Why Buying Cheap Costs More: The Long-Term Value of Quality Refurbished Furniture

Ida Gorecka • July 30, 2025

You’re in the middle of planning an office space. Budgets are tight. Lead times are short. It’s tempting to type “cheap office chairs” into your browser and find something that fits the spreadsheet. But here’s the problem: cheap furniture is rarely cheap in the long run.


The market is saturated with budget desks, chairs, and storage that look good online, but fall apart in practice. And when they do, they cost more - more to replace, more to dispose of, more to fix (if that’s even possible), and more in lost time and productivity.


It’s a vicious cycle that undermines your budget, timeline, and any potential ESG goals.


According to WRAP, the UK disposes of over 200,000 tonnes of office furniture every year - much of it barely used. When furniture fails quickly, so does your investment. In a commercial setting, that failure shows up in missed deadlines, spiralling budgets, and sustainability goals slipping out of reach.


So before you hit "order" on another bulk buy of flat-packed furniture, take a moment.


In this article, you'll learn the hidden costs of cheap office furniture and why refurbished premium office furniture is the smarter alternative. If you're looking to reduce hassle, save money, and build a workspace that actually lasts, keep on reading.


Need help getting started? Get in touch with our team for advice, audits, or to browse our refurbished stock.

Why Cheap Furniture Fails You: Materials, Durability, and Hidden Costs

Low-cost office furniture is typically mass-produced using low-grade particleboard, thin plastic, low-density foam, and poor-quality fabric. On paper, it ticks the boxes: modern design, adjustable, comes in grey. But in practice, these products:


  • Warp under weight or humidity
  • Lose structural integrity within 12–24 months
  • Come with minimal (or no) aftercare or parts support
  • Aren’t modular or customisable


A 2023 study by the Furniture Industry Research Association (FIRA) shows that entry-level furniture used in a high-traffic office environment fails functional tests in as little as 14 months. Compare that to commercial-grade contract furniture that can withstand over a decade of intensive use with proper care and refurbishment.


Worse still, most of this furniture isn’t made to be repaired. Screws strip their holes. Frames bend without rebound. Upholstery can't be replaced. Once it's worn or damaged, it's destined for the skip - not reuse.


With disposal costs rising and ESG targets under pressure, landfill shouldn’t be your only option. Find out how recycling can save you thousands.

Furniture Waste Costs More Than You Think

When that cheap furniture ends up in a skip, the cost doesn’t end there.


In April 2025, the UK landfill tax rose to £126.15 per tonne (source).


A single workstation (desk + chair) can weigh 60-80 kg.


For every 100 workstations replaced, you’re looking at £700-£1,000 in disposal fees alone.


And that doesn’t even count the labour involved in disassembly, the van to take it away, or the carbon reporting headache of writing off a full floor’s worth of fit-out after only 18 months.


But it’s not just about the money. This throwaway approach compounds the problem of Scope 3 emissions, where frequent replacements quietly inflate your carbon footprint. So, if you’re trying to meet Net Zero targets, every skip-load puts you further behind.


What’s more, cheap furniture is rarely designed with recycling in mind. Many of these mass-market pieces are made from bonded materials - chipboard fused with laminate, mixed plastics, non-removable upholstery - which are difficult, sometimes impossible, to dismantle into recyclable components.


Compare that with premium commercial-grade furniture. Pieces from trusted manufacturers like Herman Miller or Vitra are built to be taken apart, repaired, and reused. At Coggin SOS, we refurbish high-spec items to your exact needs - repairing, reupholstering, even resizing. And if something genuinely can’t be saved, we make sure it’s recycled properly, with nothing going to landfill. You meet your sustainability goals, avoid hidden waste costs, and contribute to a circular economy. All without compromising on quality.


Want to find out what your furniture could be worth reused or refurbished? Get in touch with our team today and skip the skip for good.

The Time Drain: Admin, Downtime, and Disruption

When your office furniture fails, it disrupts your team. Staff report faults. You log replacements. You liaise with vendors. You chase warranties. If it’s out of warranty, you find someone to collect the item and quote for a replacement. All of that takes time and coordination.


Even when you’ve “saved” money on the initial purchase, that saving is quickly swallowed by the internal resource it takes to maintain a poorly performing environment.


Refurbished commercial-grade furniture is built to last and designed to be repaired - quickly and without waste. No need to wait months for manufacturer backorders or chase obscure spare parts. Instead, you gain peace of mind knowing that what you’re investing in now won’t fall apart later.


With refurbished furniture, you can:


  • Avoid long lead times - items can be ready in as little as 10 working days.
  • Minimise disruption - no waiting for weeks while staff work around broken setups.
  • Get better quality - furniture from premium brands is built to last 10+ years, not 12 months.
  • Adapt as you go - items can be repaired, resized, and reupholstered to meet changing needs.
  • Get a full 12-month warranty


At Coggin SOS, we take it a step further. Not only do we offer fast, high-quality refurbishment with customisation options, but we’re also exploring flexible leasing solutions - so you can keep your teams working while we refurbish or source exactly what you need.


And if you're wondering whether refurbished chairs can really deliver on comfort, support, and durability - this guide on refurbished office chairs will give you the reassurance you're looking for.

What Does “Refurbished” Actually Mean?

“Refurbished” can sometimes carry the wrong image. You might picture something second-hand, a bit scuffed, a compromise. But in reality, refurbished office furniture done right is none of those things, especially when it’s commercial-grade and professionally restored.


If you’re looking for quality, reliability, and value without the price tag of buying new, refurbishment offers exactly that.


