What is retro style furniture?

At the Direct Office Supply Company, we stock a range of retro style furniture. These are new pieces of furniture, designed to resemble the style of vintage pieces which have been popular in past decades. These much-loved styles are making a comeback in 2020 with bold statement chairs and throwback pieces like turntable stands for a truly vintage feel. 

With high quality, affordable pieces from our home furniture brands Dorel and Shankar, you’ll find everything you need to give your home a retro makeover.

 

How do I style retro furniture in my home?

The Owen range from Dorel Home Furniture features coordinating pieces in a range of different colour finishes to suit any décor. Each piece in this minimalistic range features a sleek woodgrain finish paired with hairpin legs for the ultimate retro look. A coffee table is an essential for a stylish living room, and the Owen range has the choice of a round or rectangular table.

 

A matching round or square table by the side of your couch is great for holding your cup of coffee, magazines or books, a lamp, or other items to bring character to your living room. The Owen Round End Table can be seen styled with different lamps, house plants and books. The subtle walnut or grey oak finish is easy to match with any colour scheme you choose.

The Owen TV stand is a great example of how this range combines vintage style design with modern needs. This stand is suitable for TVs up to 42” and has two cubbies for storing your TV box or DVD player, with the same sleek finish as the other products in this line.

If you’re a lover of all things vintage and retro, a record player is an essential. Whether you have a turntable with speakers or a suitcase style record player, the Concord Turntable stand is a great choice for storing and displaying your turntable and records. This unit comes in two sizes and a variety of colour options that combine white, walnut, blue and oak panels. Dorel provides a range of pictures showing different ways you could style the Concord stand in your home, with other retro style accessories.

 

A customer photo shows how they have styled their Concord stand with accessories that have elements of 70s style, such as bold floral patterns and bright colours. The larger size means added space for displaying items- and more albums!

Pairing minimal and bold pieces is a great way to achieve the vintage look in your home. Warm, bright yellows and oranges are perfect for achieving a 1970s style and look great with walnut furniture. Shankar Furniture supplies a huge selection of statement chairs, some of which are ideal for a retro style living room. The Pacific chair is a great choice if you’re looking to bring warm tones to your home, as it comes in yellow or brick orange.

Another essential element of retro seating is a bold frame. Shankar have plenty of chairs in this style, but our favourites are the Logan and Monaco, which come in a variety of fabric and leather-look finishes. The curved arms and striped print of the Restmore chair would make this an eye-catching addition to your seating area.

What are the benefits of sit-stand and height adjustable desks?

At the Direct Office Supply Company, we stock a wide range of height adjustable desking. From manual to electronic, and from single person desks to tables for group projects, there’s a height adjustable desk that will be perfect for you. 

Many studies have focussed on the health benefits of sitting vs. standing at work, and what this can do for weight loss, back problems, heart disease and other ailments. Here at Direct Office, we agree that sitting at a desk all day could promote bad posture and back problems if you’re not comfortable and supported.

However important this may be, there’s much more to height adjustable desks than promoting good health in the workplace. Here’s Direct Office’s top reasons to try a height adjustable desk in your office.

 

They’re not just for standing up

Although many people refer to them as “sit-stand”, you don’t necessarily need to use a height adjustable desk to switch between positions. A height adjustable desk is an ideal way to ensure your office set-up is promoting good posture, even if you’re seated all day. Adjusting your desk to the perfect height for you can ensure that your computer screen is at eye level and you’re able to sit back in your chair comfortably without slouching.

The best way to use your height adjustable desk in this way is with a high-quality ergonomic office chair. If you’re sitting at your desk for long periods, a 24-hour office chair might offer you the best support.

 

They’re great for hot-desking and group projects

If you have collaborative projects and group work going on in your business, you need the right desk to accommodate this. Maybe your office works on a hot-desk system and you need a desk that suits the needs of every user. A height adjustable desk is the perfect solution. The Advance Desk from Lavoro is a great example, as it can be set at any height between 640mm and 1300mm. If your team needs to sit down, they can pull up a chair and sit comfortably, or stand if preferred.

The Duo desk is also a great option, with two desktops that operate independently of one another. This means you can have a combination of sitting and standing users.

 

They promote inclusivity in the workplace

Height adjustable desks are able to meet the needs of much more of the working population today than a standard desk. Having an office set up that meets all of your employees’ needs is extremely important, and a height adjustable desk is a great way to achieve this.

The Advance desk is a great choice for wheelchair users as it has a greater height range than most motor operated desks, lowering to 640mm.

Users of any height can find a comfortable position with Lavoro’s desking range, with options for manually operated desks as well as electric systems. The Duo desk, with its two independent work surfaces, would allow for two users of differing heights to either sit or stand comfortably at the same desk.

