If you haven’t figured it out yet….one of the main reasons that imports are a bit less is due to the amount of labor involved in making the couch.
Imports have a lower labor cost because the employees are willing to work fo
a much lower wage.
Many times those workers receive $30.00 a month and the job includes food and a place to live, and that is a much better life than they may have had! So, unless we are willing to work for a bowl of rice, American products will cost a bit more!
There are several other ways that the companies can cut manufacturing costs.
Have you noticed that many couches do not have flippable cushions? Remember your mom always pulling the cushions off the couch and vacuuming beneath, and then rearranging them so that they each get equal wear?
Most imported sofas do not have the same overall fabric on the bottom of the cushions. It has been replaced with a plain brown fabric and a piece of Velcro. The plain fabric is a lot less costly, but now you can not flip them over for additional years of use! The Velcro is put there to hold the cushion in place because the brown fabric is more slippery and the cushion will constantly move without it.