Guide to buying a luxury bathroom online
If you’re looking to purchase a luxury bathroom for your remodelling, renovation or restoration project, one of the best ways of doing so is online. You’ll save a lot of travelling from showroom to showroom, find better deals and give yourself a whole virtual world of choice. So, here’s a guide to shopping for your perfect top-of-the-range bathroom via an ecommerce platform.
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Made-to-measure vs off-the-shelf bathroom
Artisan bathrooms online
An artisan bathroom is, of course, the luxury remodelling dream—from the ultimate walk-in shower to taps that offer the perfect finishing touch. However, buying made-to-measure bathroom products online can be a difficult process.
First of all, artisanal producers will probably demand some quite detailed CAD drawings in order to be able to craft your products to fit your specific space. That could be a bit nerve wracking, hoping they’ll get the spec right from a distance. They’ll also charge a small fortune for the privilege of producing it to such detailed standards.
Consider, instead, an artisanal manufacturer that produces bespoke, made-to-measure bathrooms with the same ease of purchase as an off-the-shelf retailer. Riluxa, for instance, empowers buyers to select products designed to their exacting specifications right here on the website—from standard measurements to very detailed aspects like whether or not to have tap holes. You can even request CAD drawings to be supplied to your architect so you know up-front that the product spec will fit perfectly.
Buying your bathroom from a large-scale producer with artisan standards will also drive down the price of your luxury, artisanal bathroom. That means you can have the best materials available, like Corian® and marble, at prices that won’t require a second mortgage.
Made-to-measure vs off-the-shelf bathroom
Even if you’re leaning toward a bespoke bathroom, you’ll probably still be weighing up the comparative benefits of buying a ready-made one online.
One of the common concerns when purchasing a bespoke bathroom via the internet is the time it will take to be manufactured. If you’re on a deadline as a high-end interior designer or property developer, you’ll want to deliver the highest standards in the fastest possible time. Equally, if you’re remodelling your own bathroom, you’ll want to make sure your installation team isn’t waiting around for online products to be shipped while still charging for their time.
In this case, consider purchasing off-the-shelf bathroom products from an online retailer known for its bespoke bathrooms. A high-end artisanal retailer that also sells off-the-shelf products will be looking to maintain its reputation for luxury standards, so will be more likely to only choose the very best ready-made products available. Riluxa’s in-stock range is a great example of this.
Full bathroom set options
The process of buying a bathroom from an online store can be simplified by choosing a full bathroom set, as opposed to individual pieces. A complete bathroom furniture set gives you a vanity unit, mirror and additional cabinetry all as part of the package. So, it’s simply a case of finding the one you like and buying in a few short clicks.
Full bathroom furniture sets are great options for those who want luxury on a budget, too. The price of a complete set will be lower than if you were to buy each of the individual pieces separately. Plus, you can rest assured that, once you order them online, they’ll all arrive on the same day so your installation team can get on with the job without delay.
Nowadays, you can find some stunning contemporary takes on the traditional full bathroom set from online retailers. Riluxa, for example, offers a range of bathroom sets that deliver modern minimalist aesthetics but with all the elements of the classic three-piece package.
Shipping online bathrooms
When purchasing a bathroom online, make sure to take into account the shipping cost of doing so. Washbasins are heavy. Bathroom cabinets are heavy. Bathtubs are even heavier. You may—if you’re unlucky—find yourself wowed by the reasonable pricing of an online bathroom retailer only to realise that the shipping makes it more expensive than if you’d gone to a showroom.
Try to find an online bath store that will send you the products for a very low—or even no—fee. Riluxa, for instance, offers free shipping throughout the UK and Europe. Also, make sure to get tracking as standard so that the online store is responsible if the product goes missing en route (a highly unlikely occurrence, but it’s best to be safe).
Finally, make sure that your online bathroom retailer offers a robust returns policy. If any part of your order has been damaged in transit, you want to be assured that you can either get your money back or have the product replaced hassle-free. If they also offer a no-questions-asked return guarantee for unwanted products, too, so much the better.
Looking for something else to read? Check out our article which poses the question: Do you need a custom vanity?