Have you noticed how big hotels are becoming? I don’t mean big as in popular; I mean big as in BIG. And it seems like a huge amount of their floor space is devoted to their lounges and lobbies. This is only natural, since hotels are all about making people comfortable. But how comfortable will guests be when they’re getting poked and scraped by cracked, vinyl seats that should have been replaced years ago? Lounge or no lounge, if your guests aren’t comfortable, they won’t have a good time. And if they don’t have a good time, they probably won’t come back or recommend your hotel to others.

All that can be changed with a good choice in seating. For example, the Public Seating collection from Margarita Viarnés. This collection has it all – arm chairs, sofas, and dining chairs. All are heavy on structural integrity and cushiony comfort. Each piece is fixed, and has a base suspension system by means of elastic straps. The seat and back are filled with HD foam. The sofa and arm chair have hidden feet of PVC or plastic, and the dining chairs have metallic fixed feet in chrome or black. These pieces are meant to lend a contemporary air to any public space. I can easily picture them as sophisticated reception chairs in the UK.

The sofa caught my eye because it reminds me of the old easy chair my husband had when I first met him. Granted, I doubt his was nearly this comfortable, but it had the same basic shape and upholstery as the one in the picture. If I had my choice, I’d definitely try the Viarnés version. Remember how I mentioned hotel furniture that’s past its prime, and how guests won’t enjoy it? The same goes for residential furnishings. Do your guests (and your rump) a favor - keep the seating in good repair.