While chair hire remains a key component of furniture rentals for weddings and large functions, the cost of living crisis has meant that budgetary constraints are at an all time high. This makes it more pertinent than ever to get the most bang for your buck when hiring chairs and tables.
Knowing how to get value for money from chair hire doesn’t require much research, but a little effort can help make the difference. This article offers a few tips from our experience at Expo Hire on how you can maximise your chair hire budget.
What kind of chair hire do you need?
When first looking at chair hire on a website, it can be quite bewildering to look at the choices available. If you are new to the idea of renting furniture, then it can be difficult to know what to choose, particularly if you are looking for something that is “basic” or “standard”. Furniture hire companies rarely list products as being “standard”, simply because the word has negative connotations in what is an aspirational business.
The kind of chair hire required will much depend on the setting it is to be used in. Indoor settings, particularly functions and banquets will need banqueting chairs. These chairs are normally made of wood and feature a cushion or pad which is either tied on or is stuck with Velcro. Banqueting chairs are designed to look great as well as to be nice to sit in, and often can be decorated with chair covers and sashes to compliment an aesthetic or colour theme.
Conferences on the other hand need chairs which are comfortable and durable above all else. This kind of chairs is normally made from metal, with an integral seat pad and back for maximal comfort. While the look of these chairs is often utilitarian, they are more designed for long repeated usage than they are for the way they look.
Outdoor situations require a construction which can withstand the elements, particularly if the chairs are not to be under cover. Outdoor chairs are normally either made from treated wood or from aluminium so that they are not damaged by rain. For the same reason they rarely feature any kind of integral seat pad as these are likely to be damaged by any kind of inclement weather. Rattan furniture is also available for outdoor seating but these seats tend to be more frequently made in a sofa style configuration.
What styles of banqueting furniture are there?
Within these broad styles, there are many different designs available. These differences are mainly aesthetic, and the decision on what style to use is as much up to the theme and look of the event as the budgetary constraints.
One of the most common styles of chair hire available is known as “Chiavari”. This kind of chair is also known sometimes as a “Tiffany” chair and is made to a style developed in Liguria in the 19th century. They were originally made by a cabinetmaker by the name of Giuseppe Gaetano Descalzi, who took some French Empire style chairs and reworked them into a design which simplified the decorative elements and lightened the structural elements.
The chair features a back made with slotted wooden dowelling with additional crosspieces, for both strength and aesthetic purposes. Originally, these chairs were made from wild cherry and maple but in modern times they are made from more mass produced wood to make them more affordable.
Chiavari Chairs can either be varnished or limewashed for a more natural look, or painted. While painted chairs will fit in with colour schemes more, care must be taken to ensure paint is not chipped or scratched as this will quickly taint the aesthetic qualities of the chair.
Other common styles of chairs used for banquets are Cheltenham chairs and Crossed Back chairs. Both are similar to Chiavari chairs in that they are made of wood, but the back of the chairs differs from the classic Chiavari style.
Cheltenham Chairs do not feature the horizontal cross pieces and has more of a “cut out” look, while Crossed Back chairs feature two pieces of wood in a X style on the back, hence their name. These chairs are as durable as Chiavari chairs, but offer a slightly different look and can sometimes work out cheaper than Chiavari chairs.
It’s also worth bearing in mind how the cushions are attached to the chair. To help ensure chairs stack easily and to allow cushions to be cleaned, most chairs come with removable pads. This also offers the opportunity to have different colour seat pads should they be required.
Older style chairs tend to have pads that are stuck to the chair with Velcro strips. These cushion pads normally have a soft side and a hard side, with the hard side facing the seat of the chair. Newer style chairs often have tie on cushions. These cushions are tied to the chair where the seat meets the back and have a much softer feel.
How does chair hire pricing work?
When comparing pricing for chair hire from various providers, there are a few factors to take into account. As well as the period of time that the chairs are going to be hired for, there are delivery costs to consider as well as deposits and damage waivers.
A good checklist of what to look into when pricing up chair hire would be:
· What period of time is the standard hire period? Most hire companies will work on a three day basis giving you a day to set up and a day to break down either side of your event.
· What are the delivery costs for the chair hire? Does delivery include any kind of set time frame, and is order tracking available? Some companies will have minimum hire costs for deliveries, or surcharges for larger orders.
· Is there any damage deposit or waiver to be paid on top of the chair hire? While damage deposits are often refundable on safe return of chair hire, they can present a challenge to keeping cash flow problems to a minimum.
A good chair hire company will offer details of all costs up front online for full transparency. If you are working on a quotation basis, it’s important to ensure that all ambiguities are taken out as these can cause problems between expectation and reality on the day of the event.
Is Chair hire easy to move around and store?
The good news is that most chair hire is designed to be easy to move around and to store. Most designs of banqueting chair hire, conference chair hire and outdoor chair hire can be stacked easily, making them easy to move into and out of position.
While conference chairs tend to be easy to stack without doing anything to the chairs, banqueting chairs will normally need cushions or pads to be removed before they are stacked up. Once stacked, they can be moved around on specially designed trolleys, making it easy to set up large numbers of chairs without an issue.
Folding outdoor chairs are the easiest to move around and stack. These chairs are designed to be folded flat before being stacked up, allowing for huge numbers of chairs to be stored in a minimal amount of space. Aluminium outdoor chairs are also often designed to be stacked, as it is recognised they will need to be brought in from an outdoor space overnight for security reasons.