If you’ve ever watched any home improvement show, you’ve undoubtedly heard the “Wayfair, you’ve got just what I need” jingle. It probably made you wonder what Wayfair is and if it’s worth your time. You’ve probably seen the news of the company’s new Decorify making the rounds recently. In this guide, we’ll look at what Wayfair is, who owns it, and whether its Decorify tool is worth a look.
What is Wayfair, and who owns it?
Wayfair is an online store that primarily carries things for your home. You can go there to get furniture, decorations, appliances, and even stuff for your pet. It’s a bit like Overstock.com. If you’ve been to HomeGoods, think of Wayfair as the online equivalent. Generally, pricing on Wayfair is on the lower side, which makes sense because you’re buying things like couches and loveseats without ever trying them in person. There is high-end stuff on the website, too, if that’s more your style.
Wayfair, Inc. owns Wayfair.com. The company is based in Boston, Massachusetts, at 4 Copley Place. In addition to the main website, the company also operates Joss & Main, AllModern, Birch Lane, and Perigold. The company was founded by Niraj Shah and Steve Conine in 2002 as CSN Stores, and both are still involved in the firm’s day-to-day operations. Shah is the Chief Executive Officer, Director, and co-chairman, while Conine is the Director and co-chairman.
You can shop at Wayfair in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, the Republic of Ireland, and Canada. Products purchased come from about 12 million square feet of warehouse space in Europe and North America.
The new Decorify tool is Wayfair’s virtual room restyler, which uses the power of generative AI to show a redecorated version of your room. You upload a photo of your existing space and choose a style you’d prefer, and you can see what your room will look like in that style.
Here’s a step-by-step guide for the tool:
- Visit the Decorify website
- Click Get Started
- Create an account or log in if you have one already
- Click and drag an image of your room to upload it (or select a sample image if you want to try the tool)
- Choose a style from the dropdown menu
- Click Design
A nifty slider lets you go back and forth between the original image and the redesigned one. The room doesn’t need to be empty for the Decorify tool to work, as it’ll design over your existing furniture and decor. You’ll also get links to similar products to purchase from Wayfair and create a look like the AI-designed one in real life.
Is it safe to buy from Wayfair?
Wayfair is safe to purchase items from, though the quality can vary. Anecdotally, several Pocket-lint editors have made purchases from there recently without issue.
The company has 1.08 out of 5 on the Better Bluishness Bureau users review section. However, the complaints tend to be related to pricing and quality issues and not because people didn’t receive the items they purchased. It does have an A+ rating on the BBB official scale, but that doesn’t factor in user ratings and instead uses its own rating system.
Even with the negative reviews on BBB, it does appear that Wayfair responds to these reviews and offers a resolution, which is probably why the company got an A+ rating. With the volume of sales Wayfair is doing, there are bound to be issues, but it seems that, for the most part, it does an excellent job of resolving complaints and making sure its customers are relatively happy.
On Consumer Affairs, the reviews aren’t much better, but it does assure shoppers that “Wayfair is a legitimate company with safe practices surrounding shopping, shipping, and consumer privacy.”
As always, read customer reviews on the product you want to buy to ensure good quality. Remember that most items purchased on Wayfair come disassembled, so you’ll need to apply some elbow grease to get your new furniture assembled.
How much is shipping on Wayfair?
Wayfair offers free shipping on orders over $35 and $4.99 flat-rate shipping on orders less than $35. This applies even to large items like sofas, tables, and appliances. Are you interested in a $1,799 LG French door refrigerator? It’ll ship for free, just like a $58.99 dog bed.
Shipping times will vary on Wayfair, but some products will arrive in as little as two days. Others can take substantially longer. For example, if I ordered that LG refrigerator, it would arrive in eight days, which is reasonable for a large item.
For products like the aforementioned refrigerator, you can pay for installation or extra services at checkout. In the fridge’s case, Wayfair charges $46 to unhook the old one and put the new one in place, which seems reasonable. Using this sofa as an example, you’ll have to spend $103.99 if you’d like to get it assembled.
Does Wayfair have customer support?
Wayfair offers a Help Center filled with all kinds of guides and FAQs designed to help you with your purchase. If all that fails, you can use the company’s Contact Us page to get in touch or call its help number, 844-526-3185. Customer service is available from 8:00 AM-12:00 AM ET Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM- 8:00 PM ET on Saturday, and 8:00 AM- 6:00 PM ET on Sunday.
Does Wayfair accept returns?
Wayfair says it will happily accept returns within 30 days of delivery if the item is in its original, undamaged condition, disassembled (if the item was originally delivered disassembled), and in its original packaging. The company’s return policy page has all the links you’ll need to start the return process, and it looks easy enough.
