What is replica-style furniture?

When most people hear the word replica, they instantly think of low-quality copies of original, often high-end products. However, when it comes to furniture, replica furniture often refers to furniture pieces that were inspired by designer brands as opposed to direct copies. If you know where to look, the quality can be fantastic and many of the designs look unique in their own right.

In this post, we’ll take a look at what replica-style furniture is, cover some of the advantages and disadvantages and give you some replica furniture ideas/inspiration to give you a better idea of what it looks like and whether or not it’s right for you.

What is replica-style furniture

Replica style furniture is furniture that has been inspired by designer brand furniture, either that which has an expired patent or copyright, or furniture inspired by current designer brand furniture pieces. Although there are some knock-offs on the market, most replica-style furniture pieces aren’t identical copies of designer brands. Most manufacturers will create their own interpretation of existing furniture to their own quality standards or take inspiration from furniture where the copyright has expired.

Replica-style furniture can be of very high quality, sometimes even surpassing the quality of the furniture it was inspired by. This makes it a great buy, especially for those working with a smaller budget, allowing people to experience high-end styles, designs and patterns at a fraction of the cost.

The replica-style furniture we offer

We stock a large range of home and office furniture, including various replica office chairs as well as bar stools, dining chairs, outdoor furniture and garden parasols in various styles. Whether replica style is for you or not, we’re sure we have something for you!

All our furniture is not only high-quality, but it’s also affordable and comes with free UK delivery. Feel free to browse our online store or get in touch with our customer support team if you have any questions.

The history of replica-style furniture

Replica-style furniture first started gaining in popularity at the start of this century, making it one of the newer furniture styles in existence today. At first, it mainly focused on furniture pieces that had lost their patent or copyright protection, but it has since developed into a style of its own, combining various different designer-styles to create unique furniture pieces at affordable prices.

Recent changes in legislation have extended the copyright that designers enjoy to way after their passing, making it much harder for furniture manufacturers to find pieces with expired copyright. This has forced producers to switch to more unique styles, improving the furniture they sell and making it far more unique than it was in the past.

However, there are also furniture designers that encourage direct replicas, many of which emphasize the accessibility to great design. So, although many of today’s replica-style furniture is inspired by the original as opposed to a direct copy, some manufacturers do still make direct copies of designs if the designer has given the green light to do so or if the copyright or patent has expired. Directly copying furniture that is protected by copyright or a patent is luckily very uncommon since it’s against the law.

Replica-style furniture inspiration

With so much variation on the market today, choosing the right replica-style furniture for your home can be a challenge. So, we thought it would be worth sharing a few examples of some of the replica-style office chairs we stock to give you some inspiration.

Spark Faux Leather Office Chair

Our Spark Office Chair is a great option if you’re looking for a high-quality replica-style office chair at a reasonable price. This office chair comes with all the features you could want, including an adjustable seat height, armrests, a swivel seat and an adjustable backrest.

The Spark Office Chair comes in both chrome and black and boasts a total height of 110cm. The seat width is 45cm and the seat height is adjustable between 40 and 50cm, with a backrest height of 55cm. It’s made of high-quality faux leather which makes it super easy to maintain and has a ribbed design which gives it an elegant look and feel.

Chester Padded Office Chair

If you’re looking for something that’s both comfortable and looks like a million dollars, then the Chester Padded Office Chair in vintage brown is the perfect replica-style chair for you. The thick padding provides a lot of support and ensures the chair is very comfortable to sit in. It also comes with all the features you expect from an office chair, including a swivel seat that’s adjustable in height, wheels, high armrests and a maximum load of 112kgs.

Howden Conference Chair

The Howden Conference Chair is both modern and minimalistic, perfectly suited to modern and contemporary rooms. It not only works great in conference rooms and offices, but it’s also perfectly suitable for use as a dining chair. The sleek design and faux leather give it a modern look and make it very easy to maintain.

The total height of the Howden Conference Chair is 116cm and it has a seat height of 45cm. If you’re not too keen on the white colour, then you could opt for one of the four other colours. 

Why chose replica furniture?

There are plenty of reasons to choose replica furniture over your standard furniture pieces, beyond just saving money. Below are some of the most common reasons why you might opt for replica-style furniture over traditional furniture.

Great designs

Replica style is inspired by designer brands and it uses many of the same shapes, styles and patterns as high-end furniture does. This often results in great-looking furniture that suits a variety of spaces and that’s often unique in its own right if the manufacturer has done their best on it. So, if you’re looking for something that’s unique and looks great, then replica-style furniture may be just what you’re after.

Cost savings

Obviously, high-end designer furniture can easily set you back a couple of grand and not everyone has a lot of money to spend. If you aren’t looking to spend an arm and a leg on your new furniture, then replica furniture may be a good option. If you find the right model, it may even be more sturdy than the original or come with improvements in functionality or design.

High quality

These days, replica-style furniture has become a category in its own right and many manufacturers place a lot of focus on quality. This has led to many of the best-selling replica furniture pieces being of very high quality, sometimes even better quality than the original it was inspired by!

What to consider when buying replica furniture?

There are a number of important things to keep in mind when buying replica furniture. One of the first that comes to mind is that the quality can vary a lot. When buying replica furniture, it’s important to buy from a trusted store that guarantees quality and good service. By only buying at trusted retailers, you also avoid many of the other issues that can come with buying replica-style furniture, like avoiding direct copies.

Many of the other considerations common when buying furniture also apply when buying replica-style furniture. This includes things like the size, the style and the colour of the furniture, making sure it suits the room.

Is replica furniture legal?

Contrary to what many people might think, replica furniture doesn’t generally refer to exact copies of modern high-end furniture pieces. Often, replica-style furniture uses high-end furniture as inspiration for their own furniture, but makes it to their own standard and often changes the design. This can result in better quality furniture with reasonably unique designs, or it can result in almost identical knock-offs of poor quality.

We only stock the highest quality replica-style furniture that either uses furniture designs that are unpatented or that clearly have their own design/style. 

Although replica-style furniture often gets a bad rep, it can actually be a great buy if you know where to look. You should now have a better idea of what replica-style furniture is, what to look out for when buying replica-style furniture and why you might opt for replica-style furniture over other styles.

Transform your space with our wide range of bar stools, luxury dining chairs and office chairs. Contact our team of experts to bring your vision to life. Use Lakeland Furniture to start to create a beautifully designed home.