At Coggin SOS, we focus on furniture from trusted brands like Herman Miller, Vitra, Orangebox, and Senator, because we know they’re designed to withstand demanding environments. And we make sure every item lives up to that standard - again.


Here’s what that looks like for you:


  • Thorough inspection and deep cleaning: We fully strip, sanitise, and assess every item so nothing worn, broken, or unsafe slips through.
  • Structural repair and replacement: Frames, castors, armrests, mechanisms - everything is tested and, if needed, replaced with manufacturer-grade parts.
  • Repainting and refinishing: Tired metal frames are coated to look (and perform) like new.
  • 12-month warranty as standard: You get the same reassurance you’d expect from new, without the inflated cost.
  • Reupholstery in your chosen colours: We reupholster chairs and soft seating with premium, commercial-grade fabrics.
  • Less hassle: We manage everything, from audit to install, so you don’t have to chase multiple suppliers.


Ultimately, you’re not compromising by choosing refurbished. You’re making a great choice for performance, sustainability, and value. You get furniture that’s already proven itself, now upgraded to meet your current needs with speed, care, and flexibility.


If you're unsure whether refurbished chairs or desks are the right move, take a look at our guide here.

Make This the Last Time You Buy Cheap Office Furniture

You’ve got targets to meet, teams to support, and a budget that needs to go far. The last thing you need is furniture that lets you down. Cheap on day one, costly every day after.


Refurbished office furniture isn’t a compromise by any means. It’s a smarter, faster, and more sustainable way to create a space that works, now and well into the future. Less hassle. Lower cost. Proven quality. Fully tailored to you.


If you’re ready to stop repeating the cycle and start making smarter decisions, we’re here to help.


Whether you want to refurbish what you already own, explore high-quality refurbished stock, or talk through the right approach for your space, we’ll make it happen. Get in touch with our team today.

One Size Doesn't Fit All: The Benefits of Resizing and Repurposing Office Desks

By Ida Gorecka • September 8, 2025
Your office transformation is approved. Budget's signed off. New layout's finalised. There's just one problem: those 1600mm executive desks that worked perfectly in the old corner offices are now 400mm too wide for your new collaborative pods. The reception desk you spent £3,000 on last year? It's the wrong height entirely for your rebrand. Most facilities managers would see this as a disposal problem. Skip hire , landfill tax , 12-week lead times for replacements. But what if that's completely backwards? What if the furniture that doesn't fit isn't a problem to solve, but an asset to unlock? Every year in the UK, around 1.2 million desks and 1.8 million office chairs are sent to landfill and only 14 % of them are being reused (Source: WRAP , Lancashire Business View ). Those old, "wrong-sized" desks you're planning to skip? They can be professionally refurbished and resized to your exact specifications in 7-10 days , at 40-70% less than new , with zero waste and a 12-month warranty . This article is for facilities managers, procurement leads, and fit-out teams who want practical, product-focused solutions. You’ll see when resizing and repurposing makes sense, the savings it delivers, the compliance boxes it ticks, and how to roll it out step by step. Curious what your current desks could deliver if resized or refurbished? Book a free assessment - we’ll map options, costs, and timelines for you.

Why Paying More Isn't Always Better: The Smart Choice of Refurbished Ergonomic Chairs

By Ida Gorecka • August 19, 2025
Refitting an office today means juggling a lot: tighter budgets, faster timelines, and pressure to deliver on ESG goals. And when it comes to ergonomic chairs, the one piece of furniture an office team relies on every day, many assume paying more for “new” automatically means better. But that’s no longer true. Refurbished ergonomic chairs offer the same comfort , durability , and support as new, backed by warranties , come with less cost and with far shorter lead times . For facilities and procurement teams, that means more budget freed up for other priorities, and fewer delays holding back your project. At Coggin SOS, we work with organisations that once assumed refurbished meant second-best. Until they saw the results. High-performance, fully warranted ergonomic chairs. Fast delivery. Circular outcomes they could actually report on. And savings of up to 80% compared to new (check out our case studies here ). In this article, you’ll learn what refurbished office chairs really offer in practice, why they’re becoming a preferred option for FM teams and procurement leads, and how your next fit-out or move could be both greener and smarter than you think. Thinking about your next office project? Contact our team and see how premium refurbished ergonomic chairs can give you comfort, savings, and sustainability in one.

Beyond Recycling: The Role of Office Furniture in a Truly Sustainable Economy

By Ida Gorecka • August 7, 2025
If you're here, you're probably managing a lot. A relocation, a refurbishment, or a growing ESG brief. Maybe you’re under pressure to meet sustainability targets, stay on budget, and deliver results your team and clients can actually see. And right now, office furniture might not be on your radar. But it should be. In most organisations, furniture is still treated as an afterthought. It’s functional, it’s bulky, and when it’s no longer needed, it’s often sent straight to landfill. But here’s the truth: when you start thinking of office furniture as a strategic asset within the circular economy , everything changes. For your budget . Your carbon reporting . Your project timelines . Your reputation . This article is for you if you’re tired of defaulting to skips. If you want smarter ways to meet ESG goals without blowing your budget. If you’re ready to make office sustainability a measurable advantage - not just a checkbox. We’ll show you just how much office furniture is wasted each year, what it’s really costing your business, and how the circular economy can apply directly to your projects. You’ll learn how organisations like yours are saving thousands, avoiding skips entirely, and turning unwanted furniture into reportable ESG wins - plus practical steps to get started today. Curious what your office clearance could be worth? Get in touch with our team for a free circular furniture audit.