
Conferences are often large and complex events, and thanks to our large range of tables and chairs - you can get all the furniture you require.
When you’re choosing a venue for your conference, you’ll likely be searching for a location that has large enough rooms for talks/presentations, places for meetings, networking, refreshments and relaxing too! As well as finding a location that offers all this, you’ll also need the furniture to go in it, and this is where we can help you.
We’re always adding new stock to our range - it’s important to offer the most up-to-date rental furniture available. This means we can offer you very contemporary products, but a wide selection of items too. Conferences by their nature are very versatile - you guests might be enjoying talks one minute then networking the next. This is why we not only stock thousands of chairs perfect for these events - such as our stacking chairs - but we also have tabling too.
The majority of conferences often involve a good deal of sitting down, such as during presentations, breakout meetings, and when you’re simply having some lunch! These activities might all require different hire chair needs. For large, longer events, like lectures, seminars and presentations our conferences chairs are perfect because they feature premium upholstery and they can be linked together too - which is often a health and safety requirement.
Multi-seating occasions also benefit from the practical nature of our stacking chairs and folding chairs too, which can be installed and stored with ease. Unwinding and enjoying refreshments is another important aspect of these events, which is why our conference furniture hire range features our plastic chairs too - they’re robust and can weather all food spills.
All our seating can be used in conjunction with our tabling - so you can mix and match as you see fit. Our modular tables are a great conference choice, because they’re not only smart looking, robust and super steady - they can also be configured into medium, large and horseshoe shapes - no conference is too big, or too small for our tables!
There are so many different London locations available that we’re confident you’ll get the best one for your needs, and the right seating and tabling for your event too. As well as tables and chairs, we also stock other useful conference furniture that allows you to get the most from your venue, such as our freestanding screens and coat stands.
Organising events for large groups of people is not for the faint hearted, as those attending have to be comfortable and if they are not, they are going to let you know in one way or another. At the seat of this of course (pun intended), is the humble chair, which makes hiring the right chair very important.
Whether you are an events company or a company hosting an event, there are a range of issues to consider if your event is going to be truly appreciated by the people you invite to attend.
Choosing the right chair to hire starts with the nature of the conference itself. It’s too easy to simply decide that ‘cheap is best’ and that attendees won't really care. We can tell you that after spending a few hours in a poor quality chair, they certainly will notice and probably won’t be thanking you the following day when the subtle aches and pains creep in, especially where slightly older attendees are concerned. So here are a few questions to start the thinking process and that will help you choose the right chair for the right event.
Lets look at some of these in more detail.
Naturally, the number of people attending and the size of the venue will dictate to a fair degree the choice of conference furniture suitable, especially chairs. Maximum efficiency where optimising the space allocated to an individual attendee, may be an over arching factor in the conference chair hire decision process.
Is this an educational, informational or entertainment event? Each may dictate a different type of seating, especially if attendees are likely to be taking notes on paper or through mobile devices such as tablets or laptop computers.
Will attendees become ‘participants’ or will they need to interact with others at the event?
An obvious consideration. The event may be quite short, in which case comfort may not be an issue. However, for longer events or even events than last for several days, choice of chair is incredibly important. It’s useful to remember that many back complaints arise from poor chair choice, especially if attendees have been used to sitting in a comfortable, perhaps ergonomically enhanced office chair for long period. Such a change, could cause problems.
Do you actually want attendees to feel comfortable? This may seem an odd question, but depending on what information is being delivered at the event, you may not want attendees to be overly at ease.
Formality will likely drive you to consider aspects of elegance or possibly branding. For important company events, such as shareholder meetings or major company announcements where elements of the press and media are invited, company brand identity needs to shine through. Choice of chair or covering colour may be important.
Informality invites a level of relaxation, do you want your attendees / guests to relax comfortably? Again, maybe an odd question, but you may not want people too relaxed, especially if the room is darkened and attendees have been eating of consumed alcohol.
For awards events where there may also be tables and food and beverage to consider. More important still, will people be seated around tables and receiving any form of service?
This will affect how people interact with those around them as well as their level of relaxation.
The venue itself may impose restrictions on the type of furniture you can use - be that conference tables or chairs.
Space maybe at a premium and may dictate using chairs that interlock so as to maintain a compact and ordered line. They may need to be stackable, to ensure easy quick and delivery and removal; particularly if an event even is being hired on an hourly basis.
The shape of the venue may dictate certain patterns of chair placement, for easy access to emergency exist or conveniences.
It might be themed, in which case the conference chairs may need covers to match the theme and certain types of chairs may not be appropriate. The environment you create for an event should be in harmony with the type of event and the nature of the message being delivered.
The venues natural lighting may play to the theme of the event. Or, artificial stage lighting may be used. Lighting plays probably the most important role in setting and maintaining an atmosphere for the event. More dimly lit events should use chairs that are easy to access and not trip over.
Again, choice of conference chair may be instrumental in enhancing the environment you wish to create and how you wish attendees to feel.
By this we mean a speaker, an act or a presentation / movie.
Most typically, the net is printed in one direction, rather like a cinema. This means people need to point in the same direction, which again guides in the choice of seating. Sometimes though, this may not be the case, and the focal point is central or even highly elevated.
It’s likely that at most events, the centre of attention is raised up on a stage or podium of some kind. This means that those closest to the focal point pay be forced to lean their heads back more than others. The natural angle of chair back contributes to overall comfort, especially for extended periods.
At some events the speaker of presenter may choose to move among the attendees - such as at a training event. This leads to considerations towards the conference layout and the part rented chairs play in that.
For instance, are your attendees disabled in any way and if so, how does this impact the type of chair hire you need. This applies to all conference furniture too.
This plays back to the nature of the event. However, many organisers think hard about why they are putting on the event, but not so much about how they want the attendee to feel during and most importantly, after the event. If the event is supposed to generate interest, enthusiasm and motivation, having a chair that makes attendees feel distinctly uncomfortable after an hour or so, is likely to be counter productive.
Equally, if you want people to pay attention, then the level of comfort is a big consideration, especially after lunch, typically know to presenters as ‘the grave yard shift’, where attendees have enjoyed a good lunch and maybe wine too - some may even still be enjoying it. Keeping people alert and present, but comfortable at the same time, is a key chair hire consideration.
An odd question? There are plenty of instances where large necessary meetings are called, where those organising the event would really not have to and what to see the back of the attendees as soon as possible. In this instance, cheap really is best!
The furniture used at conference or training event is fundamentally linked to the overall success of the event. Having attendees not complain to each other or the organisers about sore bottom, backs, necks and legs, has to be a good thing.
Planning the choice of conference chair to hire, or conference table for that matter, is not something to make in haste. Today’s attendee is more sophisticated than that; they also complain a lot more that they used to too, so plan carefully and feel free to talk to Chair Hire’s own experts in this area, we’d be happy to guide you in your selection of the perfect conference chair hire.