Family run, still in the same Victorian Lancashire mill, still answering our own phone. 43 years on and the model hasn't changed much: keep the overheads low, buy direct, no commission salesmen, no finance gimmicks.
Years Trading
Since 1983
Sq Ft Warehouse
In a Victorian mill
Sofas in Stock
On the floor today
Google Rating
From 196 reviews
Run
Three generations of buyers
Alec started selling sofas in Bolton in 1983. Back then it was a small shop, a van, and the same idea that still runs the business now: get good sofas at the right price and pass the saving on. No frills, no finance, no commission sharks.
Over four decades the shop became a warehouse, the warehouse became 30,000 square feet inside Grecian Mill, and a workshop, a delivery operation and a contract supply arm got added along the way. The model didn't change: buy direct from UK manufacturers, often cancelled orders or clearance lines, sell honestly, deliver in our own vans.
We're still family run, still in Bolton, still in the same mill. Some of the customers buying from us today bought from Alec's parents back in the eighties. That's the bit we're proud of.
Not every detail. Just the bits worth knowing.
1983
A small Lancashire town-centre shop and a single van. Three-piece suites and sofas at the right price, sold the old-fashioned way: walk in, sit on it, take it home.
Late 1980s
The trade contacts we still use today started in this period. Cancelled bulk orders, clearance lines, factory overruns. Picking up the stock the chains turned down at prices the chains couldn't match.
1990s
Outgrew the shop. Moved into bigger premises so we could hold more stock without paying high-street rents. The model worked. Customers wanted choice and we could keep prices low by not paying for a fancy showroom.
2000s
Settled in our current home on Lever Street. Thirty thousand square feet of Victorian Lancashire cotton mill. Stone walls, cast-iron columns, room to display 500 sofas with proper space to walk around them.
2010s
Trained upholsterers joined the team so we could clean, repair and re-upholster in-house. Meant we could put right minor faults rather than rejecting stock, and start a proper after-sales service for customers too.
2020s
We'd always supplied the odd hotel and landlord on the side. Now it's a dedicated part of the business. Hotels, holiday lets, care homes, HMOs, housing associations across the North West get the same trade prices and direct service the household customers do.
Today
Forty-plus years in, still independent, still answering our own phone. Three generations of customers buying from us. We must be doing something right.
Bolton was built on cotton. In the Victorian era this town had over 200 working mills employing tens of thousands of people. Most of them are gone now. Grecian Mill is one of the survivors, restored and repurposed, and we've been the main occupant of Unit 23 for over two decades.
It's not the prettiest building from the outside, but the inside is solid stone, cast-iron, and proper Victorian engineering. Big open floors, high ceilings, room to walk around 500 sofas without bumping into each other. It also means we pay mill rent, not high-street rent. That's part of how the prices stay where they are.
Free parking outside. Easy access off the M61 if you're coming from further afield. The street is quiet, the mill is signposted, and Alec or one of the team will usually be inside if you fancy a look round.
The maths is simple once you know what the chains spend their money on. Four things we don't do that they all do.
We're in a Victorian mill, not a retail park. Industrial rent, not commercial rent. That saves us hundreds of thousands a year that the chains have to recover from the sofa prices.
Nobody on our floor earns commission. You walk in, browse in peace, ask questions when you want to. No-one's trying to upsell you to a bigger sofa or push a finance deal on you.
The chains advertise "interest-free credit" and bake the cost into the sofa price. We don't. You pay what's on the ticket. If you want to spread payments, a bank loan or credit card is cheaper than the chains' built-in markup.
The big chains spend tens of millions a year on those Bank Holiday "sale must end Sunday" ads. Guess where the money comes from. We rely on word of mouth and the fact that the prices speak for themselves.
We buy direct from the same UK manufacturers the chains use. Often cancelled bulk orders, factory clearances, or end-of-line runs. The sofa is the same. The shop selling it is what's different.
Started as a sofa shop, still mostly a sofa shop. Four bits make up the business today.
500+ sofas, suites, corner sofas, recliners, leather and fabric. Browse the warehouse, sit on what fits, take it home.
See sofas →Refurbished and pre-loved sofas from £100. Every one cleaned, inspected and fire-safety label checked before it goes on the floor.
See second-hand →Our in-house workshop cleans, repairs, re-pads and re-covers existing sofas. Free loan sofa while yours is in. From £80.
See cleaning service →Hotels, holiday lets, HMOs, care homes. Crib 5 stock available, bulk pricing, scheduled delivery, one named contact throughout.
See commercial →Our own vans go all over the North West and across into Yorkshire from the Bolton warehouse. Some of the main areas covered.
Forty years of customers across the North West. The honest version of what they think.
Read on Google
Free parking outside. No appointment needed. We'll put the kettle on while you browse.
Same family, same mill, same way of doing business. Come and have a look. We'll put the kettle on. Opening at 9am tomorrow.
Page last updated 12 June 2026. Open status updates automatically.