Simplicity Sofas

Ready - to - Assemble - Furniture - Simplicity Sofas

Simplicity Sofas, headquartered in High Point, NC, the furniture capital of the world, is the latest furniture venture between industry veterans, Jeff Frank and Glenn Laughlin. Specializing in full-size and small scale Ready-To-Assemble sofas, love seats, chairs and ottomans, this manufacturer's furniture is made in the USA, providing upholstered furniture direct to the consumer via its Website.

Glenn Laughlin and Jeff Frank are authorities on RTA - Ready-To-Assemble - upholstered furniture. Glenn Laughlin is a master custom upholsterer with a worldwide clientele and specializes in building furniture utilizing new mechanisms and innovative designs. See Patent Information Below. Jeff Frank has been involved in both the manufacturing and retail industry for over 30 years. He has worked with Call For Action, a nationwide consumer help organization dedicated to assisting consumers with problems concerning fraud, poor service, and consumer rights.
Over the past 15 years, they have been awarded five US patents and four international patents for their RTA upholstered furniture designs with additional patents pending.

Patents

United States - 6,637,812 - October 28, 2003
Current US Class and International Class
Inventors: Glenn Laughlin/Jeffrey Frank

Folding ready-to-assemble upholstered furniture
An upholstered foldable furniture system having a first assembled configuration for seating and a second unassembled configuration for storage and shipping. The furniture system has a horizontal seat support frame having front and rear support frame members, spaced left and right side support frame members, a back member having a bottom back member rotatably secured to the rear support frame member and left and right back side support members. The back member is rotatable between a position substantially parallel to the horizontal seat support frame and an angle of not less than 90 degree with respect to the horizontal seat support frame. Left and right arm members are provided, each having a rear arm frame and a lower arm frame. The left and right lower arm frames are secured to the left and right side support frame members respectively. The furniture system also provides left and right latch assemblies. When the furniture system is in the first assembled configuration for seating, the back member is in a substantially vertical position, the left and right arm members are in substantially vertically upward positions, and the left and right latch assemblies are latched. When the furniture system is in the second unassembled configuration for storage and shipping, the back member is in a substantially horizontal position, and the left and right latch assemblies are unlatched.
United States - 5,423,596 - June 13, 1995
Current US Class and International Class
Inventors: Glenn Laughlin/Jeffrey Frank/Bruce Hirschhaut

Multi-functional upholstered furniture system
An upholstered furniture system for mounting on a horizontal surface. The system comprises spaced apart vertical arm members, each having an inner surface including back and front portions. Side support members are affixed to the inner surfaces of the arm members for removably supporting a seat support member. Support elements are affixed to the back portions of the inner surfaces of arm members and a back member is interposed between the spaced apart arm members. The back member includes an outer back part having spaced apart vertical outer back part side members supported by the support elements, and a horizontal outer back part top rail extending between the vertical outer back part side members. An inner back part is provided having spaced apart vertical inner back part side members, and a horizontal inner back part top rail extending between the vertical inner back part side members. A hinge connects the outer back part top rail to the inner back part top rail so as to permit rotation of the inner back part about a horizontal axis parallel to the outer and inner back part top rails. Support elements are affixed to the back portions of the inner surfaces of the. The rotation of the inner back part about the horizontal axis brings the inner back part into contact with the third and fourth support elements thereby adjustably limiting rotation of the inner back part. Fasteners are provided for removably fastening the back member to the arm members, and a front member is interposed between the spaced apart arm members.
United States - 5,394,573 - March 7, 1995
Current US Class and International Class
Inventors: Glenn Laughlin/Jeffrey Frank/Bruce Hirschhaut

Upholstered sofa bed
An upholstered sofa bed for mounting on a substantially horizontal surface comprising a frame member including right and left spaced vertical arm frame sections each having side support members, a back frame section interposed between the right and left frame sections, and a front frame section interposed between the right and left arm frame sections. A platform member is provided which includes a front platform section having at least one support leg retractably attached thereto, and a back platform section. A hinge member rotatably attaches the front platform section to the back platform section thereby permitting the platform member to be selectively placed in either a first position in which the surface of the back platform section makes an obtuse angle with the surface of the front platform section of the platform member and is supported by the back frame section and the front section of the platform member is supported by the side support member of the arm frame sections of said frame member; or in a second position in which the back platform section is supported in a horizontal position by the side support members and the front platform section is supported by the front frame section and the support leg.
United States - 5,338,095 - August 16, 1994
Current US Class and International Class
Inventors: Glenn Laughlin/Jeffrey Frank/Bruce Hirschhaut

Upholstered seating system
An upholstered chair or sofa capable of being quickly and easily assembled and disassembled which includes first and second spaced arm members, front and back members interposed between the first and second arm members, and a seat member supported by the arm members and the front member without being attached thereto. Attachment structures are provided for connecting the first and second arm members to the back member, the attachment structures serving solely for securing the first and second arm members to the back member without supporting the seat member. In addition, in one embodiment of the invention the attachment structures also secures the first and second arm members to the front member without supporting the weight of the seat member.
United States - 5,263,764 - November 23, 1993
Current US Class and International Class
Inventors: Glenn Laughlin/Jeffrey Frank/Bruce Hirschhaut

Multi-functional upholstered furniture system
An upholstered furniture system having removable and interchangeable spring and sleeper units for mounting on a substantially horizontal surface. The system comprises first and second spaced apart substantially vertical arm members, a back member which is removably attached to the arm members and a front member which is in removable contact with the arm members. A seat support member, which may be one of a spring platform and a sleeper mechanism, is removably supported by first and second side support sections affixed to the inner surfaces of the first and second arm members. A cover may be secured to the arm, back and front members by hook and loop fastening strips.

Ready-To-Assemble History

In the past Ready-To-Assemble sofas were not very attractive, uncomfortable and difficult to put together. They looked like boxes or toy furniture and took hours to assemble. They were designed to appeal to a market that needed temporary, disposable furniture at below discount prices. RTA furniture was first invented by Gillis Lundgren, who was a Swedish draughtsperson. Lundgren developed the idea when he needed to fit a table into his car. According to reports, Lundgren broke the legs off of his table so he could fit it in the car and then reassembled the table at home.

Current

Recently, a new category of RTA upholstered furniture has been introduced - Now RTA living room furniture is shipped flat in heavy-duty boxes designed to fit the smallest spaces. Both full size sofas and small scale sofas ship in three boxes and will fit through even the narrowest doors, stairs or elevators. The furniture is designed to fit anywhere and ships direct from the manufacturer, Simplicity Sofas, via UPS Freight to the consumer from the factory in High Point, NC. The patented easy-to-assemble method takes less than 15 minutes. No tools required.

Jeff Frank and Glenn Laughlin have worked to transform the look and quality of RTA living room furniture, and maintain affordable prices.

Product Line

The product line consists of 5 collections, from traditional to transitional and contemporary. All styles are constructed from solid hardwood frames. The offerings include small scale sofas, as well as full-scale living room furniture.

Simplicity Sofas offers a choice of five styles of discount, living room furniture for tight spaces with five sizes of seating for each style. There are large sofas and small sofas, ranging from 66" to 88" in length. Each collection also offers a matching loveseat, chair and a half, and chair, complemented by an ottoman, either with or without a folding tray table. Three collections are available as slip-covered sofas. 50 fabrics are available to mix and match, as well as pet proof fabrics and slip covers in a wide range of colors. Catalogs are made available online by the manufacturer.

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