The trend is for new owners of restaurants, bars and pubs to choose a theme, whether modern or traditional and presenting their style to their intended clients. Often however the new owner is unwilling to make a huge investment because there is always the possibility that their chosen style will not be as popular as they had anticipated and it is not unusual for the owner to change the interior look of the premises every two or three years to keep the clients interested and to attract new ones. In this way, the owners are unwilling to make a big initial expenditure on pub chairs and while they will seek attractive design, cost is the factor that is foremost in their minds.

For the restaurant and pub trades, traditional wooden pub chairs and tables are still the most popular. The ‘Mates’ and ‘Captains’ chairs and wooden bar stools still being recognised as giving the instantly recognisable English pub look. For many years these pub chairs have been made from beechwood (Fagus Sylvatica) species in European Countries, for example, Czech republic or Slovakia, Hungary, Poland and Romania. Beechwood is a hardwood with good shock resistant characteristics and is easy to stain to any finish. Recently however these Countries have been invited to join the European Union and while this has given them many benefits – for example much easier trading terms with the other Countries in the E.U – it has also seen a rapid increase in their costs. This has been due to increased wage costs as labour mobility makes it very easy for their skilled workers to move to other European Countries and more costly working practices as they must meet the stricter EU legislation for health and safety law and environmental protection. Many of the factories making wooden restaurant chairs and bar chairs have needed to invest heavily in new machinery that is CNC controlled to reduce the wage costs. One factory in Romania has spent several tens of thousands of pounds on such machinery and a system to filter the wood dust particles and use this waste and other off cut timber to heat the premises. Another cost has been the rising price of beechwood and ashwood timbers as the demand from economically advancing Countries in the Far East for higher quality furniture draw away their home produced supply.

As these factories have seen their costs rise, they have inevitably had to increase their prices. In the last year alone prices have risen more than 20% for pub furniture that for many years have been rising by no more than 2% per annum. The owners of the factories have raised concerns that they are very concerned for the future of their businesses as they realise that the pub furniture that they make is available in many other parts of the world and they are becoming less and less competitive.

The effect on pub furniture suppliers in the UK has been either to accept that these rises are a reality and raise prices or to move to suppliers in other parts of the world, primarily Malaysia and China where cheaper wood species are used. The most popular species of timber used for making restaurant chairs in these Countries is rubberwood which is a hardwood of the Maple family. While rubberwood has many useful characteristics such as cheapness and resistance to warping or cracking in most conditions. The problem is that the joints of rubberwood chairs are just not nearly as strong in the long term as those of beechwood made chairs. Conventional PVA glues are much less effective on rubberwood joints than on beechwood and many Malaysian manufacturers of rubberwood chairs supply their chairs with unglued joints, relying on threaded inserts with flat headed bolts to secure the joints.

Rubberwood is an excellent choice for restaurant table or pub table tops and frames however, as the qualities of rubberwood are ideal for this application. Table tops made from rubberwood are unlikely to bend of split, even in the very variable heat and moisture conditions found in a pub setting.

Bed and breakfasts in the United Kingdom are located in private homes, for the most part. You live with an English family, share their home and accept their hospitality. There are as many different types of bed and breakfasts as there are types of U.K. citizens! If you’re looking for a holiday destination in which to relax and participate in leisure activities, they are plentiful in the coastal holiday spots. If instead you are on a long road trip and need a night’s respite, those can be found easily as well.

Although the United Kingdom bed and breakfast doesn’t usually boast some of the bigger hotel amenities, like full restaurants and bars, it does offer a more intimate look into the everyday lives of the English people as they go about their days. Also, you needn’t worry about quality. U.K. tourist officers anonymously visit thousands of bed and breakfasts. They grade the quality, cleanliness, food and comfort and publish a guide for visitors.

The “breakfast” part of the stay might be your favorite. Many U.K. bed and breakfasts are located in farmhouses on working farms. Here the breakfasts are made with the working man in mind and will fill you up. It may include eggs and bacon, fried bread and/or potatoes and tomatoes. Local specialties, like black pudding, are and added treat. If you prefer, continental breakfasts of cereal, toast, coffee or tea and juice is always available.

Even London, one of the largest and busiest cities in the world has plenty of great bed and breakfasts for your holiday pleasure. London hotels are marvelous, but the romantic appeal of a European bed and breakfast has been the focus of many a book and film as ideal getaway spots. And indeed, they are very cozy, romantic and beautiful. No matter how lush and luxurious a hotel, it doesn’t offer the personal touch and home-like feel of a bed and breakfast. If you’re looking for a comfortable retreat with home-cooked meals in between your busy site-seeing ventures, a London Bed and Breakfast should be on your list of possible accommodations.

The Irish Sea coast is another wonderful holiday destination. Blackpool is one of the most popular of these. Here the bed and breakfasts are diverse and you can find one to meet any requirement you may have. Many are themed and have daily activities for the kids, allowing you some “time off”. Blackpool has become a popular gay and lesbian vacation spot and you can find bed and breakfasts that cater to them. The newest trend is weddings in Blackpool. Although the B&B’s aren’t usually large enough for this type of event, they’re great for the overnight guests attending. It would be a nice idea to look up the B&B’s in the neighborhood of your wedding facility and give you guests a list for their choice of accommodations.