In post-Covid times, there has been an urge in people to venture out. Whether it might be going to the shopping mall or meeting friends or taking your family out for dinner, people have tried to socialize after being cooped up in their homes for almost two years. And this has helped restaurants and cafes get back to business.
However, stiff competition among restaurants has meant that they have been vying with each other to draw the attention of customers either by cute design or increasing their outdoor dining space. It has been seen that potential consumers are more likely to visit a restaurant that has inviting outside seats with heavy-duty umbrellas for shade and protection. These added services help spread the word quickly about an eatery as customers start queuing up.
Therefore, installing a restaurant umbrella is an effective way to lure your customers and provide them with a comfortable outdoor space where they can enjoy their meals. A branded outdoor umbrella also creates a warm and inviting ambiance for patrons at your café.
But then it is not easy to choose a restaurant umbrella. If you go to the market or visit a website, there will be plenty of options available for outdoor restaurant umbrellas. So it is important that you choose the best heavy-duty umbrella that will serve your purpose.
In this blog, we will tell you about all the features that you must consider before buying a restaurant umbrella. Read on…
Protection and shade:
The primary purpose of an umbrella is to provide your guests with effective weather protection from the elements of nature. If you can shield your customers from the sun and rain, the reputation of your business will grow manifold.
Customers who feel safe under the shade of an outdoor restaurant umbrella on a sunny and hot day are likely to spend a long time in your restaurant, which results in boosting your revenue. They might keep returning to your café. Additionally, the umbrellas will also make your customers confidence that their electronic equipment, such as phones and laptops, will not become wet or exposed to heat. So you must always buy a top-quality umbrella.
Materials:
These days, heavy-duty umbrellas are made of different kinds of fabric like acrylic, polyester, PVC vinyl, etc. But you must ensure that you buy an umbrella with a high UV protection rating and should resist fading. This will not only prevent harmful rays from affecting your customers but also make your umbrellas durable.
Similarly, you should buy umbrellas that are made of frames like aluminum, fiberglass, or steel. These materials are wind-resistant and corrosion and rust-resistant and are, therefore, durable and long-lasting. We would, however, advise you not to buy wooden-framed umbrellas. This is because wood might snap under pressure when facing heavy winds. So it might not only cause you embarrassment but also hurt your customers.
Base:
Consider buying restaurant umbrellas that come with a heavy base. This will help stabilize the umbrella and reduce the chances of your umbrella getting toppled over or blown away in strong winds. Additionally, you can also purchase weights like water weights, metal plates, or sandbags to secure the umbrella.
However, we would suggest you fold and pack the umbrella and ask your customers to move inside if the wind speed increases. Regardless of the base’s weight, strong winds can easily flip over your umbrella.
Aesthetic look:
A nicely designed umbrella with unique patterns can jazz up your outdoor space. Today, outdoor cafes or restaurants with outdoor dining zone with seats and shade are immensely popular among customers in Australia. And you can improve the look and feel of the space by erecting outdoor restaurant umbrellas.
It can also become a decorative space for customers who like to take selfies and photos frequently while dining. Featuring these photos with your branded outdoor umbrellas, especially on social media, could provide your business enterprise with an extra marketing and promotion tool.
Branding:
A colorful umbrella can add a lot of vibe to your restaurant. And if you can deck up the umbrella with your personalised logo and design, you will only improve your chances of getting noticed by customers. Branded outdoor umbrellas offer tremendous marketing and recognition opportunities that are likely to increase footfall in your restaurant.
Expand your outdoor space:
Restaurant umbrellas are built in such a way that they are lightweight, flexible, and can easily be installed in any location. That’s why you’ll no longer feel restricted to a few square feet outside your venue. Instead, you can expand the outdoor space which will allow you to install more tables and chairs. This, in turn, will enable you to invite more guests and increase your sales.
Conclusion
Restaurant umbrellas come in a wide range of shapes and sizes, including square, rectangular, and round ones. So you must be the best judge of what shape will fit and look good in your outdoor space.
You can also choose umbrellas that come with tilt and rotate mechanisms. These features will ensure that your guests are protected from harmful rays irrespective of the sun’s position in the sky.
We now hope that you will be able to buy the best restaurant umbrella for your business enterprise after going through this blog.
