what exactly they were selling. I don’t care if I received a good deal or not. The fact is that 6 months after my purchase, my sofa is falling apart. I do not recommend anyone purchase “Thomasville” furniture off of a truck.
P.S. My husband is a 21 year Navy veteran. He served in the first Gulf War as a flight officer (A-6) flying off of an aircraft carrier. He works very hard and didn’t deserve to be “taken”.
Update from Nickel: This comment was written in response to a comment that has since been removed.
You people wouldn’t know a good deal if it jumped up and bit you on the butt. These men and women are out there trying to make a living just like you are…no difference. They are hundreds, sometimes thousands of miles away from their families for weeks at a time, beating the pavement in your neighborhoods and communities trying to make a dollar. Most of the furniture on the backs of those trucks is handmade by hard working craftsmen in the good old USA.
As for you, the crybaby with the 17% leather sofa, all the information you needed to know about that furniture was printed on the tags on the cushions.
If you are skeptical or think the furniture is stolen (please) or the guy is a scammer, then don’t go out to the truck! HELLO??
Most of these guys are offering a good quality product at a fair price. Period. If you want a $10K sofa with a 5 year guarantee go to the showroom of your choice. Have at it…
The truck Thomasville Designs truck just came through my neighborhood, knocking on people’s doors. I simply said I wasn’t interested, and they left without a problem. I thought it odd that a huge furniture truck would be selling stuff off the back of a truck, and that’s why I googled. I’d never buy anything from someone going door to door.
I had the same thing in my neighborhood a few days ago. We shouldn’t buy the furniture from them. They are very bad people. Once you say no they use very bad words. I was really scared. Be careful….
It’s called ” Peddlin” (peddling).It’s been going on since the mid to late 1960″s.The reasons for it have changed(the business model so to speak) a little over the years.But as long as they get the appropriate local license to do business in your town it is perfectly legitimate.But as with anything you purchase “buyer beware”. You paranoid complainers crack me up! Grow up and take personal responsibility. If you aren’t comfortable with your ability to discern quality,value,or the legality of your purchase then don’t.Don’t paint all the peddlers with a broad brush. True, some are liars and scammers but you also have them in your local market as well.I’m sure you all have a personal story or know someone who got ripped off at the local used car lot or something like that. The difference is he is local and it’s easy to seek legal recourse if you feel cheated.
The fact is hardly any furniture is manufactured in the US anymore. Back when it was though, there were many local vendors who supplied components such as frames, cloth, leather,hardware etc. to these plants. Well now that most of the plants are closed these guys are struggling like everybody else.They make a good product and try to make as much money as they can just like anybody else in business.It is usually as good as or better than what the big US manufacturers used to make.They used to supply people like Thomasville Furn.,Drexel Heritage, Council Craftsman etc.You used to pay good money for a good piece of American made furniture and it was so well made you could pass it on to your kids as an heirloom. Not now. It is all made in China or Vietnam or some other third world country where labor is cheap.These companies make money….not furniture. Thomasville Furn. is owned by Furniture Brands International.They(all others too) make more profit by sending the labor (manufacturing) somewhere else. It’s as simple as that. Now there are only about two plants left in the US that actually produce a product for them. There were over 11 in North Carolina alone just ten years ago.
It’s all the same.You just pay for the style or look a particular company has….the quality is the same. They will argue it is mfd. to their specs but who cares.Go to their showroom then go to Rooms To Go et.al. and look at the generic brand they offer. Why pay a premium price for just the name? If you like it and what it does for you then buy it.If the name is important then by all means buy that one. Sorry to preach but the paranoia about the peddlers got me going. I’m sure you have local guys selling produce,or sometimes fish or shrimp,jams and jellies, crafts etc.If it looks good and you feel comfortable with the salesman and his product….congratulations you are now participating in the free market of the good ol USA! Think about your product or service. What if everyone was as uncomfortable with your mode of making a living as some of you act about the peddlers? Most of them are just regular guys trying to make a living a long way from home. Think how you would like to be treated and act accordingly.
BTW-If buying American is important to you. I know we would all like to, but sometimes our pocketbook dictates just how far we can go on that one.Use your internet and look up your local craftsman or artisan and please support them. They often do a superior job and they would personally appreciate your support….not quite the same relationship you would have with a regular retailer or box store.Don’t try to beat him or her up over price…that is insulting to his profession and shows your ignorance(quality does have a price)…after all ,you’re going to a master at his craft. This type of doing business really affects you too….it feeds directly into your community and your specific local economy. Go USA!
Does anyone know how to contact them I have been fortunate enough to have purchased furniture from them twice before and have zero complaints.
You all are so funny! Oh yeah a guy just happens to be in your neighborhood selling $3000 Thomasville sofas off the back of a truck for $699.
Look I have been in the industry 14 years, they are selling sofas made in Thomasville NC. The sofas are American made and very good. As opposed to Chinese crap.
They are selling a good product at a fair price.
Take advantage of it if you need something, your not even going to pay for delivery!
This is a legitimate business, the busimess model is to sell furniture off the back of the truck, don’t be fooled by the North Carolina “truck drivers”, these are salesmen, and based on the posts here, they are very good salesmen. The buyer gets a $1200 sofa for $1200 dollars and thinks there getting a $3000 dollar sofa for a steal.
They are in Pgh PA today!
Not sure if this is legal or not, but I certainly do not want to walk into the back of a truck to shop! Who knows what could happen. I will take my chances with waiting for a sale at a legitamite retailer.
They were in my office park today and in no way did they misrepresent themselves or the furniture they are selling. I needed a new recliner and would prefer to not pay jacked up prices at the furniture store. I asked ot see that they had a license to sell prodcut here in the city of Newport News, Va and it was not a scam. They were from High Point NC. I also have a receipt for my purchase.
If you take some time and research the Thomasville area you will see that the Thomasville Brand of furniture that used to be made in Thomasville NC is now being made in China. Some of the local suppliers who used to make chair frames, bedroom pieces, etc. and supplied the (now closed) Thomasville plants are still in existance. Some local businessmen in Thomasville just buy parts from the local manufacturers and have furniture made up to sell locally and from the back of trucks all over the East Coast. No, it is not Thomasville branded but at least it is made here in the U.S. by craftsmen. The pieces that I have seen are excellent quality and better than the stuff from China that Thomasville Industries now peddles at furniture stores. It is my hope that someone can get enough market share and actually start mass producing furniture in Thomasville again. Until then, I will buy an American made piece from the back of a pickup truck anyday over a Chinese made piece.
I have bought furniture from this company, they dont claim to sell Thomasville Furniture. it’s called Thomasville Distributors, because the owners last name is Thomas. they sell high quality different brand furniture. This is how it works. they buy furniture at the end of the season from furniture stores at discounted prices, because after all who wants last seasons sectional. they have a warehouse not a store therefore no over head. i have bought from them for years adnhave always been satisfied. as a matter of fact they man I buy from was in New Jersey when I contacted him that I needed to furnish my daughter’s home. he gave me a @ week period in which he could be by. and he was. the more you buy from them the more of a discount they will give you. every piece of furniture I have in my home is from them. now so is my daughters we furnished her whole 3 bedroom house for less than $7000. oh you can do it for less if you buy at Walmart or Big Lots.so for people to judge them as thiefs or shady characters ask them for a list of references. you won’t be disappointed. theses are hard working men with families they go weeks at a time without seeing to provide for them. i can give you names emails and telephone #s of at least 40 people that have raved about my furniture and will go out of their way to give them an excellent reference. one last comment. my daughter was really sick once and made a mess of my Beautiful Chenile sectional. thankfully the seller I buy from was in the area and he came and personally shampooed it. it was a year old tell me if someone from Thomasville Furniture would do that.feel free to contact me at pamella_white at yahoo dot com
Just bought 2 winged back chairs and a sofa from some guys like this outside of kmart. Didn’t really try to sell me any lines, I asked about the Thomasville location, and the guy was very straight forward, that this was NOT Thomasville furniture, but they were, in fact, from the town of Thomasville, SC. he then told me that Thomasville Furniture company no longer produced its products in the SC, but it was made in China. well, in that case i wouldn’t want to buy the brand anyway! i’ve never been in to brand names, but this seems like good quality furniture, with oak frames, and heavy, solid wood feet. Not to mention, it was a GREAT price. if it doesn’t last, then i’m the only one to blame, because i bought it off the back of a truck!! but so far i am very pleased, and only time will tell how it holds up! they even delivered it to my house on their way out of town! nice guys, and i have no complaints.
