Louis Ghost Chair - Room & Board Update

Image from Kartell

They've uploaded a few more of the colored Philippe Starck Louis Ghost Chairs by Kartell to the Room & Board website clearance section, including the matte white, transparent smoke, blue and yellow.  They are going quickly; the transparent smoke is already sold out and I think the green also sold out.  Since purchasing the transparent clear Louis Ghost Chair from the Culver City location, I've been looking online for discounted Ghost Chairs, since I needed a pair for my table but only bought one, but had no luck finding any for less than retail.  These chairs never go on sale; the only reason why they are on sale now is because Room & Board will no longer be stocking the chairs next year.  I'm not sure why Room & Board is discontinuing carrying these chairs; I suspect it's because they carry similar molded plastic clear Tiffany chairs.  I much prefer the Louis Ghost Chairs, especially since they are the same price on sale!

One of my favorite images of the Louis Ghost chairs in action from Living Magazine via Desire to Decorate

As soon as I saw these new Louis Ghost chairs uploaded today, I bought a pair of the transparent smoke ones which I'm so excited about; I had originally wanted these as I thought they would match my dining set better since my other existing chairs are black.  I immediately drove to Room & Board Culver City location with the hope that they would take back the clear Louis Ghost Chair that I purchased as a floor sample, but they refused, which was disappointing, especially since I've been such a loyal Room & Board customer, but understandable.  It would have sold again in a heartbeat, since it's such an iconic piece at an amazing price, but they just refused to do it.  At the clearance sale, so many people approached my mom asking if she was going to take the Ghost Chair; if Room & Board took it back they could have sold it easily and would have made two customers very happy, but oh well, their loss.  I'll just have to sell it on my own.  I'm not worried about getting my money back; I'm just annoyed at the hassle of having to deal with it.  However, to those who may have missed out at the launch of the Room & Board annual clearance sale on December 26th, keep on checking the website, as they seem to be occasionally uploading random new items.  Also, note for Southern California people: you can avoid the $79 delivery charge by picking items up at the warehouse in Torrance.  Update: I've picked up the smoke grey chairs, see them in action here.

Sidenote: I've found Room & Board's phone service and delivery service to be so much more helpful and friendly than their in-store service.  I actually think they have some of the best customer service I have ever encountered over the phone.  I had the most wonderful phone experience last year with Stephanie, one of the managers, who went above and beyond to make sure we were happy with continual follow-ups, and the warehouse / delivery service has also been impeccable and timely.  The store service just doesn't seem to be that great.  Most of the time when I visit during the weekday, the showroom is pretty empty, but all the sales associates seem to be very preoccupied at their computers; it's often difficult to get any attention, you really have to seek them out.  You just don't get a friendly, welcoming vibe when walking around the store.  I've had this issue at the Soho, Culver City and Costa Mesa locations.  Despite visiting the stores quite often, I have actually never purchased anything at the stores because of the service issues; I much prefer to order online and over the phone.