Ideas for Creating the Best Home Office or Study

If you work from home, the best way to be productive is creating a dedicated workspace. Whether it’s for business or study, the first step to kitting out your home office is choosing the best desk to suit your needs.

Not everyone has space in their home to dedicate an entire room to their work, so we’ve come up with some solutions to the biggest questions about setting up the perfect home office within the room you have. Here are some ways to get the most out of your home office without compromising on style.

“How do I make a study area within my living room?”- Matching your desk to your furniture.

Creating an office area within your existing living room or lounge can be a great idea if you don’t have a spare room to convert to an office. The key to making the most of your space is choosing furniture that matches your décor and also serves a function. This could mean choosing a desk with a stylish modern finish, like the Kentucky desk, that has plenty of built in storage to prevent your room from becoming cluttered.

Another option is to choose a desk with coordination home furniture ranges, like the Clifton Place range from Teknik furniture.

Their executive desk and L shaped desk already provide plenty of storage, but if you have lots of documents to file, the matching side filer is an excellent choice.

This cabinet would blend in great in a living room with its stylish grand walnut finish and has the option to add a hutch. The hutch is a great option if you’d like to turn the unit into a bookcase, or even display home décor or ornaments to give a homely feel.

A matching sideboard and credenza are also available from this mid-century style range.

“How do I make my study look stylish?”- A pop of colour could be the remedy for your stuffy office

One main concern with adding an office to your home is that it could look business-like and uninviting. One great solution to this is choosing pieces that add something to the room rather than choosing something that just fits the space. A pop of colour is an excellent way to do this, whether it’s a desk with a colourful accent or a funky mesh chair.

Dorel Furniture is a brand that supplies a range of office desks that look great in the home. Their Xavier desk is a great example. It can be seen here, styled against two different statement wallpapers that complement the pop of blue within the shelving pedestal. 

The shelves are great for stationery or boxes to keep clutter off your desktop, but if you wanted to accessorise, you could display your favourite books, ornaments or photos.

The Rocco chair from Shankar Furniture is a popular choice for home office, as it comes in some very on-trend shade options- a luxurious grey brushed velvet and a bright yellow leather look- as well as the more subtle graphite option. The Rocco design also comes as a barstool and if you like to match your furniture across rooms, they look fantastic at a breakfast bar. 

“How do I organise my home office?”- finding the right storage for you

When it comes to storage for your home office, there are plenty of options that are versatile and stylish. Our filing cabinets from Silverline come in 28 different colour options, which means no dodgy DIY paint jobs to get a cabinet that matches your room. As well as standard foolscap filing cabinets, which is our most popular option, Silverline also offer multi-drawer cabinets, storage cupboards, side filing cabinets and many more options- all in the same colour range so it’s easy to coordinate. Some products are available in a two-tone finish for an even quirkier look.

Another option, especially if you’re looking to add a work space to a living area, is a tall bookcase that also functions as a room divider. This means you can keep your work separate from the area where you relax. The Lawrence bundle is an excellent option if you like an industrial, modern finish.

The Wildwood bookcase has a more classic wooden effect and is available in Espresso and Rustic Grey.

A room divider style bookcase is a great idea if you have books and objects you want to keep on display, as its all open storage. If you’re looking for more discreet storage, for papers and documents for example, but still want to keep some items on display, a bookcase with bins might be the right fit for you.

The Landon bookcase has a combination of open and concealed storage, and there is a matching desk in the range which is ideal if you’re looking to coordinate.

The Mercer bookcase as 3 drawers and one cabinet, as well as a spacious open hutch. There is also a range of home furniture which coordinates with the Mercer bookcase.

“What can I do if I don’t have space for a desk?”- Fold away office solutions for small spaces

If you’re looking to set up an office or study space, but don’t have room for a desk or don’t want a desk in the room permanently, a fold-away desk might be the right option for you. The Hampstead Park and Avon wall desks look like a small wall cabinet when they are closed but flip down to create a desk with more space than you would imagine. Both of these desks have an internal pinboard for important notes, and an upper shelf for any objects you might want to display.

These desks are ideal for a bedroom, living room, or anywhere else in the home. 

A range of stylish and afforable office and home office chairs from Eliza Tinsley furniture are available through the Direct Office Supply Company.

Our range of office chairs from Eliza Tinsley features a wide selection of options to suit any office, home office, study or even your gaming and entertainment room. This ranges from mesh back chairs in bright colours to heavy duty executive chairs.

The Westminster is a popular chair which is available in six different colour options to match any interior. This includes cream, black, brown, blue, burgundy and silver options for the leather faced finish. If you're looking for a leather faced office chair, the Westminster is an ideal choice, though we have a wide range of chairs in similar finishes to cater to any preference.

If you're browsing for a mesh back office chair, Direct Office has an extensive range, including a number of models from Eliza Tinsley. The Newton chair is a high back mesh chair from our range of executive chairs. Built for comfort and support, it features a posture curved back rest, adjustable arms and an integral headrest.