Look! We all get what we paid for, and we were not complaining when we handed over the money! I just bought some furniture off a big white truck also in Harker Heights Texas. They said when delivering the furniture the store rejected the load so they had to sell it. Oh well I bought some, and I liked it it was good quality and was a great price. Id rather buy it off that truck at Walmart prices, then going to Sofa Mart and paying up to a 500% mark-up. No matter where you buy its mass produced not made by hand just for you!So anyway quit your cryin people.
They were in Houston, Texas today selling furniture at my office. We declined so they moved on to the next office. Same story.
Who would have thought that I would fall for this scam? We got the same story about some interior designer who ordered this stuff and couldn’t pay. They already paid the freight and so they were able to get a permit in our city and sell. Well, the leather furniture we bought for over $1200 turned out to contain only 17% leather. It gave off a horrible odor of vinyl. Believe it or not, after less than 48 hours I was able to get them back to pick the stuff up. After calling the police and sending someone to the bank with them, they refunded most of my money but claimed they had a restocking fee of $100. The vinyl smell literally made my family physically ill. Another neighbor is still having problems which are unresolved. BEWARE BEWARE BEWARE!! By the way, they misrepresented the brand as Thomasville despite my direct questioning on multiple occassions. Thank goodness we were able to get the money back–these guys take checks only. How stupid I was — the bottom line is you get what you pay for and if it sounds too good to be true, it is!
At one time selling Thomasville furniture off the back of a truck was a big deal. Simply because you could get it out of Thomasville, NC when it was made there. It did happen, not legally but it happened. Now that’s impossible. Because it’s not made in Thomasville anymore. Its made in China and other third world countries like most furniture is. It comes in a container to a distributation warehouse, I think in Wisconsin. Then shipped to a dealer. Where they quitely discard the “MADE IN CHINA” boxes. Not good or bad just a fact. Think about that.
These guys are operating in our Houston area neighborhood again today. My husband looked at the furniture last time, and said it looked nice, but we didn’t need anything. They may be operating within the letter of the law, but if the logo closely resembles the Thomasville Furniture Co. logo, that would be a violation of copyright. Other than that, it is up to consumers to decide if they want to buy anything this way, and they have to be the judge of the quality because there is no way to compare either price or quality when you’re shopping off the back of a truck. You might not be suckered, buy you will be acting on impulse without the usual store guarantees to fall back on. Not for me.
my friend bought these tower speakers off the back of a truck and freaked out because they tricked him into an impulse buy.. i looked them over and used them for years and it was probably the best 100 dollar i ever spent. i dont remember the brand though…
John,
What I mean is your one of the guys selling the furniture. Come on if it was that great the first time you would never have lost the number.
If you don’t like the product they are selling, then don’t buy it. Simple as that. You know they are selling it a rock bottom price, do not expect customer service. However, their products are good at the price at which they sell and I have bought from them more than once and I like their products because they last for quite sometime and don’t cost an arm and a leg. Now, if you are stupid enough to expect good customer service from these vendors then God help you. But I have been satisfied with the products that I have purchased so far. If you want more expensive stuff go and buy it from a show room. Do not expect a ‘Haverty’ type furtniture at a ‘flea market’ price. There is a market and price for every product. If you are not mature enough to recognize that then you deserve to be fooled.
I finally located these guys. The furniture was the genuine thing and the price was fantastic. BTW Ron I’m still trying to figure out what you meant by saying I was so full of it. I do live in middle TN so I don’t have to go there.
We ran into similar guys this weekend. Pulled up to our neighborhood (in Central Texas) with a white 18-wheeler full of furniture. The truck said Thomasville, NC, but the men didn’t say outright that the furniture was the Thomasville brand.
Their spiel was that an interior designer had ordered the furniture and couldn’t pay and so they were given permission by the Sheriff’s Dept. to unload it. Interesting. Anyway, I didn’t completely buy the story, but my husband and I checked out the merchandise. Lots of sofas and chairs. We needed two accent chairs and I’d been checking some out at Pier 1 for a couple hundred bucks. These chairs were about $200 and we liked them, so we bought two with a dressing bench.
Later, we were laughing about it — the fact that we’d bought furniture off the back of a truck! But it looks fine. Has the Southern Furniture brand name on it — I looked it up and that is a furniture manufacturer based in NC. So, we will see how it holds up.
Anyway, I’m glad I found this thread because I was feeling funny about the whole episode. Glad I’m not alone!
They were in Terrell Texas last week. I think their just like the speaker guys. You don’t have excess furniture and nice glossy pictures to show it off. Also, John your so full of it….I guess you will be in middle Tennessee soon!
I am trying to locate these guys who were in middle Tennessee on December 12 2009. I need to buy some furniture from them. They are legit, offer a good value for the buck, and are selling quality merchandise. Does anyone have their phone number?
Who are these guys and how do we get in touch with them.
Sounds like a lot of people were misled. Did anyone stop payment on their check? Have them take furniture back. Has the BBB done anything about this, any legal action taken?? I can’t believe all these complaints and it sounds like it is still going on. Has anyone had a positive outcome?
Oh you guys are tough. You caught a guy who is selling furniture from the back of a truck . Why don’t you catch the person that is selling drugs to your kids. Why don’t you find the person that is responsible for having guns around our homes.
If they are selling you furniture that you are obviously in need of if you buy it for less then half of the price , why are you complaining .
Do you know if this trucker is a father that has to do what it takes to feed his children?
focus one what is really important, and stop bytching when you get a good deal .
If I ever sell furniture I will sell it to you for double the price . because some of you only enjoy it when you get screwed .
They are now in OHIO! They just stopped one of our employees putting up our flag just outside the front door. We are just outside of Toledo, OH. The truck said it was from NC. Our employee of course said they were not interested. But these guys are everywhere, be on the look out!
Thomasville, NC furniture truck just pulled up in central nj to sell all kinds of furniture. They said they brought it to a store to sell but they had too much and the store couldn’t take it so instead of hauling it back to NC they are selling it for dealer prices to get rid of it. I asked for the warranty and they said it will come in the mail within three days. I asked if the furniture was stamped anywhere saying that it is genuine thomasville and there was no direct “yes” answer. I also asked what the model number was so that i could call my fiance who was at work to look at it online. They said that its the 900 series but its not yet available online to view. I asked why its not online and they said its because its a new series and its not yet out. Hmmmmm Very suspect.
I happened to grab a glimpse of the license plate… NC: 70761 was part of it.
My husband and I peddel furniture . It is legit 100% . Not only do we buy from local manuf around town we also build furniture . We have been building furniture for year high end no cheap stuff . We have done work for Donald Trump , Christina Agulara , And a famous basketball player . Our furniture was in the hotel lobby of the move 1408 .So where is the scam . If I can sell you nice quality furniture what is the problem . If I get all my materials to custom build furniture at good prices . then I sale it to the customer at good prices . I think it is great . I have fabric books . If someone likes a style I have but want a different fabric they can choose thier fabric and I will have it built for them thats called COM customers on fabric . Great deal if you ask me . People aways thinking something is up . I guess it is a GOOD DEAL . Go ahead and spend 2500 on a sofa , love not my money . You get better quality from us for way less money …
The thomasville truck showed up at my work yesterday in Mountain City, Tennessee. Three really fast talking guys with a load of new -still in clear plastic furniture. Coaches, loveseats, rocker recliner, clocks etc. I did purchase 2 coaches a loveseat and 2 rocker recliners. I did not have a check so i told them i would bring cash back today. Furniture was unloaded to dock at work and is still there, i have cash this morning to give them. All this for 1890.00. I have been looking for furniture for a long time. It look very good. however when i get to work I will call the local police to make sure this is legit. Will write back with more later
Well,
We had them here in Papillion Nebraska just yesterday (Labor Day). We saw what they had and really needed a sofa and love seat. We were also interested in a table and chairs. The problem was that they couldn’t tell me which company in Omaha had gone bankrupt, causing them to be left with inventory they were practically giving away.
They also couldn’t tell me anything about the company they work for (CDI). We let them put the sofa and love-seat into the house and started looking at tags and taking a closer look than what we could get in the back of the truck. We found the materials to be cheap and the quality to be poor.
We started looking up the brand of the sofa on the internet (Legacy 7000) and couldn’t find it anywhere. When they brought in the table we finally got a picture and a product number and found that the “at cost” price they quoted us was actually 200 dollars MORE than the average price on the internet, which included free shipping.
The truck driver was amazingly unaware of which company had gone bankrupt, had no information about the company he drove for, and said they only take checks or credit cards. They just happen to have their own machine in the truck. Tell me something. If they were only getting rid of furniture because of a last minute problem with their receiving company, why do they carry a credit-processing computer with them?
Why couldn’t any of them answer my questions?
