Milan Direct Reviews 

The product is excellent but not happy with the delivery which the website promised as one week when ordering but actually came two months later

I found the customer service good. The item it's self was lovely and looked very high end. There was a tiny imperfection in the leather but nothing too obvious.
On the whole I was very pleased with both the item and the service

I have only had excellent service from Milan Direct, with speedy deliveries and top quality products. Over the last five years, I have bought many items of furniture fro this company, and have never been disappointed. I recommend them highly and will buy from them again.

1. Ordered 6 chairs, 3 of one 3 of another. We received them 3 months apart.
2. There is absolutely no attempt to help you with when your order will actually arrive. It's been dispatched and now it's with another provider. "Not our problem" effectively. Bearing in mind the excellence of some delivery services that can tell you to within the hour of when your delivery will arrive and the name of the driver, this is stone age service.
3. When the second part of the order finally became available I was contacted by email to ask what day I would like my order dispatched. You have to guess when it will actually arrive - they estimate 2-5 business days - and I knew I wouldn't be available for the next few days, so I asked for it to be dispatched in 4 days time. I received a confirmation email saying this was fine. The order arrived 2 days later and had to be dealt with by my elderly neighbour (3 heavy boxes).
4. When I relayed this to MD they offered me £20 off my next order. A £50 - £100 REFUND might (and I stress the "might") have made me think I would use them again. But, a money off voucher code is such a hollow gesture, it's bordering on unbelievable. "Spend more money with us after your bad experience and we'll give you a pathetically small amount off your purchase".
5. Will I ever through Milan Direct again? Not a chance. High quality customer service is everything these days.

I have only made one purchase with Milan Direct so I have nothing to compare it to, but these are my observations:
1 - I ordered an Eames style recliner set with the upgrade to "luxury leather". This is an expensive item in itself but also somewhat iconic fro architects of a particular generation such as myself, so I had high expectations.
2 - Payment was accepted well in advance of dispatch. I know that this is standard for the furniture industry but I don't think it is unreasonable for an organisation in business to fund their own working capital, rather than borrow it off their customers.
3 - Communication abouit delivery was very poor (read on !) and there was no reliable tracking information. Skillful use of google revealed a phone number for the courier service but even then they are only able to provide a time slot between 0900 and 1700 on a specific day. In reality this is unacceptable (read on !)
4 - The goods arrived at the end of the time slot, so that was a day wasted but hey ho !
5 - Unfotunately, the back rest had come away from the struts which fasten it to the chair shell. As far as I can see - using the inishgt of 30 years in the design business - this was because it had not been properly fixed - the fixing bolts had simply not been turned into the threaded holes in the struts. This also implies that the "luxury" items were not QA'd at all before leaving the factory, that the operative didn't care enough to fix it properly and MD can't be bothered to QA the factory.
6 - The result was that the errant part ratlled round the packaging and damaged the chair shell. Now our problems really started...
7 - Going back to communication, this is the real problem. What they don't say on the packaging is that the operation is very largley run from Australia. Any communication in the UK is dealt with by email only and
only during rather curtailed business hours.
8 - There was no apparent response for some time, which is a pity considering their head office is in Oz, so would have been wide awake at the time.
9 - Returns are done on the basis of collection then re-issue, despite the photos showing the damage etc, which I think falls somewhaere short of what would be acceptable.
10 - On the first occassion, the courrier just didn't turn up to collect. There was no apology for the time (and money) wasted, just a sort of grunt over the phone. It shoudl have been obvious that the collection would not have been made very early in the day - when the driver didn't show up - and they could have notified us. Instaed, they took a course which only served to raise the stress level.
11 - Collection was eventually made at the end of the next day - another day wasted - that's three up to now.
12 - Re-issue followed the same process, so track your own parcel and then waste another day (four now) But I'm happy to say that this time the goods were oaku - despite the packaging being knocked about - and it took about 20 minutes to put together.
13 - The real issue here is that MD have chosen not to commincate with their customers and to keep them at arm's length, which in my book is to treated them as punters and hold them in contempt. There is only 1 individual in the UK who deals with their business and he only works by email during a rather short business day. There is no communication with the Australian side.
14 - What's most dissappointing is that if things go wrong - as they did here - there is no feeling of urgency at all to put them right. A weaker willed individual would have felt that it was they who were in the wrong to have been disatisfied.
15 - "By there deeds you will know them" MD UK are not registered in the UK and, having looked, have no regisrtered office or address in the UK where for service of legals documents. When pressed, their "fulfillment manager" which is a different concer, agreed to accept documents if necessary, but in my view it is an unsatifactory way of proceeding. considering that they are happy enough to take our money....
16 - Would I buy again ? Nt very likely

Good service from start to finish, pre-advised of delivery timescales before purchase, was kept in touch During shipping, item arrived on time, well packed, great product

I had to wait roughly 8 weeks for my table to arrive. When it did it was packaged well and looks great it's just a shame that the wooden base has a few scratches and marks on it.

I am very pleased with this company, from my initial enquiry through to placing an order through to delivery - fabulous. Great communication via email,updates of delivery status, pricing very competitive, quality item, and a great all round service experience. I've no hesitation in recommending this company at all. First Class!!

We ordered a couple of Eames/Saarinen dining chairs and were informed by the usual confirmation email on when to expect communication of the delivery – we were told to wait for 1-2 days for the tracking information to appear. However, the chairs turned up before any tracking information was available on the tracking site and it was sheer luck that I was working at home that day. There must be something Milan Direct could do to oversee a better dispatch service. Otherwise, we were happy with the quality of the chairs.