The Ergo Mesh Executive chair is certified for 24 hour use with many ways to adjust the chair for optimum comfort. This includes a multi-adjustable lumbar function and adjustable arms and headrest. The Nexus chair is availble with or without arms, and is an excellent choice for lumbar support. Each model comes with 3 different colour options for the mesh back: black, blue and red.

For more robust and heavy duty options, consider the Titan XL and Polaris chairs. The Titan Extra Large Office Chair features generous proportions and extra padding for increased comfort. The Polaris chair is also generously proportioned, with many ways to adjust the seat to your preference and a heavy duty gas lift .

Delivery of your Online Order

Our distribution centres take great care to ensure your order is well packaged and shipped quickly to you, however sometimes an item can get damaged in Transit to you - Thankfully this is happens to a very low percentage of orders but accidents can happen.

So How Should You The Customer Handle a Damaged Delivery ?

Here are a few tips to make sure any issues are resolved quickly.

1. Check your parcels are all intact when they are delivered.

2. Do not accept the goods if you spot any damage to the packaging, point it out to the courier and make sure he/ she notes this on their paperwork or PDA

3. If you feel that the damage is only to the packaging and not to the goods within and accept the goods please still ensure that you have this noted on the couriers delivery paperwork.

4. If upon open the packaging you find damage to the product immediately notify us of the issue, Please note you have 72 hours to report this damage but the quicker we have the details the faster we can resolve the problem for you.

5. Send Images - A picture paints a thousand words and also allows us to identify what has happened. So the more the better.

We at Direct Office Supply work extremely hard to ensure all of orders get to customers in the same condition they left our centre, we are aware sometimes this is not the case and with our customers assistance we can ensure that any issues that arise are dealt with promptly.

 

 

 

At The Direct Office Supply Co we try our hardest to offer the best customer service we can -

But sometimes we can get it wrong - we are only human after all

However we do try to get any issues our customers may have resolved as quickly and as best we can. After speaking to customers a few points kept popping up but the top one was they felt we were hard to contact so we have decided to see in what ways we can handle that problem better.

Contact - Now our customers can contact us in various ways

1. By Telephone - our Customer service team are available on the phonelines between 12pm and 4pm daily
(01355 236117 Choose Option 2 )

2. Live Chat - Why not Go online and connect directly to one of our Team - Our Liveperson Hot Line is available 9 am - 5pm Daily for Sales advice and any Customer service points you would like to discuss

Just Click on the LivePerson Buttonm anywher on the site......

3. Contact form - Go to the Contact Us Page Fill in your details on our Contact form and you will be allocated a Ticket Number, a member of our team will get back to you - Please note whilst this ticket will advise you someone will get back within 24 hours we are well below the industry standard of 22 hours and are seeing reply times drop daily.

4 E - Mail - Contact us via e-mail at info@directofficesupply.co.uk someone will get back to you asap

5 Standard Mail - Why not pop a letter of in the Post - it will be read and dealt with Promptly - the good old fashioned and civilised way - before all this electonic mail stuff.....

We at Direct Office Supply understand that our customers are the most important part of our business any questions have to be dealt with promptly so we feel that by giving you the more ways to contact us should help.

 

We at Direct Office Supply are pleased to announce we are now members of the Retail Ombudsman Service.

The Ombudsman are independent not for profit and impartial organisation that specialises in resolving disputes between consumers, retailers and tradesmen in the UK.

Their service is free for consumers. All members are bound by our Code of Practice. Their role is to ensure all parties receive a fair and reasonable outcome.

We at Direct Office Supply feel that it is an important part of Online shopping allowing our customers the comfort of knowing that we take any issues with their order very seriously and work hard to resolve these with them.

In the very few cases were a customer would like independant advice they can contact the Ombudsman who will assist and we as a company feel this is a big step forward for Online Trading.

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We have just returned from one of the Dams International open days held at Hampden Park Glasgow and have been one of the first to see the brand new range of Mesh office chairs available for 2014. From the bright colours of the Vega Mesh chairs in Red , Orange and Lime Green to the eye catching Grey mesh Oracle chair. Our personal favourite was the all new Orion chair with a unique pivoting arm allowing you to get the chair closer to your desk or worktop and for the ultimate in Mesh chairs choose the Boron.

Over the next few weeks more of these chairs will be appearing on our site and we know they will be some of the most popular Mesh office chairs we have launched online

When space is at a premium and you need Storage cupboards choose a Tambour door cabinet, In a choice of Sizes and Colours our range of Cabinets from Silverline, Bisley and Dams will suit every need.

Take a look at our choice of Silverline Ice tambour doors and wide selection of cabinet colours mix and match the choice is yours

Our Ranges of Silverline Storage Cabinets are Now available in 24 colour choices, See below

Samples available upon request