The truck driver finally put me on the phone with someone named “Butch” English who referred me to the BBB website which gives them an “A” rating. That means nothing. There’s still no history, no record, nothing but a P.O. box for the “company” and a guy selling furniture that I could get cheaper on the internet.
Once we finally got a good look at the furniture, called the truck driver out on the lies he was telling and had him up against a wall, he said “Well, I’m not going to sit here and argue with you. We want you to be happy. We can just load all this stuff back on the truck.” He was floored when I said “Yeah. Let’s do that.” I thought he was going to choke.
They loaded up the table, chairs, china hutch, sofa and loveseat and drove away. They haven’t been seen since.
I agree that if you like the quality of the furniture, you should buy it. It’s real furniture. However, you should do your research. They’re probably over-charging you for low-quality furniture!
Well they’re still at it. They drove down our street, a quiet subdivision in Hillborough, NJ, with a truckload of “Thomasville furniture” that they had been delivering to a store in Trenton, but they said the store cancelled the order. And now they don’t want to drive all the way back to North Carolina with it the furniture, so they’re selling it door-to-door, “at cost.”
By the way, Trenton is 45 minutes south of Hillsborough. Why drive 45 minutes north to sell the furniture?
We took a look at it and it looked like nice stuff. But why would they sell it “at cost?” They showed us the flier and it was curious to me at the time that they had a flier of the exact furniture that they happened to be delivering to a store, with “retail” and “at cost” numbers on it. Also, they did have a permit to sell – now, why would delivery men on their way to a store in Trenton have a permit to sell furniture in my town of Hillsborough, NJ? And, when I showed interest in a dining room set, they said “we sold that one but if you like it, I will be up here again in 2 weeks, and you don’t have to pay ahead of time.” If they were unloading furniture at cost and there’s no profit in it for them, why would they drive back up to NJ, to my neighborhood, two weeks later, for no profit? Now I know southerners are nice people, but that’s pushing it.
Anyway, I did write down their licence plate number. But I’m not sure they’re doing anything illegal, other than (1) implying that the furniture was made by Thomasville when it was not, (2) lying about why they were selling it, and (3) implying that it was being sold at a huge discount when, in fact, it was probably being sold for the same price, or more, than in stores.
Not necessarily illegal, maybe just unethical?
If these guys are so legit, how come they freaked out when I took a picture of their license plate. I don’t like strangers coming up and casing my house with a moving van under the pretense of selling me some stolen merchandise.
After reading all of these entries, I’m laughing at myself. I live in Ankeny, Iowa too and just bought two wingback chairs this lovely Sunday afternoon. Three very polite men with southern accents in a semi from Carolina Furniture. The credit card receipt had this address 304 Trindale Rd #5, Archdale, NC 27263 and phone 336-434-1141. The written receipt has the P.O. Box 2978, Thomasville, NC 27361. They showed us a permit to sell from the city of Ankeny and we paid sales tax. It seemed a bit strange and their story was that a designer in town cancelled the order, and their boss wanted them to sell the furniture instead of hauling it back to NC. I guess we are a bit too trusting.
We purchased two wingback chairs and we like the pattern quite a lot. Just tell us the truth that you sell furniture at discounted prices–but then they probably wouldn’t sell as much furniture. Also, we should have negotiated with them on the price. I now regret not doing that. We like the chairs, they look great with our decor and we are now going to go sit in them and drink a lot of wine and laugh about what just happened.
These guys are in my neighborhood as I type this (Ankeny, Iowa). Same story as above – some designer canceled their order and these guys are stuck with a truckload of furniture, etc.
All the guys seemed nice enough, so I have no doubt they are selling decent stuff, and have a legit business for the most part. They did take credit cards, etc. My only red flag is the completely phony “backstory” to their sales game. I mean, why do they need to lie there. If they’d just say, “We buy truckloads of furniture and tour around selling it ourselves versus owning a store” or something similar, I’d respect them a lot more.
My wife and I looked at the furniture. Not bad, but not in our budget. I’d probably have no qualms buying from them if I was in the market for something they had and had the $ to spend. Most big furniture stores run free financing promotions that make these purchases digestible for households like mine, so I’m not going to splurge and upset my cash-flow.
My wife and I bought a furniture from these guys a couple of years back. We bought a couch and a love seat. The furniture wasn’t fancy but half the price of furniture stores and they still work fine. We took a risk but it was well worth it.
They were in Jacksonville Florida this week. I dont ever jump on a deal but did with this one. I bought a sofa and loveseat (leather) for 1350. I did think it was Thomasville furniture, because of the truck of course. The men gave the story of the cancelled interior designer order and I thought what a deal with it being leather and Thomasville. I asked one of the dudes if it had a Thomasville tag on the furniture and he said no and the tag taken off was the only one. I should have known then. Anyhow- I know this is not Thomasville furniture but it is very beautiful and I dont think I could have gotten both pieces at a better price retail as I’ve looked all summer. It is very thick, rich looking leather and I hope it holds up well.The men were very nice, delivered, set it up and gave me a receipt.After reading all this, I know I was fooled with the brand but feel it is good furniture for the price paid.If I knew more about this- I would have offered them much less! The truck was the biggest part of this trick.
This is for Kathleen from jun 3rd 2009, whose husband does this for a living. I have purchased all my furniture from one of these trucks and I love them all. it is time to replace my leaving room with new set. Nothing is wrong with them, I am only ready for change after these years. KAthleen, would you please email me your contact info? I have posted my request multiple time here but everyone has ignored me! SOMEONE PLEASE PROVIDE CONTACT INFO OF THESE PEOPLE. I AM DESPERATE….
this is for Kathleen from jun 3rd 2009, whose husband does this for a living. I have bought my living room furniture off the truck twice over twenty years. The furniture has held up exceptionally well even though we have two kids two dogs two cats and tons of friends and family that sit on it day in and day out. The only reason I let go of my first purchase was the dogs and then the kids stained the couch, it would have cost me as much to reupholster as get a new one. You should create a website so people will know where and when you will be in their area and what styles you will be showing. People would like to know instead of asking friends and family to let you know if they ever see the trucks. Seriously, Janet
Hi,
My husband does this for a living, we run 5 trucks. There dozens of furniture peddlers from the piedmont area of North Carolina. I will tell you that if someone says the furniture is Thomasville, that is not true. But that doesn’t mean that it is not good furniture. We sell Ashley, Vaughn, Homelegance, Howard Miller and many other good brands. We also sell furniture from companies no one has ever heard of that is shipped in from China (mostly leather). We have a circuit that we run every year, so it is important to us to sell a decent product that won’t make it so we can’t come back to an area next year. We are a real business, we deal with the factories, banks, credit card companies, the states and city governments we work in, the IRS, the DOT for our trucks. It is not in our best interest to scam people and get a bad reputation. But some small time peddlers, are just out to make some crack money and will tell any kind of story and sell any kind of junk. It is up to the customer to use caution, just like any other shopping experience. I would suggest using a credit card, that way if there is a problem you have an advocate. If a peddler doesn’t take credit cards, that is a red flag, don’t buy from them.
Wow, im going to get straight to the point here. All of these articles make me laugh (the furniture is stolen, they rented a truck). So what im going to do is tell you the truth about these peddlers. Most of the guys own there trucks, they go to furniture stores and buy the furn in bulk with there own money ( a full truck load cost about 25,000 to 30,000) most of the peddlers pay straight cash. They will most likely sale the hole truck in 10 days. And they usually mark the prodcut up a 100% but that is still cheaper than what you would pay for it in the stores. And yes they do this year round…A good peddler will make 150,000 300,000 a year . When they talk to you and you wonder if that is realy the way they talk yes it is ( a good southern boy)…Well i hope this helps you out on your next purchase….I no beacause i peddled for 5 years… have a nice day yall
Rich,
do you have any contact number for these people? i have purchased all my furniture from them in past 13 years. But I have lost their number. Please email me; [email protected]. I like to get some new furniture from them.
