What sets the price of a private-label upholstered piece?
The price of a private-label upholstered piece is set by its specification, how many pieces you order and how often you reorder. Seven factors move the unit price, from the frame and foam to the covering, finish and packaging, while freight is priced separately. That's why a quote starts from drawings, the intended use and the quantity.
CostingBy E and J Furniture, Los Angeles CountyPublished 4 min read
Ready to price a piece? Drawings, a photo or a tearsheet is enough to start a program brief.
Send a program briefSeven factors that move the unit price
- Size and frame
- Overall size and how the frame is built (wood species and joinery) set the lumber and labor in each piece. A frame that has to knock down (come apart) for delivery takes more work.
- Seat deck and foam
- The seat deck (the platform and springs under the cushion) and the foam densities specified change material cost and build time. A piece meant for daily use is built differently from an accent chair.
- Upholstery detail
- Welts (the fabric-covered cord along a seam), channels (parallel padded sections sewn into a back or seat), tufting and buttoning add patterning and sewing time. A plain tight back (upholstered to the frame, with no loose back cushions) takes less.
- Yardage and covering
- How much fabric or leather a piece uses (its yardage) drives the covering cost. A pattern repeat (the distance before a fabric's pattern starts again) and railroading (running fabric sideways so a long piece needs no seams) both change how much is wasted. Fabric or leather you supply changes what the factory buys.
- Finish
- Wood species and stain or paint set the finishing cost. Matching a color or texture sample you supply adds a step.
- Quantity and cadence
- A larger run spreads the fixed costs across more pieces. A program that reorders on a schedule lets the factory plan and buy materials ahead, which a one-time run doesn't.
- Packaging
- A piece can be blanket-wrapped or cartoned, depending on how and where it travels, and the method changes the cost. Freight itself is priced separately from the unit price.
Fixed costs set the minimum and add to small-run unit prices
Fixed costs (pattern and sample work, changeover, small material buys and learning a new piece) set a factory's minimum order quantity, or MOQ. Divided across the run, they add more to each piece of a small run. E and J Furniture has no minimum order: a program can start at a single piece.
A quote starts from drawings, the intended use and the quantity
Most of the factors above follow from the drawing, the intended use and the size of the run; the covering, finish and packaging need their own answers. If any of that is missing, expect questions before a quote. The tech-pack checklist covers what to include, and what a quote needs lists the six things we ask for.
Common questions
Why don't private-label manufacturers publish prices?
Because the price changes with the frame, seat deck, covering, finish, quantity and packaging, a published number would be wrong for most programs. At E and J, every program is quoted, and our payment terms are 50% deposit at order, balance due before shipping.
What lowers the unit price without lowering quality?
Four changes can lower it: consolidating variations onto a shared frame, committing to a reorder schedule, dropping detail your customers don't value and choosing a stock fabric that performs as well as the one you specified. The guide to how furniture MOQs work covers three of them in more detail.
Is freight part of the price?
No. Freight is priced separately from the unit price and depends on where the program ships; we ship consolidated freight to all 50 states and internationally. The landed-cost guide shows how to add freight, duty and the cost of time in transit to the unit price.
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Your program
Get your piece quoted. Send a program brief.
Paste links to any drawings or photographs and tell us how many you need. No minimum order: a program can start at a single piece, and lead time is 4–8 weeks, plus freight.
Only your name and email are required. We reply by email with questions, or with a quote if the brief has enough to price.