Seating decides how many covers a room holds and how long people stay in it, and it wears out on a cycle whether the budget is ready or not.
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Yes, usually as part of a wider facility rather than on its own. Loose furniture — tables, chairs, bar stools — is a classic soft asset: no serial numbers, low unit value and almost no recovery value once it has been sat on for a season, so funders lend against the business rather than the furniture. Fixed banquettes are softer still, because they are built into the room. Used contract furniture is rarely worth financing. The realistic routes are a mixed equipment facility or an unsecured business loan.
Used kit: Rarely. Contract furniture has little resale value and funders see no security in it, so used purchases are generally paid for outright rather than financed.
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Business asset finance is quoted on a flat rate, so that is what this shows — with the equivalent APR underneath, because the two are not the same number. A quick guide only; your actual rate depends on the asset, term, deposit and lender.
Representative example: on Hire Purchase, borrowing £25,000 over 48 months at a 6.0% flat rate (equivalent to 11.5% APR representative), you would repay around £646 a month; total amount repayable approximately £31,000, of which £6,000 is the cost of finance. This calculator is for illustration only — it is not a quote or an offer of finance, and the rate and repayments you are offered will depend on the asset, term, deposit and your circumstances. CW Asset Finance is a credit broker, not a lender, and may receive a commission from the lender that funds your agreement. All finance is subject to status, affordability and lender approval. CW Asset Finance is an Appointed Representative of Rural Finance Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 630701).
Furniture is where the soft asset problem is at its sharpest. A hundred chairs have no serial numbers, no registry and no meaningful second-hand market once they show wear, and the cost of collecting and storing them exceeds anything they would fetch. Underwriters know this, so the application is judged purely on covenant: filed accounts, trading period, bank conduct and the director’s position. Established multi-site operators fund furniture without much difficulty. New restaurants find it hard, and a personal guarantee is usually part of the answer. The practical tactic is to put the furniture on the same facility as the kitchen equipment, where ovens, refrigeration and warewash provide the security that the seating cannot.
Examples of the machines we are asked to fund. This is not an exhaustive list — if what you are buying is not here, it does not mean we cannot fund it. Your supplier quote is what the agreement is written against.
| Machine | What it is |
|---|---|
| Pedrali seating | Italian contract chairs and stools |
| TON bentwood chairs | Contract bentwood seating for dining rooms |
| Gaber contract seating | Stacking chairs and stools for venues |
| Andy Thornton furniture | Tables, chairs and fixed seating |
| Hill Cross Furniture | British contract tables and seating |
| Trent Furniture | Contract seating for pubs and restaurants |
| Warner Contract Furniture | Contract tables and dining chairs |
| Bolero chairs and tables | Value contract furniture for cafes |
| Fermob outdoor furniture | Weatherproof terrace tables and chairs |
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Restaurants and cafes refreshing a room that has started to look tired, operators reconfiguring a layout to add covers, hotels refurbishing a restaurant or lounge, and new sites buying a complete seating package before opening. The trigger is usually visible wear, a rebrand, or a change of concept where the old furniture no longer matches the price point the menu is trying to reach.
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Bought on hire purchase, business plant and machinery normally qualifies for capital allowances on the full cost even though you pay for it monthly, which is a large part of why hire purchase is the common structure. On a finance lease you generally set the rentals against profit instead. The rules change between budgets and your position depends on how you trade, so treat this as the direction of travel and get your accountant to confirm the detail before you commit.
You can apply to, but it is the harder version of the request because there is no security in the seating. Funding the furniture alongside the kitchen equipment on one schedule is far more likely to succeed and usually gives you better terms, because the funder is looking at a facility with real assets in it.
Yes, and less favourably. Banquettes are built into the room, upholstered to fit, and cannot be removed and resold, so they are pure fit-out cost. Loose furniture at least theoretically moves. Neither carries much security value, but banquettes sit firmly on the soft side of any invoice.
Often, yes. Because there is nothing to secure against, an unsecured loan assessed on turnover and bank conduct reaches the same place with less friction than trying to construct an equipment agreement around chairs. As an independent broker we compare both and recommend whichever your figures actually support.
On the same basis as indoor seating, which means as part of a larger facility rather than alone. Outdoor furniture is treated as soft and arguably softer, since it weathers. Where a terrace project also includes heating, canopies and a bar, the equipment elements are what give a funder something to work with.
Marginally. A Pedrali or TON chair lasts far longer in commercial use than a cheap import, which matters to you, but it makes little difference to the recovery value a funder can rely on. The credit decision is about your accounts, so specify furniture on durability grounds rather than in the hope of better terms.
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Not an offer of finance. All finance is subject to status, affordability and lender approval.
Tell us what you’re looking to fund and Conor will come back to you personally — usually the same day.
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