Why Autumn is a Great Time to Buy Garden Furniture

The arrival of autumn is always tinged with a certain sadness, especially for those of us who cherish our gardens. 

On the one hand, it is a beautiful time of year. The rich, vivid greens of summer are just starting to be freckled by golds and ambers and warm browns. The trees are laden with their fruits, and there is still warmth in the sun.

But our gardens are starting to show signs of what is to come. Plants are visibly ageing and dying back. There are more and more leaves on the lawn. Our thoughts turn to what needs to be done to prepare for winter - tidying up, cutting back, digging up, repairing, putting away.

All in the knowledge that your beloved garden won’t be seeing much use now until the spring.

Which might make the suggestion that now is a great time to buy garden furniture seem a little odd. Surely all you’re going to do with it is pack it away in a garage or shed, not to see the light of day for several months. What’s the point of taking up all that space when you could simply revisit what you need the following spring, at a time when you will be re-energized with ideas for your garden ahead of the summer anyway?

It’s true that spring is peak season for garden furniture sales. It of course makes perfect sense. Just as the days are lengthening and warming up, just as we start heading to garden centres again and prepping for the summer ahead, that’s when it’s natural to turn our attention to outdoor sofa sets for relaxing in and garden dining sets for entertaining.

But even so, there are good reasons to buck the trend and buy your furniture out of season. Here are three reasons to get straight into updating your garden furniture for next year this autumn.

Get the best deals

Garden furniture retailers expect things to slow down as the last rays of summer fade away. So that is when they start to knock down prices to try to give sales a little pep up. The most savvy customers looking for a great deal will always wait until at least early autumn to start shopping around in the post-season sales.

As you go deeper and deeper into autumn, the discounts are likely to get bigger and bigger, as retailers start to think about clearing stock ready for the coming spring. Old stock doesn’t mean old furniture. You are still buying brand new items that might just be the perfect fit for your garden. And you are making a considerable saving compared to what you can expect to pay if you wait until the spring.

Avoid the crowds

You might think that knock-down prices in autumn and winter sales would have customers flocking to buy their garden furniture. But it never really works like that. If it did, retailers wouldn’t need to have the sales in the first place!

If you like going into garden centres and garden furniture warehouses in person to browse for items, you will definitely avoid the crowds by leaving your shopping until the autumn. By the time spring is in full swing in April, that’s peak season and you’ll often have to contend with hordes of other shoppers - especially when the weather is fine. 

Shopping for garden furniture during the off season also means sales staff are more likely to have time on their hands, leaving them free to give you their full attention and a very personalized level of service. That’s great if you’re looking for help picking out pieces to fit with a certain design you have in mind, or if you want detailed information about materials, provenance, furniture care etc.

Have your furniture ready and waiting when the warm weather returns

Finally, another great reason to buy your garden furniture during the off season is that you don’t waste any time come spring. Customers are often slightly dismayed when they buy furniture in April and May and then realize, with shipping times etc., they aren’t going to have it until June. By then, they might have missed a good chunk of the best weather the summer has to offer!

Especially if we get a warm, sunny spring, there’s nothing better than knowing you have brand new garden furniture ready and waiting in the garage. You can get straight out and not miss a day of it.

For more outdoor décor inspiration, check out these 5 fresh ideas for creating a wonderful outdoor space on a budget!