If you've shopped for custom window treatments in the last few years, there's a good chance you've heard 3 Day Blinds commercials. The pitch is consistent across radio, TV, and digital ads: a friendly, independent custom window treatment company that comes to your home, designs a solution to your specifications, and installs it quickly. The brand has been advertised that way for over 40 years.
What's almost never mentioned in that advertising — and what most consumers don't realize when a 3 Day Blinds design consultant arrives at their home — is that 3 Day Blinds was acquired by Hunter Douglas in December 2019.
That single fact changes how you should think about the company's quotes, products, and pricing. So let's walk through what's actually going on.
The Acquisition Hunter Douglas Announced (Quietly)
On December 4, 2019, Hunter Douglas N.V. — the Dutch parent company of the Hunter Douglas premium window treatment brand — announced its acquisition of 3 Day Blinds.
From the original press release: "Hunter Douglas, the world market leader in window coverings (Luxaflex®) and a major manufacturer of architectural products, has agreed to acquire 3 Day Blinds, a North American in-home seller and manufacturer of its own branded line of shades, blinds and draperies."
At the time of acquisition, 3 Day Blinds had:
- 2018 sales of approximately $205 million
- Around 1,200 employees
- Headquarters in Irvine, California
- A network of in-home design consultants serving the United States
Hunter Douglas chose to keep 3 Day Blinds operating as a "standalone business unit under its existing management team." That decision is why most consumers still think of 3 Day Blinds as an independent company.
It's also why 3 Day Blinds job listings now include the line "We are proud to be part of the Hunter Douglas family of brands" — but consumer advertising almost never mentions it.
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What This Ownership Means for Their Products
3 Day Blinds operates within the Hunter Douglas corporate structure but maintains its own product strategy. In practice, this means several things:
They still sell their own private-label products. 3 Day Blinds has its own manufacturing for many product categories — blinds, faux wood blinds, vertical blinds, mini blinds, vinyl blinds, cellular shades, roller shades, Roman shades, woven wood shades, pleated shades, curtains, and draperies. Per the company's own website, "most of which are manufactured in their company-owned factory."
They also resell other manufacturers' products. According to 3 Day Blinds' own statements, the company "is partnered with Somfy for product motorization, and we also carry Norman Shutters and an extensive line of Hunter Douglas products." So when you get a 3 Day Blinds quote, the products on it might be:
- 3 Day Blinds private-label products made in their California factory
- Norman products (Norman shutters in particular)
- Hunter Douglas products
- Somfy motorization on any of the above
A single 3 Day Blinds proposal can contain products from all four sources, with little obvious indication of which is which.
Pricing is set by the corporate structure. 3 Day Blinds' retail prices reflect the cost of running a national in-home consultation business: design consultants who travel to homes, a national advertising budget, corporate overhead, and the parent company's revenue expectations. This is not unique to 3 Day Blinds — every national chain has this structure — but it's worth knowing when you compare a 3 Day Blinds quote to a local independent dealer.
How 3 Day Blinds Quotes Compare to Hunter Douglas Quotes
This is where the corporate structure becomes most visible.
If you get quotes from both 3 Day Blinds and a Hunter Douglas Gallery for the same project, you're getting two quotes from two divisions of the same parent company. Both have an interest in maintaining their respective price points. Both have aggressive discount structures designed to make the customer feel they're getting a deal.
In practice, 3 Day Blinds tends to be priced 10–25% below Hunter Douglas Gallery pricing for comparable products, with both offering substantial "discounts" off list price as part of the sales process. The actual delivered price after discounts often lands within a similar range.
If you're comparing 3 Day Blinds to a local independent dealer carrying Hunter Douglas or Norman:
- The local dealer is typically buying the same product at the same wholesale cost
- The local dealer's overhead is lower (no corporate marketing budget, no franchise structure)
- The local dealer's price is often meaningfully lower for the same product
The Sales Process
3 Day Blinds' core business model is in-home consultation. A design consultant comes to your house, measures, presents options from samples, builds a proposal, and asks for a signature. The "3 Day" branding originally referred to a manufacturing lead time but is now more of a brand legacy than a literal product guarantee — actual production and delivery typically take longer.
Two things about this sales process are worth flagging:
Sales consultants work on commission against posted list prices. This is standard across the industry, but it means the "discount" you're offered during the appointment is structured into the pricing model. The list price isn't a real number — it's a starting point for negotiation that the consultant is incentivized to bring down to a target.
Consultants are trained to close in the appointment. "Sign tonight and we'll lock in this pricing" is a common close. There's a legitimate reason for this — coordinating measurement, ordering, and installation is easier when commitments are made at the appointment — but it can also feel pressured if you're not expecting it.
A reasonable response if you feel pressured: "Send me the proposal in writing, including itemized line items showing the manufacturer, product line, and dimensions for each unit. I'll review it and come back to you." Any reputable dealer should be able to do this.
What to Ask Before Buying from 3 Day Blinds
If you're getting a 3 Day Blinds quote, three questions worth asking:
"Who manufactures each product on this proposal?" Specifically — is it a 3 Day Blinds private-label product, a Hunter Douglas product, a Norman product, or something else? The answer determines what the underlying warranty and quality structure looks like.
"What's the underlying retail price before the discount?" And separately, "What's the dealer cost of this product?" The second question won't usually be answered, but the first one tells you whether the discount is meaningful or constructed.
"How does this compare to a local independent dealer carrying the same product?" This is the comparison that matters most. Norman shutters, for example, are sold through countless independent dealers nationwide. A 3 Day Blinds quote for Norman shutters can usually be matched or beaten by a local independent.
When 3 Day Blinds Is Actually a Good Choice
In fairness, 3 Day Blinds is not a bad option for everyone. It can be a reasonable choice when:
- You want a single-vendor experience with a consultant who comes to you
- You don't have time to compare multiple dealers
- You're buying in a market where 3 Day Blinds has strong local installation crews
- The product you want is on their Norman or Hunter Douglas line and you don't mind paying for the consultation experience
3 Day Blinds is less of a good choice when:
- You're price-sensitive and want the best value for the product
- You want a long-term relationship with a dealer who'll service your shades for the life of the installation
- You'd prefer to buy from a small business that's not part of a $3.6 billion multinational
- You'd rather know upfront what you're paying for
The Honest Take
3 Day Blinds is a legitimate window treatment company. They make some of their own products, they install them professionally, and they honor warranties. The issue isn't quality — it's transparency.
The fact that they're a Hunter Douglas subsidiary should be disclosed in consumer marketing the way it's disclosed in their corporate filings and job postings. The fact that they resell Norman and Hunter Douglas products under their own brand should be clear on quotes. The fact that "list prices" are constructed to enable a "discount" closing structure should be acknowledged.
The companies that disclose all of this without being asked are usually the ones worth buying from. The companies that won't, generally aren't.
In the next post, we'll look at The Shade Store — another premium brand whose underlying products are less proprietary than their marketing implies.
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