A top hotel sells itself on image to a large extent and with high quality services and environs to back that image up. When people visit the Ritz and the Savoy, they expect to see the best turned-out staff, exquisitely presented food, and attention to detail. That detail is found in everything from the way the restaurant cutlery is laid out to how the corner of the toilet paper is folder over in the rooms.

These hotels also need to pay attention to the style of furniture used. A hotel that wants to give the impression of high-class luxury needs to have tables and chairs that would not look out of place in Buckingham Palace. The five-star hotel catering for A-list celebrities needs to have king sized beds with four-poster drapes if at all possible.

An interior designer will often be appointed to co-ordinate the furniture to make sure that everything is in keeping. You do not want to see a fabric in the upholstery clashing with the drapes on the windows – least of all a design clash with the carpet. The interior design consultant will also check to make sure the period represented with the furniture is all in keeping. A table in the entrance hallway needs to match the counter, the floor design and the chairs.

It is a similar consideration all the way down the affordability chain to the cheapest of hotels. Though the owner of a guest house will not be able to afford antiques in every bedroom, there will be a necessity to make sure the furniture matches. There is nothing worse than having a modern themed room with a chair in the corner that looks straight out of the post war era.

Some hoteliers attempt to recreate a homely feel to the rooms. They want all the tables and chairs to be just like you would expect at home to give visitors the encouragement to relax. These hotels are usually more holiday orientated than business.

The owner of a hotel needs to also consider durability of design. If something is bought that conforms to a recent fashion, the question needs to be asked whether that fashion will endure, or whether it will look dated within a number of years. Another issue is whether it will last out the predicted life span. Does the hotel manager expect the new tables and chairs to have ten years of usage? What type of usage are we talking about? Who will enjoy the restaurant – business people and pensioners? They are much more likely to treat furniture better than families on holiday. These sort of customers will exert a tougher usage – with children testing the strength of everything they can get their hands on.

If the hotel is a family hotel, what contingencies are there for repairing broken furniture? Is the furniture in question fairly simple to repair? What is the guarantee on chairs and tables?

Another very important question to ask concerning hotel furniture is: has this item been tested to the latest fire regulations? This sort of issue will need to be resolved in order for the resort to acquire its fire inspection certificate and thereby fulfil the requirements of any insurance policy.

To summarise, hotel furniture is not simply about finding a cheap lot of fairly sturdy chairs, tables and beds. It is more about making sure your customer’s stay is the experience expected and that all the safety precautions have been adhered to. Once that is all sorted out – you can get the photographer in to take new images for the brochure and website!