I bought a Harden sofa with Chenille fabric 18 years ago. The fabric was Waverly Fabric and the sofa has worn like iron. I had a Guardsman Fabric protection put on it at the furniture store; well worth it. Two years ago I actually washed the cushion seat and cushion back cover on gentle in the washing maching using Woollite. And then air dried them over chair backs and they looked like new.

Having sold furniture in the past, I always thought chenille was a great fabric for upholstery.

Stay away from any 100 per cent cotton as it stretches and fades, acrylic will pill over time, and Rayon, while lustrous and has a beautiful hand and takes color superbly, wears very poorly. A cotton/poly blend is probably the hardest wearing fabric and does well over time.

What is the fabric content of the sofa; it should say on the label. If a water based cleaner can be used on it , it should be quite durable.

Look up wear testing on the sofa fabric company's web site. They do rub testing of different numbers of rub for low medium and high wearibility, and twisting the fabric sample can be a good clue; it should bounce back with no or little wrinkles. Cost is a good indicator of quality or it used to be in sofas. Cheaper means cheaper materials.