Compare home furnishings stores in New Zealand at Canstar Blue. Briscoes, Spotlight and The Warehouse were compared on Overall Satisfaction, Quality of Installed Product, Value for Money, Product Availability, Customer Service, Layout of Store/Website and Range of Products.
See our Ratings Methodology.
Briscoes is the No.1 choice for Kiwi consumers, earning the best ratings of any retailer in our research and winning Canstar Blue’s 2024 Award for Most Satisfied Customers | Home Furnishings.
Our review compares home furnishings on customer satisfaction, so you can discover what other Kiwis think about our compared home furnishings stores before you go ahead and make a purchase. Think of it like asking hundreds of your closest family and friends which home furnishings retailer they think is best!
Canstar Blue surveyed 1178 Kiwis who had purchased and installed soft furnishings in their homes in the past 12 months and asked for their feedback on their purchases.
Respondents rate their satisfaction with their home furnishings from zero to ten, where zero is extremely dissatisfied and ten is extremely satisfied. Brand satisfaction was rated by respondents on the following criteria:
The winning brand is the one that receives the highest Overall Satisfaction rating once all the scores from the Overall Satisfaction criteria are combined and averaged.
Retail brands must have received at least 30 responses to be included, so not all brands available in the market have been compared in this survey. The brands rated in this survey are listed below in order of best overall satisfaction.
Find more information on our Most Satisfied Customer methodology.
Briscoes is the standout performer in Canstar Blue’s 2024 Most Satisfied Customers | Home Furnishings Award. Setting itself ahead of the competition, it earns top 5-Star ratings in every category measured, including Overall Satisfaction.
Briscoes’s great range of quality homewares, always competitive prices and frequent sales are a great hit with Kiwi consumers, who this year deliver Briscoes our top award.
Established in 1781, in the UK, Briscoes has become and continues to be an iconic New Zealand brand. Briscoes is part of Briscoe Group Ltd, alongside Living & Giving and Rebel Sport. It has stores across the country and is well-known for its great value sales promotions.
Briscoes sells soft furnishings for every room in the house, plus ready-made curtains and blinds. Although Briscoes doesn’t offer a custom service, it is well worth exploring Briscoe’s ready-to-hang options, as the store offers a “beat it by 10%” price guarantee. This means that if you find a lower advertised retail price on an identical item, Briscoes will beat its price by 10%.
A popular and affordable choice for home furnishings, Spotlight earns an admirable set of ratings from its customers, with 5-Stars in five categories, and 4 Stars for Overall Satisfaction.
Spotlight’s focus on low prices earns it a 5-Star rating for Value for Money. However, this focus on affordable prices is reflected by its lowest rating, 3 Stars for the Layout of its Store/Website.
Editor’s Notes
Spotlight has stores around the country, and is a one-stop shop for everything for the home. It sells an extensive range of homewares for every room in the house, from bedding and bathroom mats and towels, to kitchen and table linen and cushions and throws for living areas.
Spotlight has a great range of ready-to-hang curtains and blinds. However, it also has a custom service, offering free in-home measures and quotes for its made-to-order curtains, blinds, shutters and outdoor awnings.
Spotlight’s website features a “how to” guide on measuring your own windows, if you’d rather take a DIY approach to your window treatments.
The Warehouse’s customers are clearly content with the furnishings they’ve bought from the iconic big, red barn. Across six of the seven categories, they award The Warehouse 4-Star ratings. However, the brand’s 3-Star rating for Overall Satisfaction sees it sit third on this year’s award table.
The big-box retailer offers a complete range of household linens, towels, curtains, blinds and living room accessories, all with an emphasis on great value for money. As such, The Warehouse doesn’t offer any custom-made services. However, The Warehouse provides a DIY window measuring tutorial on its website, to ensure the right fit.
Not all home furnishing retailers in the market qualify for our ratings (based on minimum survey sample size), but that doesn’t mean they’re not worth considering. Here are more brands to check out before making a purchase decision.
CurtainStudioCurtainStudio does more than just curtains. Through its nationwide retail stores and showrooms, plus online store, it delivers the best in curtains, blinds, shutters and coordinated soft furnishings, such as cushions and throws.