I am extremely skeptical almost cynical by nature yet I decided to “fall” for this scam yesterday afternoon. I’d seen this a couple of times in the past, but had declined the invitation to view the contents of the truck until yesterday. The difference this time. We had been shopping for living and dining room furniture for about the past month and had a pretty good idea of what we wanted. As such, the wife and I took them up on their offer to view the truck’s contents. Sounds almost identical to what everybody else mentioned….wing back chairs a plenty, grandfather clocks, bedroom sets, sofa’s settee’s etc., and most importantly, two cherry dining room sets. One represented as a Pulaski and the other Fairmont Designs. My wife liked both sets, so I took the brochures inside to do some quick research while my wife and several neighbors chatted up the truckers. I knew full well that the sets were most likely knock-offs, but I wanted to get an idea of what the real deal would cost me via an Internet purchase. The driver advised me that the Pulaski had an MSRP of $11,000, but I could have it for $4,000. When the wife turned her attention to the Fairmont pedestal table, he advised pedestals “were more expensive”, which we knew to be true and that we could have that one for $4,300 inclusive of the pedestal table, two arm chairs, two sides chairs and china cabinet. My research showed that I could get the actual set from an Internet-based furniture store for a couple of hundred dollars less than what he was asking. I walked outside and thanked him for his time, but we weren’t interested as it simply did not seem like a bargain and too much risk involved. We went back inside for a few minutes and I told my wife to tell him we’d be interested for $2,700 He countered at $3,000 and I agreed knowing full well that even though all of the boxes and tags said Fairmont Designs that it was a knock-off. Thing is, I never had heard of Fairmont Designs before, so what do I care. Unless what appeared to be wood suddenly turns into dust overnight, I’m fine with it and feel I got a decent value. At the end, we grabbed a wing back chair for $289 as well. Now, was I scammed? I don’t think so. I think I made an intelligent value-based decision on what I had learned over the last month while furniture shopping. We’ve gone over the set visually a half dozen or so times and see no defects. The drawers all have velvet bottoms, although they are not on rollers and are a little stiff. I’m sure they made at least a $1,500 profit off of me, but compared to my recent Ethan Allen experience that was fine by me. The good folks from Ethan Allen came out and put together a phenomenal living room and dining room floor plan for us three weeks ago. The living room consisting of an area rug, a settee, a wingback chair, two other chairs, a coffee table, a pineapple table and two end tables totaled $13,000. The dining room consisting of an area rug, pedestal table, two arm chairs, six side chairs, china cabinet and sideboard was $18,500. EA wanted $1,899 for the wing back chair. The chair I got off the truck was very similar at a $1,600 savings. Know, I still need the sideboard for the dining room, they offered to bring it back next trip or I could get online for about $800 was still a significant savings over EA. Although the quality of the truck furniture appears very good, I won’t try to argue it is comparable to EA, but at 1/4 the price, the look is identical and unless it falls apart, which I don’t believe it will, then I’m happy…and that’s all that matters.
Also, as an aside, my experience with a large, chain furniture store has been not so stellar over the years. They employed the same sleazy sales tactic on me on two separate occasions five years apart. I negotiated a price, signed the order and scheduled delivery for three days later. On Day 2, I got a call from a sales manager saying “we can’t do this deal at that price..It’s well below what I could actually buy it for myself. If you want us to deliver it tomorrow as scheduled, it’s going to cost you $xxx.xx more”. The first time this happened to me in 2000, I told the guy that was his problem not mine and that we had a contract and if he breached I would seek the appropriate remedies. The furniture arrived the next day and I never heard from him again. Five years later, I purchased a bedroom set and got the same phone call two days later. This time I canceled the order and will not go there again. I had a car dealership do this to my wife in 1997 as well. Sleazy. Anyway, my opinion, proceed with caution, but proceed nonetheless if you’re confident you know what a fair value is for what you are looking at.
P.S. Would only pay CC on something like this in case of any type of dispute, and I’m from Southern New Jersey.
These guys really get around. Big white semi with “Thomasville” that looked just like the store logo in my development this afternoon – thought a neighbor was getting a delivery. Guy with a thick southern accent rings my doorbell and gives me the song and dance about a canceled order and a truck full of furniture he has to get rid of cheap. Didn’t go out to look b/c we don’t need furniture and it sounded too shady to me. Plus, we bought furniture years ago at a close-out sale for a Sears Home brand store and got a bit burned. The sales person assured us that the mission style furniture we got was solid wood and it turned out to be laminate. By the time we figured that out – no store left to complain to. Hats off to those who think they got a deal, but I’ll buy from IKEA before I buy off a truck. BTW I live in eastern PA, near Allentown.
This same thing happened to me today, 3/6/09. Door bell rang, looked outside and saw a furniture truck. I thought it may have been a delivery but at the wrong address. When I opened the door the guy delivered his pitch. Since he said they were from N.C. and I could see this on the truck, I asked why come all the way to ILLINOIS! Scam alert! He gave me a line about deeply discounted furniture etc. and left his card. I told him I may be able to look later so he left his card and stated to call the phone number. the card stated: Cottle Transport, Inc and name on card is John Cottle. In then meantime, I searched the web and found this thread. I am sceptical but also wondering if there is any level of legitimacy to this.
I live in Murfreesboro, Tennessee off 231 south in Chestnut Hill. These guys knocked on my door this morning, ( two young guys and one older man with white hair)..looked down the street and saw a HUGE, all white Semi with Thomasville Furniture on the Cab and Trailer. Their spill was that they were on their way to Lebanon,Tn. to deliver this huge load of furniture to an interior designer. They got word that the bank had pulled the designers line of credit and that they actually had no money, so therefore they were having to unload this stuff for under half its worth. They claimed her delivery was supposed to be COD. They never said why they couldn’t take it back with them and I didn’t ask. Several of my neighbors were already on the truck looking to see what they had.
I found the guys very personable and when I got on the truck to look..everything was packaged nicely and they had some extremley nice wing back chairs ( some couches went with these), settees, 2 leather club chairs, several really nice recliners that rocked, reclined and swiveled in one. They had whole sets of really nice bedroom suites (dressers, end tables, ect,).I would have liked a dresser, but they couldn’t split up the set. I checked the tags,( which the couches had at least 3 on them) and they clearly stated Thomasville Furniture.They were in many different styles, patterns and colors. The prices on these couches according to the tags, ranged from $2600 to $3000. They offered them to me for $649 each. The 3 in one recliners were stated as being $699. The offer of those were $198 each. The wingback chairs orginally, I think were $700 and the offer was $298.
Now..I am a skeptic or at least consider myself to be, but I have been out here looking at furniture the last couple of months and I may kick myself later, but you know what? I bought a couch, recliner, and a small table. All for $1000. What I got as far as looks, is way nicer and more affordable than any I had found that I liked so far. These guys moved my old sofa for me and set up my new one and even put the feet on for me. I got a receipt with a name and phone number that says Thomasville Furniture. The check had to be written out to a Champ Cooper and they included sales tax. They required 2 phone numbers. Also..just to add on…I initially only got the recliner and the table. I called my dad to tell him what I got and that they were still down the street. My dad said I should go back and get me a couch for that price. So I did. If these guys wanted to try and steal more money from me, they could have kept the first check I wrote them. They didn’t. They actually handed me back my first check to tear up, so I could just write the couch and all on one. They could have easily kept it and I probably would have forgot it. I may be dense at times, but I have had way worse happen dealing with furniture from a store. Heck..I was gonna buy a whole Ashley Furniture bedroom suite from them that they had marked down(still in the thousands I might ad) and when I asked about the delivey fee, they told me they couldn’t deliver merchandise that was on clearance!! Oh, but there was a guy there that the manager was friends with, that, if for price, he could bring it to me on a horse trailer! Can you believe that crap??!! I walked out and will never go back. That suite by the was like $4000. Their loss.
So I plan on calling my bank Monday and put them on alert just to make sure that only the amount I wrote is to come out for them. In the meantime, I don’t feel bad. I have dealt with way worse. And the furniture is so comfortable and nice!! And I promise you I not from NC or a trucker making this up. At no time did I feel threatened in any way by these guys. Not to mention my neighbor was there too and heard what they said and could identify them if needed.
I have been keeping house for over 33 years. I have never had to use a warranty on any piece of furniture. Having a warranty that you will probably never use is not worth it to pay higher prices in the brick and mortar stores.
Most of those store mark up at least 300 to 400%, that is why they can have the so called blow out sales and still make a mint.
Hey, I bought furniture off the back of the truck. Call me crazy if you will. I bought it over 4 years ago. No police came knocking on my door. The furniture is of very good quality and still looks brand new. I compared the prices and they are very good.
Also, found that the company name to make checks to is listed on the web in guess where High Point, NC.
