What furniture will be ideal for my new cafe? You certainly asked yourself this question before you started building your restaurant. Due to the range of available options, choosing the best type of furniture your new business needs is vital. When establishing a café or restaurant, one should not overlook the significance of furniture. Cafe furniture is crucial to your cafe’s success and significantly impacts the ambiance you create for your guests.
In this article, we will be giving you helpful insight and tips when buying cafe furniture to ensure it will have a positive impact on your new fitout!
How to pick the best furniture for your cafe
Many customers develop their first impression of cafes and restaurants by looking at how it presents themselves the moment they walk in. An aesthetically pleasing interior and high-quality furniture will help you entice customers to keep coming back to your cafe. Here we take a look at the things you should keep in mind when getting furniture for your new fitout:
1. Prioritise proper spacing
Firstly, you should maximise the number of tables and chairs in your café while preventing overcrowding or creating an uncomfortable experience for your customers. Additionally, you must ensure that employees, as well as customers, have sufficient elbow room to move through chairs and tables. After assessing your cafe’s space, plan on paper how many customers you can handle.
Preferably, there should be 70 to 80 cm between tables. This should give you a decent idea of the size of the tables and chairs you should buy. For sections of the café where patrons will be seated for extended periods of time, low- or moderate-height seats are the best for maximum comfort. Lastly, evaluate the chair’s weight to ensure that every customer who takes a seat on it will have a positive experience.
2. Choosing the right colour
The colours you choose for your cafe should reflect its style. It adds to the ambiance as well as the visual appeal of your space. It’s essential to keep in mind that different colours will have different effects on different people, so you don’t want to choose colours for your cafe that subconsciously turn people off. It’s preferable to stick with warmer tones. Red, for instance, promotes appetite and encourages customers to consume more food. In contrast, orange stimulates social interactions and discussion.
3. Make sure it fits what you serve
Your eatery’s furniture, menu, and service should work as one and flow in harmony. It should represent the atmosphere you want to establish with your cafe. Aesthetics heavily influence your cafe’s atmosphere, so it’s essential to reflect your chosen aesthetic in every detail, especially the furniture you lay out. Furniture should reflect the high quality of the food being served; if you’re serving Italian food, it means that most of the customers who will walk in will be looking for something fancy. To ensure that your customers will have a good eating experience, be sure that you can present your products the same way you present your furniture.
4. Quality over quantity
There is no use in purchasing furniture that will only endure a short time. Invest in long-lasting, high-quality furniture constructed from durable materials to avoid frequent replacements or repairs. Durability is particularly crucial in business involving a massive rotation of customers, where furniture is often put through the wringer, and outdoor seating areas, which can be damaged due to the weather. Whether or not the furniture is commercially rated, you should always get a warranty document just in case. Knowing what happens if a damaged product arrives at your doorstep or is damaged while you’re shopping is crucial. Get the details on warranties from different producers, so you know what to expect and where you stand before you buy.
5. Be mindful of your target audience
Who are you trying to attract to dine at your cafe? Despite your efforts to make your business friendly to everyone and anyone, it is vital to determine your target audience. Knowing who you will be serving most of the time will allow you to create an ambiance that panders to their taste. It keeps you on track and serves as the foundation for all of your managerial and operational practices. Always keep the comfort of your customers as your number one priority. Ensure you use furniture that helps create your desired atmosphere and provides a comfortable dining experience for all your customers.
6. Lighting shouldn’t be overlooked
While selecting furniture for your cafe, don’t forget to also think about lighting. If you want your customers to enjoy what they’re eating and drinking without having to strain their eyes, ensure there’s adequate lighting around each item. To do this, you should either upgrade or alter the lighting in your business or strategically position some decorations near windows to mitigate the natural light that enters.
Final Word
Aesthetics, target audience, and ambiance are all crucial factors to think about while building your cafe. The furniture you use is the most influential interior design element in determining how customers view your business. It’s how they know what to expect if they decide to dine at your cafe. It is similar to giving them a preview of the service and culinary quality your business can provide. It enables people to create expectations about your business, making it easier for you to meet them. Choosing furniture may be tedious, but it gives you creative freedom on how to present your restaurant. Most importantly, be sure to enjoy the whole process of building your dream cafe!
If you are looking for a trustworthy team to do a cafe fitout in Melbourne, then you should get in contact with 360 Shopfitters to help you with your furniture! At 360 Shopfitters, we aim to help you create the perfect space to establish your business. With many years of experience, 360 Shopfitters is a go-to for all commercial, office, and retail fit-outs. If you have an excellent idea for a business and want to see it become a reality, we can help. We’re proud to go above and beyond the role of traditional contractors by establishing meaningful relationships with each of our patrons.