It offers ready-made and custom-made products featuring all the latest international trends and fashions. Through the CurtainStudio website, it’s easy to book an in-home measure and quote from its expert team of in-home design consultants, who are passionate about helping their customers create a beautiful home and express their style.
And if you’re looking for curtains in a hurry, CurtainStudio has a 12-day working day promise on selected fabrics, and eight days on readymade curtains and blinds.
Guthrie BowronGuthrie Bowron has 51 stores the length of the country and stocks a comprehensive range of curtains and blinds.
If you need help planning your décor, all you need to do is ask the friendly staff at Guthrie Bowron, and they’ll be happy to bring expert advice to you, in your home. The retailer provides advice on colour, design, and materials, and can give you a free measure and quote for your curtains and blinds.
Harrisons Curtains & BlindsAfter winning our Most Satisfied Customers | Home Furnishings Award for the past two years, Harrisons didn’t quite manage to hit the minimum number of survey respondents required to make this year’s award. However, this doesn’t mean its products aren’t worth your money.
Its product range includes curtains, Roman blinds, rugs, cushions and throws. And in addition to its quality products, Harrisons delivers great inspiration and service, too.
Harrisons’ website has up-to-date features on the latest home-styling trends. And once you’re ready to buy, Harrisons will deliver a tailored solution to your door.
A local Harrisons Curtains & Blinds expert will come direct to your home, with a full range of samples. The unique service ensures you can make an informed choice, in your home’s unique light, surrounded by your own furnishings.
Harrisons also delivers a promise on the quality of its products, service and prices. So if you find a lower price from a competitor within seven days of your purchase, Harrisons will match the price, plus give you Flybuys.
Harvey FurnishingsHarvey Furnishings has six stores across the North Island, and one in Christchurch. It sells ready-made and custom-made curtains and blinds, as well as a range of other home furnishings, including: bedding, cushions, fabrics and throws.
Harvey Furnishings offers free in-home consultations for custom-made curtains, blinds and shutters throughout most parts of the North Island and Christchurch.
KmartEstablished in 1969, Kmart has expanded to over 300 stores across New Zealand and Australia. Offering a wide range of home furnishings, from curtain rods and sheer curtains to eyelet curtains and blackout options, Kmart guarantees affordability across its selection. However, it’s important to note that due to the brand’s focus on low prices, all its home furnishings come ready-made, unlike many other brands on our list.
When you’re choosing the right home furnishings retailer, what are the qualities you should look for? According to the Kiwi consumers in this year’s awards research, two features stand out: quality and value.
Quality and value are always key factors in all of Canstar Blue’s research, but when it comes to home decor, Product Availability is also important, especially if you’re in a hurry to give your house that homely feel.
Overall, here’s how the consumers in our survey rank the main things they consider when rating their choice of home furnishings retailer:
This report was written by Canstar Content Producer, Caitlin Bingham. Caitlin is an experienced writer whose passion for creativity led her to study communication and journalism. She began her career freelancing as a content writer, before joining the Canstar team.
Buy home furnishings at chain stores, rather than boutique stores: 43%
Prefer cheaper home furnishings to more expensive ones: 42%
Choose different styles of home furnishings for different rooms in home: 42%
Get home furnishing inspiration through social media: 35%
Choice of home furnishing influenced by children/pets (i.e. more durable, etc.): 35%
Patch up/cover worn home furnishings rather than buying new ones: 20%
Regularly update home furnishings to keep them fashionable: 17%
Choice of home furnishing influenced by reality-TV shows: 9%
In-store: 79%
Online: 21%
Canstar Blue surveyed 5108 New Zealand consumers across a range of categories to measure and track customer satisfaction, via ISO 26362 accredited research panels managed by Qualtrics. The outcomes reported are the results from respondents who had purchased and installed soft furnishings in their home in the past 12 months. In this case, 1178 New Zealanders. Brands must have received at least 30 responses to be included. Results are comparative and it should be noted that brands receiving three stars have still achieved a satisfaction measure of at least six out of 10. Not all brands available in the market have been compared in this survey. The ratings table is first sorted by star ratings and then by mean overall satisfaction. A rated brand may receive a ‘N/A’ (Not Applicable) rating if it does not receive the minimum number of responses for that criterion.
The past winners from Canstar Blue’s Home Furnishings ratings:
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