I do the same thing but with a warehouse instead of a truck…Peddling furniture out of truck is too hard and you are away from your family…. peddling used to be more common… loading lifting and letting customers see every piece of furnitutre you have on the truck before they buy one or no pieces is hard work…. I tried this with one truck load selling to friends and family (too hard) I decided to go with a retail warehouse instead in Lake Norman NC(still in business after 5 years)…. the furniture I get is new furniture from High Point showrooms…. mostly sofas, sectionals, chairs and ottomans, sleepers etc, of all styles 100% leather, fabric or microfiber….we will also buy casegood showrooms (bedrooms and casual dining mostly) Unlike the hardworking peddlers we give the mfts. name, model #, leather color, and leather name as well as an optional warranty… anyone with a computer can check to find out the deals they are receiving are true deals at true wholesale prices. we pick up truckloads in High Point about 2x month. Most of our customers are from Lake Norman area (Mecklenburg County) same county as Charlotte NC. A trip from Charlotte to Davidson is worth the ride. What we offer our customers: great quality, great price and you get it today. (with most deals you only get 2 of the 3) We have kept our overhaed very low…. when you visit the warehouse customers can tell they are buying the furniture not the warehouse
well… how about that… SOME boxes were marked “made in Vietnam” , can someone here please explain to me why?
why are we now American’ts??? OHHHH I think I know… cause everyone here wants to be paid $80/hour to work, and no one wants to pay anyone that much to work, so we ship all our manufacturing off to other countries where the people will work for $0.10/ hour….And we sure don’t want to pay anything for something for our house, we want cheap!!! Go in about any store and look at the tags of clothing, made in China, Indonesia, Vietnam, Korea. Our cars are made overseas, our clothing, our furniture… what next, our wives and children? Oh, wait a friend of mine has a Chinese wife, she treats him like a king and she is very pretty… I think women need to watch out, they will get replaced next…. And to all the people who have children that want to give them everything that they didn’t get when they grew up… well, guess what your children won’t have when they do grow up? JOBS, MONEY, SECURITY!!!! Make your kids earn their money, and make your stores earn your money….. I mean has anyone noticed all the political talk on TV about making this a socialist country to get out of the financial crisis???? I guess free society was sold out…. and no one cares…. oh wait, they care, they just talk about it, and don’t do anything about it… I would yell WAKE UP AMERICA, but I think everyone is to stoned or drunk to notice anything…
Bill: Actually, that’s not the case. Check out comment #71. THe boxes were clearly marked “Made in Vietnam.”
Hey all you smart people out there…
Who don’t want to buy furniture out of the back of a truck..
That furniture in the back of the truck, is most likely made right here in the USA!
The furniture you find in most furniture stores today, is made in ChinA!! Who do you want to support?
The furniture in the furniture stores, gets there via the back of a big furniture truck! Interesting, big furniture truck takes furniture to back of store and unloads it….
someone owns a big semi with furniture trailer and finds manufacturer, and decides to head out of state to sell it to individuals to save them money compared to stores who paid $big money for a storefront location. one time investment in truck and trailer $100-150,000…. store BIG MONEY.. maybe $10,000 a month rent or more or maybe $5 million dollar one time purchase depending on location!! The Store’s don’t sell you that furniture or anything else for that matter at cost…
Wow I’m still impressed that the furniture got to the store the same way it got to the front of your home.
I’ll say this too, IF door to door selling is illegal in your state or city, you have lost a freedom! You may not want to do that type of job, but it was still a freedom that we have all lost.
This blog really shows that there are alot of people out there that do not care if they lose a freedom. What a shame, I have lost relatives in past wars that are DEAD to save your freedom.
Also, I imagine most people don’t listen to these peddlers sales pitch, to note they say they are from Thomasville, NC….
So folks, Let me say this, the biggest scam artists out there are your nice pretty store fronts, who do you people think pays for that $10 million dollar storefront????
I mean look at any mall location, any big store, and check their information, how much did they pay for that land???? The big box stores are making millions, did you see their company info, stating net profits??? NET, means that is what they made after all costs were taking out, that was money out of your pocket’s my friend. And all that money went to pay some big executives to have a fat time on your hard earned paycheck that you spent with them!!!!!! Their exotic vacations, their fancy cars, their mansions on the hill!!!! Folks, wake up!!!
Hello Si,
I’m further south than you, so I’m not sure if these guys will come your way. Perhaps they or one of their compatriots may be able to help you.
We bought a formal dining set that suits our tastes and falls right in range with the online prices for similar furniture. The boxes clearly showed “Made in Vietnam”, but I don’t mind Asian hardwood when it is crafted this nicely. The curved backs of the chairs are joined beautifully.
Hi RK ,
Please share their info with rest of us whom are looking for these guys to buy more furniture. I do not think they mind to distribute their contact info. It would be a free ad for them.
Whatever, Larry (from the Thomasville truck) is a really nice guy, and I’m not about to knock his hustle. I got me a lovely Lane leather sofa and love seat about a year and a half ago for my basement. I’m looking for dining room furniture now, and if I can’t find what I want in the stores, and they have something that is a great deal, I have their business card and will call them up to see what they can bring through the next time they are in N. Virginia and if it has a great price, I’ll consider buying it.
I live here in North Carolina as a matter of fact in High Point. I know alot of guys who peddle furniture. As a matter of a fact I pebble food. The furniture that you are buying is made here in North Carolina. There are a lot of small companies that make furniture for these guys to sell. It is top of the line and does not fall apart. A lot of the times what you are buying is the same thing you would buy from a furniture store. A person here can buy a truck load of furniture at a pretty good price and make some good money on it. The product is not stolen. If you come here you can get the same price they pay for it. These companys are all over the place that wholesale furniture. So all of you who think it is a scam it is not. Thomasville furniture has these small companys make furniture for them, most the time it is samples of what they want to put on a line to be made. Just remeber one thing the furniture you are buying off the truck is made by one man who takes his time making it. What you buy in the furniture store is made by a lot of people who just want to get thru the day and go home. Which on do you think is made better.
They were just at my house in walworth ny.Same setup as described.09/28/08
I’m not saying the furniture is good or bad. The manner in which it is being sold should raise some red flags. They were in our neighborhood as well. Nervously, the man tells a story of how a little old lady had bought all of this furniture, her credit was bad, so now they have to unload it at discount prices. I won’t be buying any hamburgers from a mobile McDonnald’s.
I am looking for these people to buy more furniture from them. Anybody has any contact information of them?
Oh geez louise … calm down people.
I just bought furniture from a truck for half the price in the store without the delivery fees. I used my credit card and no, it hasnt been used by them since. They arranged for me to purchase extra pieces not included on the truck, so yes they have a way of getting other pieces from same collection. They used the thomasville town name, but did not claim to be the company. The furniture is the exact set from the store (i did my research) and has the same logos inside the drawers.
I would gladly do it again!
I have bought my living room furniture from them 10 years ago. We loved it so much that we purchased 2 bedroom sets, dining room and family room furniture from them 5 years later. I am so pleased with the bargain and proud of myself for not paying triple times to junks from Marlo or many other furniture stores. I was wondering how I can find them again in Washington DC area. Anybody has any idea?
I was visiting a small town in Maryland on Tuesday morning and these guys showed up. I returned home that night to where I live (outside of Philly) and the same friggin idiots show up! These guys drove 150 miles north just to find me again! Unbelievable! I thought they were following me so, I did a search and found this blog. I’m still gonna do some more investigation. Seems too coincidental.
The arrival of the truck in our neighborhood made for an interesting afternoon. We don’t consider ourselves foolish or naive. The furniture was comparable to the quality we have found in stores and the price was right. I actually found the exact pattern and color I’ve been looking for in a loveseat, wing chair and settee at a lot less money. The tag says Furniture Brands International, of which several fine makers are a division. I agree with the previous poster that questions where’s the scam–they offered a product and a good price and we were satisfied with the quality and cost. And my husband is glad he doesn’t have to endure endless trips to the furniture store anymore or wait for delivery! Keep an open mind.
So this is a scam, huh? So, they asked you to buy furniture, you gave them money, and they gave you furniture. My mother bought a leather recliner from one of these outfits. It was a good deal and it’s still really nice after several years of use. Most people posting are really, really angry. Why? Seems pretty innocuous to me.
07/30/2008, just had a guy in a thomasville truck give us the same line about having a load that was for a furniture company that had gone out of business. searched this out and found this page on the web. interesting stuff. my only comment is to those who think this is either normal, legal or moral. it is non of the above. to sell to the public in this state requires you be registered with the state dept of revenue, hold a retail license, and pay your sales tax collected for items sold. all of these things are NOT happening in these cases. it is illegal plain and simple. for those of us who have legit businesses, how is it at all fair to have some one show up and compete against you without having to pay taxes on your sales. these folks should be in jail. if they want to sell furniture out of the back of their trucks, that’s ok with me. do it legally.
