Question:

Is Omnia better quality than Natuzzi for leather sofas?

Oct. 11, 2020

Answer:

I recommend Omnia over Natuzzi.

Natuzzi’s claim to fame is that they showed the furniture industry how to make leather furniture that most people could afford. In other words, they were the first to discover how to make “cheap” leather sofas.

• Because of the company’s huge size, they have the ability to buy huge quantities of leather at deeply discounted prices compared with many of their competitors.

Natuzzi emphasizes its beautiful leather and soft plush looks, while drastically economizing on everything that can not be seen.

Natuzzi has different quality levels, based on where the furniture is made.

• Their Italian made Natuzzi Italia products are the brand’s better quality.
• Asian made Natuzzi Editions products are inferior, built for sale to mass merchants (large retailers) whose primary concern is competitive pricing.

Even in their best quality Italian made furniture, Natuzzi has always paid far more attention to the quality of the leather than the frame it goes on. Check out this video that shows the construction of an Italian made Natuzzi frame.

• Natuzzi best quality Italian made frames are constructed with fiberboard, plywood, and softwoods.
• Elasticized Pirelli webbing is found on many well made modern high end sofas. It can be a good foundational support — but not the way Natuzzi uses it. To hold up over the long term, Pirelli webbing needs to be spaced closer together and it needs to be fastened onto a strong solid hardwood frame, not engineered woods, fiberboard  or softwoods where the staples can loosen and pull out over time.

Here is a video that shows another of Natuzzi’s higher end pieces. This sofa lasted 15 years before the owner decided the cushions needed to be replaced. But if you look at the basic frame construction, it is similar to what can be found on imported sofas selling for $599 (with cheap fabric.)

Here is a video with a customer speaking about construction of the Natuzzi Editions sofa he purchased.

Another video of their “better quality” Italian made frame construction.

Omnia also specializes in top grain leather furniture. It has a wide range of prices based on the type of leather selected and various options. Overall, its inner construction is far superior to Natuzzi in every respect.

Omnia uses kiln-dried hardwood plywood frames with a sinuous wire support foundation. Sinuous wire is inexpensive but extremely durable.

• That combination of frame and foundation should last 20 or more years, as opposed to Natuzzi’s infrastructure  which has a 50/50 chance of making it through 10 years.