If you’re buying custom curtains in Australia, you’ve got two paths: order online from a custom manufacturer, or book an in-home consultation with a showroom-led service.
Both can deliver excellent curtains. They cost differently, take different timeframes, and suit different buyers. This blog walks through the honest comparison — what each path gives you, what each costs, and how to decide which suits you.
What You Actually Get in Each Model
Online curtain orders give you free pre-purchase fabric samples, DIY measuring with printable guides and videos, online configuration with live pricing, and Australia-wide tracked delivery. In-showroom services give you an in-home consultant who measures, recommends fabrics in person, books professional install, and manages the project end-to-end at higher cost.
What’s included in an online order: – Free fabric samples (up to 10) posted to your home – Printable measuring guide and how-to videos – Online configurator with live pricing – Secure payment (cards, PayPal, direct deposit) – Manufacturing in 10-15 days (HBA) or longer for some online providers – Tracked delivery Australia-wide – DIY install with fitting kit and step-by-step guide – Australian-based phone support before, during and after order
What’s included in a showroom-led order: – In-home appointment with a consultant (often $0 if you order, or refundable against order) – Fabric samples brought to your home for selection in person – Consultant measures your windows – Written quote (typically delivered 1-7 days after appointment) – Manufacturing once you accept the quote and pay – Delivery to the home – Professional install by the company’s installer – Post-install follow-up
The Honest Cost Comparison
Custom curtains online from a quality Australian manufacturer typically cost 20-40% less than the same custom spec through an in-home showroom service. The price difference reflects removed showroom rent, consultation overhead, sales-commission margin and professional install bundling.
Indicative pricing for a 2.4m-wide sheer linen-blend curtain on an S-fold ceiling-mounted track (typical living room window):
| Online (HBA-style) | Showroom (mid-market) | Showroom (premium) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Curtain (sheer linen-blend, S-fold) | $400-$600 | $700-$1,000 | $1,200-$1,800 |
| Track and brackets | included | included | included |
| Delivery | $0-$50 | included | included |
| Install | DIY (free) | $200-$400 | $400-$600 |
| Total | $400-$650 | $900-$1,400 | $1,600-$2,400 |
The product itself is comparable across the three. The difference is the buying experience and bundled services.
When Online is The Right Call
Online is the right call for customers comfortable with DIY measuring and install, looking for sharper pricing, willing to wait 10-15 days for manufacture, and confident enough to make fabric decisions from at-home samples rather than in-person consultation.
Online suits you if:
- You’re comfortable measuring your own windows with a printable guide and how-to videos. Most Australians can; some prefer not to.
- You want sharper pricing. The 20-40% saving on like-for-like spec is the main online advantage.
- You can wait 10-15 days for manufacture. Online is not next-day. If your timeline is tight, factor this in.
- You can DIY install or arrange your own local installer. Most customers DIY successfully; some prefer professional install (HBA curtains are fully compatible with any local installer).
- You’re confident making fabric decisions from at-home samples. Pure linen vs linen-blend, sheer vs blockout — all decidable from free samples posted to you. Some buyers prefer a consultant’s in-person recommendation.
- You like a low-pressure buying experience. No appointments, no follow-ups, no quotes-by-Tuesday.
When Showroom is The Right Call
In-home showroom services are the right call for customers who specifically want professional measuring and install bundled, prefer in-person fabric consultation, value relationship-led service, or are doing a major renovation where coordinating multiple trades through one consultant is worth the premium.
Showroom suits you if:
- You specifically want in-home measuring. Whether because of complex windows, mobility, or just preference. Worth the premium if measuring stress is the blocker.
- You want professional install bundled. Online customers can hire installers separately ($150-$300 per curtain typically); showroom orders include install as part of the deal.
- You prefer in-person fabric consultation. Some buyers — particularly those new to curtains, or designing a whole-home palette — benefit from a consultant’s perspective in the actual room.
- You’re managing a major renovation. One consultant coordinating curtains alongside paint, flooring, joinery and lighting can simplify a busy project.
- Budget isn’t the constraint. If the 20-40% premium isn’t material, the bundled service is worth it for some customers.
The Grey Area: Hybrid Approaches
Hybrid approaches combine online ordering with paid in-home measuring or professional install. Customers get most of the online price advantage with the parts of the showroom experience they want.
Many customers don’t fit cleanly into “online” or “showroom.” Hybrid approaches:
Online order + paid in-home measurer Hire a local installer ($150-$300) to measure your windows once. Use their measurements to order online. Captures most of the online cost saving while removing the DIY measuring step.
Online order + paid professional installer DIY measure, order online, hire a local installer for the install step. The installer fits HBA curtains with no compatibility issues.
Online order + showroom consultation Visit a local showroom to see fabrics in person (most showrooms allow this without commitment), then order online from a different provider. Some buyers find this useful for fabric tactile experience without paying showroom prices.
Hybrid approaches work — the curtains arrive the same regardless of who measured or installed.
Why HBA Takes The Online Path
We chose online because we wanted to remove the showroom markup without compromising product quality. The 20-40% saving goes to the customer rather than into showroom rent, in-home consultation overhead and sales commission.
But we’re honest about it. Online buying requires customers to measure themselves (with our guides and the Perfect Fit Guarantee covering errors), choose fabrics from samples rather than in-person consultation, and either DIY install or arrange their own local installer.
For customers who want the bundled showroom experience, online isn’t the right model. For customers comfortable with the steps above, online delivers the same product at a materially better price.
About HBA
HBA is online-first. White family-owned, founded 2014, backed by Quicksew manufacturing since 1977. Custom curtains made-to-measure in our Australian workroom in 10-15 days.
- Free fabric samples (up to 10) posted same day with code 10FREESAMPLES
- Perfect Fit Guarantee covers a free remake
- 5-year warranty
- Phone 1300 195 797 for measuring or product questions
Key Definitions
Online curtain order (HBA model) — Ordering custom curtains entirely online, from free pre-purchase samples through configuration, payment, manufacturing and delivery, with customer-led measuring and install.
Showroom-led curtain order — Buying custom curtains through a traditional showroom service that bundles in-home measuring, in-person fabric consultation, professional install and project management at a premium price.
Hybrid approach — Combining online ordering with paid third-party measuring or install services, capturing online price advantage while removing specific DIY steps.
FAQ
Are online custom curtains the same quality as showroom?
Same product quality from quality manufacturers in both models. The difference is the buying experience and what’s bundled (measuring, install, consultation), not the curtain itself.
Why are online custom curtains cheaper?
Online removes showroom rent, in-home consultation overhead, sales-commission margin and bundled install. The product savings get passed through to the customer.
Is online riskier than showroom?
With the right safeguards (free pre-purchase samples, Perfect Fit Guarantee covering measurement errors, multi-year warranty), online risk is manageable. HBA provides all three.
Can I see HBA curtains in person before ordering?
HBA is online-first and doesn’t operate showrooms. Free samples (up to 10) posted same day let you see the actual fabrics in your home before committing. Some Quicksew showrooms in Bathurst NSW carry related products.
Should I get an in-home quote even if I plan to order online?
Some customers do — get one or two quotes from showroom providers, then compare with an online configurator. The price gap is usually significant enough that the comparison clarifies the choice quickly.
Online or showroom comes down to which buying experience suits you. Both can deliver excellent curtains. Order samples to see how the online path actually works in practice.