IF YOU WOULD NOT BE SO QUICK TO MAKE EVERY ONE OUT TO BE SO BAD AND SO QUICK TO KNOCK EVERYTHING, YOU MIGHT JUST GET A GOOD DEAL ON SOME FURNITURE. JUST LOOK AT THE TAGS OR BOXES AND PHOTOS AND YOU WILL KNOW EXACTLY WHAT YOU ARE BUYING. IT DOES NOT TAKE A ROCKET SCIENTIST TO SEE A GOOD DEAL, BUT IT DOES TAKE A CLOSED MINDED PERSON TO WALK AWAY FROM A BARGAIN. IF YOU LIKE PAYING RETAIL THE STORES WILL BE GLAD TO CHARGE YOU 2 O 3 TIMES AS MUCH AS THE TRUCKS. WHO IS THE SHADY SALESMAN NOW? THINK ABOUT IT. DONT BE SO CLOSED MINDED AND SO QUICK TO PUT SOMEONE WORKING HARD TO EARN A LIVING. ITS HARD WORK AND ALOT OF LONG HOURS.
Chuck, they may be just trying to make a living, but in many areas this sort of solicitation is not allowed. Thus, they’re often breaking the law.
First of all i know all about this, it is called peddelling furniture i know people who have made a living off peddelling furniture i live in high point north carolina. The furniture isnt thomasville duh!! But it is legit and good quality heck i know the quy where they all get it from all furniture now days is made in china your not getting a deal just because it says thomasville on it or ashley or lane, american drew what not it is almost all made in china now. The pitch they give you isnt legit but the furniture is, it is actually made in high point unlike thomasville which is made mainly overseas how do i know this i worked for thomasville furniture in thomasville. For everyone saying this is a scam you obviously dont no any better the furniture is higher quality and a better price then what you will buy in a store now just the delivery prices with gas going up makes it worth your while to at least take a look at . AND NO IM NOT A PEDDLER TRYING TO STICK UP FOR PEDDLING THAT IS WHAT IT IS CALLED DOOR TO DOOR COLD CALLING SELLING MERCHANDISE OFF A BACK OF A TRUCK. If you dont want to buy from these guys that is fine but dont knock
a man for trying to make a living if you dont like just be polite and say not interested and go about your business. We live in the US a free society not a dictator ship where you have to down someone for trying to make a living if you had a family with mouths to feed wouldnt you do what you had to do to keep them fed. Sorry if i sound rood or upset, but dont talk about people unless you are standing in front of them then tell them that is what we call a coward.
Thanks sincerely,
Chuck
Let the BUYER BEWARE applies when you make a purchase from a truck or in a store. Got to know a little about the quality you are buying.
I bought a Sofa & Loveseat for $1,200 off a truck after Hurricane Andrew in Miami.
Looked good and used them for 12 years!
(all stores in Miami were damaged & closed)
I visited Thomasville & High Point last year,
simply 2 nice small Southern Towns with 1,000
furniture stores. My Sister drove from Boston to Thomasville to buy furniture for her new
Condo in Florida last year. A couple weeks after delivery she spotted a tag on the back of the bed that said “Made in China!”
I hope she paid the “Made in China price?”
I notice another comment here from Indian Trail Road. Is this on Lake Keowee, SC where I have a lot? (maybe 12 houses on Rd)
End result = Be intelligent & do your homework.
Return Policy? (sorry, no returns) LOL
I think you have to be careful and go on a case-by-case basis. We bought a really nice chair for our home office last year and couldn’t be happier with it. We paid cash. We got a receipt with a phone # and physical address on it. The same chair would have cost us $115 more plus a delivery fee had we bought it online through a brick and mortar store.
Years ago, I had a friend in NY state who manufactured furniture for these types of businesses. They get the parts separately, like legs, etc. Then they do upholstery and decorate them all at once, which is why they have so many of the same style but different colors. They often use overstock upholstery and components from many different manufacturers. So, it may have some brand name foams or coverings or legs. It is actually pretty well made.
Lots of folks sell stuff from trucks: Schwann’s food, seafood (alot here in MD), those ugly velvet paintings that were big in the 70’s, clothing (New York City), Amway (at least the guys who weren’t trying to to the pyramid part) and the Fuller Brush Man used to be a welcome sight. The problem with furniture is that it seems too “big ticket” to be sold from trucks. I say just be careful, check the quality and always get a receipt with contact info. and verify.
These guys were here in Rochester Hills, MI. For last few months, I have been visiting furniture stores to get a good price, but I have not likes single sofa yet. The only choices I have are in Micro fiber and suede (Don’t want to go for leather). But the sofa I saw on the truck was good. I liked it though I haven’t bought yet. The quality was really good. I wish I had bought from them.
Thanks
SS
I just had a white truck stop by my house in Jefferson Georgia with three white guys claiming to sell Thomasville furniture. They had couches, loveseats, clocks, etc. The truck had Thomasville printed on the sides and they wore Thomasville shirts. The truck had a North Carolina tag. The tag number of the truck in AZ-52665. I’m not about to buy anything out of the back of a truck but out of curiosity I did take a look at their stuff. I would not recommend buying anything from these guys.
I purchased a leather recliner from a truck from Thomasville NC. There was no misrepresentation of the products. Most of it was probably made in China. Guess what…most of your local furniture stores buy their furniture from Chinese ditributors/manufacturers. This business is no different than any other. In case you are not familiar with Geography; Thomasville is a town in NC and happens to be the name of a company also. NC furniture businesses are struggling with Chinese competition. The guys sell off the trucks can save you a little but consider it a convenience not a scam.
I’m tell’n ya’ll you can ease your mind all you want to, but this furnture is not what they say it is. P.T. Barnum once said “there is a sucker born every day.”
A truck just pulled up in my neighborhood about an hour ago. Told them I wasn’t interested. Their spiel was the “order was canceled and we have a permit to sell the merchandise.” He said he was from North Carolina, and he did have some sort of southern accent.
Never had heard about this kind of scam, but it was too good to be true, so I was wary. (Also, I didn’t need any furniture.)
Is it me, or does it seem as if these truck driving scammers are posting fake posts to try to make their business sound legitimate? Get real jobs and leave the normal hard working people alone!
I also live in MD and these guys stopped at my house last night. My husband pulled off and approximately 10 minutes later my door bell rang. I opened it and got a spiel about a neighbourhood delivered and the excess that he would like to get rid of. I went to look with my husband on the phone and he insisted I go back inside lock the door and tell them to come back in 20 minutes when he is back. (We just bought a new home and we do need a lot of furniture) They came back and we bought a formal living room set and a couple accent pieces all in good condition.(Oh btw it was a good price better that what we have been seeing). All in all it would be wrong of me to say anything bad about these 3 guys. Two of the 3 had wife and kids back home, they were very personable and helpful. By the time they left out home I gave them a something to drink and promised them dinner if we ever meet again.
I truly believe these are knock off but they look very good, I will make a determination on quality in the years to come. I am not advocating going out to random guys and endangering yourselves… I am just saying my experience with these guys were pleasant full of conversation and not at all frightening. (I wouldn’t have done it without my big burly husband however)
I did this for over 20 years. This busuness started in the late 60s and early 70’s took off big time in the late 70s and early 80s I don’t do it no more because it is a lie, and a scam. The furniture is bought from local mom & pop Upholstery shops in High Point & Thomasville, NC. A lot of the leather goods are coming out of China now
The one dude said he sold it with out Lying. he’s a lyer. The tags are marked up about five times over what they are worth. He\’ll tell you that’s the suggested retail price, but he will deal you out at about a tird of that. Not so. They will knock out about $ 100.00 clear on a chair. About $ 400 to $ 500 on a living room suite, about $ 500 to $ 1000 on bedroom and dining room.
I sold this stuff all over the U.S. North south east and west. Even had a state wide consumer alert put out on us in Arkansas in 1983. We had four tractors and trailers working all over the state.
My story was that I carried the load to a new dealer. He didn’t have the money to pay for it c.o.d. so we had to load it back up. We had a load to pick up going back to N.C. and didn’t have room for it, so if you would buy we would sale it to you at dealers cost, no freight, and enclude the tax. If you bought enough I would even call the boss and get you maybe an even better deal. Sold truckload after truckload using that line.
I’m out of that business now. Been out of for 14 years. To the hundreds of people I scamed I’m truly sorry.
Need any more imfo let me know.
These guys come around annually where I live in MD, claiming to have a canceled order. When I called the police I was amazed to hear the city had given them a permit to do this. Who needs a pollution belching semi in a narrow side street. After I told them to get lost they called my home phone, obviously using an address directory because they used the fake name we list to be able to hang up on telemarketers. Same voice, same accent. This time the police agreed to go tell them they cannot hassle people who refuse to fall for their racket.
This is pretty incredible! I was just cleaning my sofa that I bought off the back of a truck 15 years ago in Houston when I saw the Hamilton furniture tag and thought about the wonders of the internet and decided to see if there was any information. That got me to this website! To those who are feeling scammed….its been a good sofa and I STILL LIKE IT even if I was scammed! Ps Bought a wing chair to go with it!
