How to Select the Right Furnishings for an Office

Posted on: 28 September 2022

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Picking the right office furniture is important for numerous reasons. Office furnishings set the tone for the business space, offer comfort, tell people where to be, and more. It is important to select the furniture well so follow these four tips.

Fun vs. Serious

Whatever furnishings are in an office make a statement about it. Folks working at a creative business like a website design firm are more likely to have colorful seats and even couches. They may even opt for furniture with odd shapes. Conversely, a doctor's office might want to set almost the opposite tone by choosing furnishings with minimal color and more standard forms.

Think about the average person who'll come into your place of business. Ask yourself what you want them to think of the operation and the people there, and then select your office furnishings accordingly.

Comfort

People generally want to be comfortable in an office, and anything they sit in should be ergonomically sound. This becomes more important the longer individuals will be in their seats during a given day. In an environment with hardcore workaholics, you may need to think about people using their chairs for as much as 60 hours a week.

There is also a limited argument for discomfort. Businesses that want to discourage people from lingering in their waiting rooms may want to aim a bit lower than they would for their staff's office furnishings.

Comfort should go beyond the seating. Having space on tables for plants, for example, can allow you to bring a bit of the outside in. Small touches in the accompanying furnishings can go a long way toward creating a sense of comfort in an office environment. This is especially important if the office doesn't have great outdoor views or much natural lighting.

Style

You might also want to think about the style. Specifically, it's important to compare the existing style of the office to the furnishings. If you have a strong contemporary style office, for example, you're probably not going to want it filled with very bohemian furniture. The combination of styles between the furniture and the rooms should be coherent.

Measurements

Finally, all of these furnishings need to fit well in the surrounding office space. You don't want to have a conference table, for example, that pushes all of the seats almost against the wall. Take measurements of the room and lay things out on graph paper. Only buy office furnishings that fit properly.