Bought one under 2 years ago for nearly £600, sat down in it the other night and the plywood connecting the back to the seat gave way. Clearly poor quality plywood but MD refuse to accept any fault.
If I pay £600 for a chair I expect it to last longer than 2 years!

I was a little concerned about this company when I ordered a replica Eames-chair in December. It is slightly irritating that the UK department doesn't have a telephone number, and that the only communication can be via e-mail.
However, I was pleasently surprised. E-mails were answered promptly, and the actual chair delivered after only a few days. Chair looks great.

As an architect, I was pleased to find replica classic design furniture at a snip of the price of Knoll (albeit not quite the same quality). I ordered 2no Barcelona chairs and although the leather and seat padding are inferior to the more expensive version and the welding around the joints is a little 'rough' to say the least, in terms of an overall look, the chairs look good and I'm very happy with them.

However, the customer service is appalling. One of my chairs has significant rusting around the legs...i.e. I have been sold faulty goods! I duly informed Milan Direct (with photographs) assuming that they would either replace my chair at their expense or alternatively, refund me an appropriate amount. I was offered a £20 refund and told to go and buy something from Homebase to remove the rust myself! This attitude is extraordinary, given that the chair was/is damaged. I rejected their offer, not least because if I try and treat the rust myself (not being a rust expert), it is quite possible that I could damage the chair further and would then have no redress whatsoever because I presume that they would then claim that I have caused the damage. I seem to have hit a deadlock with them. I can only advise other potential customers to look carefully at their warranty because in their own words:-

"As per our warranty and fault information [....where an item has only minor or superficial damage it is our process to offer partial refunds to seek a self-repair option".

Poor....very poor and a great shame. I would have been more than happy to recommend this company to my clients but clearly cannot.

The "30 Day Money Back Guarantee" policy is practically a myth since Milan Direct charges very high shipping costs. I wanted to return the Le Corbusier LC2 3-Seater Sofa - Black - Replica as it was rather a bench (the most uncomfortable sofa I've ever sat) and the costs of delivery+shipping back is nearly the cost of the sofa itself. In this manner, I was forced to accept this item I don't want to use.

I ordred two Eames Office chairs and got them today approximately at the agreed time period. Milan has continuously kept me informed and provided good service. Danish customers are informed that they themselves must manage the transportation of replica because of new English law. I have used Milan before and find the company serious and responsible, even when something goes wrong.
I also recommend Milan because of their good prices.

Second purchase from Milan Direct, really great quality furniture and very affordable too. Can't think why I wouldn't shop there again

Ordered four chairs - slight issue on one - it was dealt with efficiently and quickly. Problem now totally resolved.
Have ordered from Milan Direct before, and still find them to be a reliable company.

We ordered a couple of Barcelona Premium leather chairs after an email to ensure they were in stock (speedily and courteously answered). Exceptional overnight delivery. Unit prices are excellent with somewhat high delivery costs, but the overall cost highly competitive. Excellent quality items just as described on website. Report of a minor fault was, again, courteously and positively delay with by email. All in all a good outfit offering good kit at good prices. Will readily go back.

There are a few issues but they're fairly trivial. Sure, customer service is based in Australia and available only by email, but they are quick to respond and very helpful.

Delivery is expensive but it's the total price that matters. I'd rather pay £100 + £20 delivery than £130 with free delivery. The delivery service is excellent and packaging, especially of glass items, very impressive.

I haven't had to return anything yet but doing so after a change of mind would certainly be expensive, with carriage both ways to pay. If a product is faulty, though, they'll deal with it their expense, the remedy depending on the nature of the fault.

I've bought two large items of furniture. They have a very interesting range and I won't hesitate to order again.

It could be that they supply quality goods, but be aware that this is an Australian company, trading in the UK, and they don't have a customer service line in the UK. So you will need to call Australia if you need to reach them, or to do so by email only. The person on the line in Australia can't really do anything, they simply offer you to email their UK representative. Looks like they are trying to save big on customer service. However, what is more concerning is that they charge a hefty free for delivery, and it's not even next day. It's 2-5 business days, and can be up to 10, and for a fee. I don't know about the product because I chose to cancel. Also, their money back guarantee, if you choose to return goods, seems unfair for online/distant sales: you will have to pay for sending them back, which can be expensive when it comes to furniture. The company needs a better touch on customer services to win the clients. Also, from a marketing perspective, I can see that most 5 stars reviews here seem quite questionable.

I don't usually write reviews but in this situation I have been delt with so poorly that I feel obliged to warn others.

I purchased a floor lamp from MD, unfortunately 2 shades were deliverd without a lamp base - I understand that sometimes mistakes happen so I advised MD immediately. 4 days later I had not heard from MD so I requested an update - nothing. I requested an update every day for the next 8 days - nothing and more nothing. (i have since been advised that everytime you ask for an update, your request goes to the bottom of the support queue)

At long last - after 18 days - I got hold of MD and arranged them to pickup the lamp shades, so they could then dispatch the CORRECT shade and base combination (at their convinience of course). As usual in these situations I had to arrange 'being home' for a 4 hour period. And guess what, they didn't show up. No apology, no nothing, and when I finally got a hold of someone they were very rude (actually I had spoken to multiple people and they were all rude).

What an absolute waste of my time! Unreliable company, with VERY questionable support staff, I would never purchase anything from them again.