In St. Petersburg, Florida today. Nice rig that said “Thomasville Furniture.” Actually stopped at our office. Pretty funny because we are a law office…….
I’m happy with the stuff we bought. If you’re buying furniture based solely on the brand name and not the actual quality of the materials and construction, you’re the one getting scammed.
These guys stopped by our office park in Mobile, AL going from door to door claiming to have Thomasville furniture. When I confronted one man about this article, and the fact that he is scamming people, he claimed that he never said the furniture was Thomasville and that he was selling other brand names from many distributors. He showed me some brochures that look professional claiming that some of the furniture was from Ashley and other fine retailers. When I looked closely, the brochure read “Ashly” furniture, not Ashley, and did not have the usual Ashley logo. These guys are deffinitely scamming people.
In some parts of the country, we “adults” answer the door packing heat (and I don’t mean a blow-dryer). Just the way it is, given the way things have become. There’s more “side-of-beef-we-can’t-sell” type guys around here trying to sell out of a freezer on the back of a pickup, and they know by this point that they don’t venture this far out. Sure you wanna try that kind of business here Jim?
No business answering the door? Stay of my friggin’ property.
This sounds like a good money making deal. I would like to be involved in this.
What is wrong with door to door sales?
Some of you folks have no business answering the door. Stay under your bed, and let the adults take care of business, please.
hey this for all you people who think you got scammed i used to do this for a living had my own truck and i baught my funiture factory direct from nc i sold like this to but i told people the truth that i sale to the public at a dicount from what you would pay in a local store but i dealt only in quaily furniture some of these ppls do lye just look at the furniture and make your own common sense decisionthere are some honest pedlars around just be careful and you can sve alot of money this way
What are some of you thinking? These guys are from the High Point area. They buy cheaply made goods and mark them up more than any store. They give the illusion of a brand name. They are not brand names. This is how these guys make a living. Selling poorly made goods at huge mark ups under the guise of a “deal”.
If you know nothing about quality and furniture pricing these are great deals.
My wife bought a nice cherry sofa table and a really nice high-back chair off the truck about six years ago for about $100 total and the quality was great. We got rid of the table (which was holding up just fine) a few months ago when we remodeled the room, but the chair is still as nice as the day we bought it. This isn’t a ‘SCAM’ as some would call it, although the guys do embellish the story a bit. I would buy from them again. If there was a number I could call to find out when they’re coming through again, or to make specific requests, that would be great. I’m in Mechanicsburg, PA btw.
I don’t think I would buy furniture off the back of a truck because my wife is very warranty conscious. That said, I don’t see why it would be such a terrible idea. I mean, sure it probably isn’t the best stuff in the world, and you definitely should not have illusions about the brand names (though I would still tend to believe the tags on the furniture itself). That all said, if you feel like you got a good deal, don’t feel guilty. I mean, oh wah, I don’t have Thomas Furniture chairs, does that mean I’m a bad person? If I liked them, and they are holding up ok, then that is fine.
Oh yeah, and um… we already have furniture so I don’t think we’d be in the market for truck-wares 🙂
Well then, why do you guys ACT as if your from Thomasville Furniture? Why don’t just say your selling furniture off the back of a truck rather than acting as if your something your not? You come up with some big elaborate stories about you need to dump the stuff now blah blah blah. Also, please provide links of Lane Furniture, chippendale and what not.
THE TAGS ON THE FURNITURE ARE THE ACTUAL MANUFACTURERS. IF IT SAYS LANE , THEN IT IS MADE BY LANE.ALL THE RETAIL AND WHOLESALE PRICES CAN BE LOOKED UP ON LINE.DONT BE SO SCAM-FOBIC THAT YOU WONT SAVE MONEY JUST BECAUSE THE FURNITURE IS ON A TRUCK. HOW DO YOU THINK IT GETS TO THE STORE (HAHAHA)- A TRUCK. THERE ARE ALOT OF EXPENSES INVOLVED IN SELLING FURNITURE DOOR TO DOOR. THE TRUCKS, FUEL, HELP, HOTEL, FOOD ETC ARE NOT FREE.I SELL LIKE THIS AND I HAVE TONS OF REPEAT CUSTOMERS AND YES YOU GET A WARRANTY- ATLEAST THRU COTTLE TRANSPORT YOU DO.
Exact same thing happened to me in the Chicago suburbs. Same truck, same guy with the accent and everything. He told me they were down from Thomasville and had some overstock that they could get rid of at 75% discount. I told the guy no and started to shut the door, but he actually pushed the door back open and tried to come inside! OMG! I shot him and then he was able to get out the front door and in the truck. They took off and I haven’t seen them around the neighborhood.
Hopefully they won’t be bothering anybody any longer.
Well I guess my husband was scammed this past week because he bought a grand father clock, formal dinning room set w/ china cabinet and a Victorian style living room sofa and wing back chair. But I also have my bank to hold responsable as well because when you have xxx amount of $$$ in your account and the bank wouldn’t clear the check why did they turn around and clear the check several days later with less $$$ in the account? Stupid them (bank)for accepting the check, stupid me for not following my guts and putting a stop payment on the check.
If you want good furniture at a bargain price and you live in the chicagoland area, go to Harlem Furniture Outlet Center in Lombard, Ill. I got a full living room set in the clearance center for $1000 and it came brand new! Some stuff is damaged and some of it ugly, but at least you know what your getting. Not something off the back of a truck. To be honest with you the only thing I was interested in was the grandfather clock.
The same guys stopped by my house in Chicago burbs with the same story. I was planning by 2 new chairs. I saw what they had. I bought them. I know its a scam of some kind; but the check wasn’t altered and got what I paid for.
like I said, a few neighbors were standing around and trying to figure out the scam BEFORE i bought the chairs. The recliners are leather but they have a tag that says Lane. I know they’re not Lane and I know I have no guarantee. But I have my chairs. And the salesman had the NC accent; the other guys didn’t talk.
These guys just showed up at our door this morning. Big white semi with Discount Furniture, Thomasville, NC on the side. They had the back doors of the semi open and a side door open with a guy sitting in the open door.
The drove slowly up and down the street while another guy went door to door looking for suckers… er, customers.
He gave out a “business card” with Cottle Transport, Inc. Overstock Furniture Sales.
Thomasville, NC.
I did a Google search and found that there is a Cottle Transport, Inc in High Point, NC. But that’s all I could find.
The thing that I can’t figure out is who in their right mind would buy furniture from a semi truck going door to door? That’s just nuts!
This scam shouldn’t ever work. Not even once. If people will buy furniture from a semi truck driving down your street what idiotic scam won’t they fall for?
Hey, I hear that next week a surgeon from the Mayo Clinic has some overstock surgery in the back of an old truck and will be through the neighborhood with transplants at some GREAT prices. Come on out to the truck and take a look.
Yes, these guys just stopped by my house in the Chicago Suburbs too. We just bought a brand new semi-custom home and they said that a girl was going to stage a model home and she cancelled at the last minute. they had couches, chairs and clocks. Here’s the thing though, all the couches and chairs were identical except for the fabric. It was nice looking stuff, but seeing how everything was pretty much identical I smelled a rat. The guy never said he was from Thomasville Furniture, just said they were from North Carolina and the truck said Thomasville NC on the side of it. The guys said they were desperate to sell the stuff at 50% off because they needed to get to O’Hare Aiport tomorrow to pick up fabric to ship down to North Carolina factory and that’s where they make their real money from freight. My fiancee wanted to buy a set of couches, but I paused got the guy’s cell and told them I’d call them tomorrow if we could figure out a way to afford it. We had the money, I just wanted time to research these guys and I found this thread. I even took pics with my cell phone camera and the tags to look them up. The clocks seemed nice and I wanted one, but you can get a knock off rolex from china that looks identical to the real thing too!
Btw..the other guys didn’t talk, but the sales guy had a thick North Carolina accent and was very convincing. I could tell how he could easily fool some people.
We’ve had these guys come through our neighborhood a couple of times over the last couple of years. A neighbor of mine happened to know a lot about the particular brand of grandfather clock that was on the truck, and mentioned that it was a great deal on that clock. The furniture, however, was obviously generic, and I’d have a hard time buying stuff that way.
There are ways to get deals on furniture from NC by dealing directly with manufacturers, doing your research, etc. We bought our dinette set for about $1400 (including shipping) when a local store was selling the exact same brand/model for about $2100 (and that was their “lowest price of the year” sale price). If you don’t mind waiting a few weeks for delivery, it’s worth it.
Phil has it right — what’s the scam?
They never actually SAY it’s from the correct, accurate name of the true Thomasville Furniture company, so they’re not lying. They’re selling furniture off the back of a truck, for goodness sake! Logic tells you it simply CANNOT be the highest-quality merchandise, but as Phil says, it it looks OK and holds up OK, what’s the big deal?
If you buy furniture off the back of a truck, you made the decision, of your own free will, to go for a bargain. No scam there.
I bought from them 4 or 5 years ago,no problem at all. I also have 3 teenagers so the furniture gets a workout .Call me naive or gullible but wheres the scam? Because they claim its Thomasville Furniture, that may be true, many furniture companies are in Thomasville NC. Personally, I could care less who made it as long as it is well constructed and is appealing. Does everyone really think they aren’t buying similar furniture at most furniture stores, just cuz’ you pay thousands more doesn’t guarantee anything. I have no axe to grind for or against these gypsies, its my decison whether to say if I’m interested or not.
OK after I commented above I went to Thomasville’s website and this what they said based on the following question:
Someone in my area claims they are selling Thomasville furniture off of a truck. Are they legitimate?
No, we have heard of situations like this and would like to caution you about this furniture. While the truck may say that it is from Thomasville (the city in North Carolina), the furniture is not made by Thomasville Furniture Industries. Thomasville furniture is sold exclusively in retail stores – from Thomasville Home Furnishings stores to authorized galleries and dealers. To find the store nearest you, please visit our online Store Finder.
A tractor trailer with the logo and ad from Thomasville came to my neighborhood in Indian Trail NC the other day. I didn’t go in the truck. The truck looked legit and the guys running it also. I don’t know I don’t think they would run the risk of doing that if it weren’t. Anyone could call the police on them and they would be immediately caught. It’s hard to get away in a tractor trailer with a huge logo. I have to find out more on this.
Its easy to print up flyers that show 70% savings but when buying from the back of a truck, its difficult for a buyer to fact check or shop the same brand.
They’re here in Tampa, FL. So watch out. Same speech and everything, It was a white truck with Thomasville and some kind of bulldog, on the trailer.
They stopped by our place this week in the Chicago Burbs. At least the guy had an accent! I’m sure glad I trusted my instinct and said no. Assuming your not paying sales tax, isn’t what they are doing considered illegal?
WATCH OUT THEY’RE IN ORLANDO,FL. KNOCKED ON OUR DOOR MY HUSBAND SAID “No” (Smart Man). I went to the internet hopefully to warn others.
“these guys do not have the extreme overhead the stores do”
It’s important to keep in mind that the ‘overhead’ being referred to here includes things like warranties and return policies.
I am feeling scammed. On 12/09/06, I bought 2 Hamilton House chairs and a window seat from this truck in Gainesville, FL. Now I am concerned that I have either purchased stolen property or that the furniture is not good quality like I was led to believe. When I tried to search for Hamilton House furniture, I could find nothing on Hamilton House chairs. Can anyone tell me anything about Hamilton House furniture made by Hampton Mfg in Thomasville, NC?
I did contact the driver of the truck and let him know that I realized that I had been likely scammed. My trust in people is really shaken at the moment, so I may be paranoid, but I do find it interesting that comment #14 that begins with “High Point is the furniture capitol of the world” and goes on to say that that the furniture is not stolen… was posted shortly after my conversation with the driver. Perhaps this is coincidence, but I noticed that whoever posted that comment has the same initials as the driver.
With that said, if anyone missed their opportunity and wants to purchase some Hunter Green Hamilton House chairs really cheap, let me know. I just want to get them out of my house so that I can get past the pain of being scammed.
High point is the furniture capital of the world. hundreds of manufacturers of quality furniture are within a one humdred mile radius. this furniture is constantly sold from both manufacturers and showrooms by the truckloads and carried nationwide to be resold at remarkable savings. IT IS NOT STOLEN. these guys do not have the extreme overhead the stores do and can sellit this way. besides Thomasville Furniture Industries has closed almost all of their plants and gone overseas and has put hundreds of families out of work in Thomasville and the surrounding area I would not buy from them because of that.
Just had a guy come by my home here in Gainesville, FL today with this scam. White truck said Thomasville. Guy said, “We’re down from Thomasville, NC with a truckload of great furniture we’re trying to move at discount prices. Want to check it out?”
No way I was falling for it, but afterward I Googled to find out what was up with this and found your blog entry.
Did these guys really drive all the way down from NC with a truck of furniture so they could patrol my subdivision door-to-door. Somehow I doubt they are really from NC.
Same thing in CT, never said is was Thomasville furniture but a company from Thomasville, NC. I called the local police dept and they verified it was legit they had given them a license to see here in town. So, we looked up the furniture online and found the exact same items and decided it was a great deal, bought it and we love it.
Good Luck
They were just in Martinsville, VA with the same scam. I did get the tag numbers of the truck and trailer and a cell phone number so I could call them after I ask my Husband about it. They are as follows NC tag BA7499 on the truck and the trailer was 46790 the cell phone number is 336-870-1640. If you can scam the scamers please or put them where they belong, in jail.
Well, my wife fell for it, just bought a couch and loveseat from these guys saying it was Thomasville furniture… they parked their truck in a gas station and had a bunch of furniture on display. i told my wife the furniture was either stolen or a knockoff… she bought it anyhow. actually, it looks ok, and the price was good, but, it will probably fall apart in a few years, or give us fleas !!!
i just showed her the FAQ on the real thomasville website, that she was scammed, and she still doesnt care …she still thinks it was a good bargain’.
Thomasville Furniture Industries (TFI), a division of Furniture Brands International (which also owns Henredon, Drexel Heritage, Maitland Smith and other fine brands) is located in a city called Thomasville, North Carolina. It only distributes its products from authorized Thomasville Stores and Galleries (which are in actual buildings). TFI has a vested interest in the success of the local retailers that carry its brands and would not undermine that interest by driving around suburban neighborhoods.
Thomasville Furniture Industries is second only to La-Z-Boy in brand name recognition for the furniture industry overall and probably has the highest brand name recognition associated with high-end market segments. Therefore, the name “Thomasville” carries a reputation for quality and evokes images of style and elegance.
Unfortunately, the distributors that drive through suburban neighborhoods are capitalizing on the fact that the North American consumer knows Thomasville Furniture Industries by the brand name “Thomasville”. They are able to get away with this because Thomasville, North Carolina is also a place. They typically have Thomasville, NC stenciled on the outside of their trucks but will carry none of the products produced by Thomasville Furniture Industries inside their trucks. Instead, they tend to sell other brands from the higher part of the low-end market segment or the lower middle market segment.. Its easy to print up flyers that show 70% savings but when buying from the back of a truck, its difficult for a buyer to fact check or shop the same brands. You can get a better deal and more selection buying from a local store. You will also have an easier time with service or warranty issues should they arise.
I’ve actually run into people selling speakers out of the back of a van in a grocery store parking lot. Coincidentally, I ran into this while living in a college town. At the time, I heard that even if the speakers appear to be a decent brand, the actual guts of them are total crap (counterfeit, I guess). Thus, even if it really is a discount compared to in-store prices, you’re not getting a deal.
Seth Godin’s new book has an anecdote in it (that I only sort of remember, but the gist is there) about a student selling speakers out of the back of a U-Haul truck near a college campus.
Apparently the merchandise was actually more expensive than that which could be found at a local manufacturer, but the whole truckload went quickly because people naturally assumed it was stolen and never considered that the price wouldn’t be discounted. It was never stated that the merchandise was stolen (of course) but this smart salesperson played on peoples’ expectations.
I had the same thing happen to me about a year ago, but with meat. The “salesmen” said he was from some meat packing company in the Raleigh, NC area and had a flyer about all the meat they had in there truck they were selling at HUGE discount. Now, all the meat looked great: burgers, chicken, steak, seafood … but I wasn’t buying. I asked if there was a number and if I could all them and place an order. The “salesman” replyed … “and I thought you wanted a deal. No, you can’t call in an order.”
Is this just a NC thing?
Is it more likely to be stolen or just cheap knockoffs? It sounds like the racket happens alot which would lead me to believe it’s just knockoff furniture.
I wouldn’t buy anything off the back of a truck, they have terrible return policies. 🙂
My best guess is that the furniture is stolen. The truck may be a rental or it might be a legitimate furniture truck that was stolen full.
But no…you don’t want to pay them with a check. 🙂
My friends bought stereo equipment off the back of a truck just like that. The equipment was legit but probably stolen. College life was great. 🙂
I had the same thing in my neighborhood a few years ago. Check out the last question at the bottom of this page:
http://www.thomasville.com/AboutUs/ContactUs/FAQ.asp
Good thing they didn’t come to our house. My wife can’t resist a “deal”? 😉