Furniture Medic’s, national hospitality clients are high turnover mid market businesses with a mixed clientele. Their outlets tend to experience an increase in trade at the weekend which often result in Monday morning visits to attend to broken tables and chairs and ripped upholstery as emergency jobs. Less frequently they will be called in to carry out precision repairs on scratched or damaged table tops and floors. Damage occurs naturally through wear and tear, but also increasingly from customer abuse where customers have deliberately scratched a table top or picked away at a pre-existing tear in the fabric.

Fast food outlets in particular struggle with these issues which is why Furniture Medic has developed a good relationship with one world wide fast food chain in the UK, where they are one of the only upholsterers trained and approved to look after their unique “Egg” style chairs and curved banquettes.

Businesses are saving money, but are also looking to Furniture Medic to provide long term solutions to their problems and much of what Furniture Medic does is actually problem solving on behalf of its clients. In particular, a mainly franchised chain of three star hotels which operates extensively in cities throughout the UK, has benefited from Furniture Medic’s expertise in this area. The hotels experience a high volume of customers including the stag and hen market and rent rooms by the hour. Throughout the credit crunch, Furniture Medic has reported that they have seen a struggle between the franchisor and franchisee of the hotel and similar businesses over maintaining standards of accommodation within budget. With a lot of hotel bedroom furniture being fitted, the particular issue was how to repair one area i.e. vanity unit tops without having to rip out the drawers underneath which were in perfect condition and which would by very costly to do so. The solution was for Furniture Medic to fashion “false” unit tops that could be screwed in and out for ongoing repairs as and when it was required, and meant the bedroom suite looked as good as new.

One of the offerings that is unique to Furniture Medic and which attracts hospitality businesses in particular is their standard application of anti bacterial protection finishes which helps to safeguard staff and customers against bacterial infections, including the deadly MRSA, Salmonella and C.Diff.   Furniture Medic is the only furniture repair and restoration company that uses products that contain Hygienilac - a unique antimicrobial agent that prevents bacteria’s access to nutrients so they starve and die.

Ever mindful that they are working with commercial businesses Furniture Medic offers its clients a flexible solution that will not impinge upon the running of the business. Working for a client based at Gatwick airport, for example, they had all of their equipment scanned individually by security, as they worked airside on an outlet of a leading chain of pubs. For this, as with many restaurants and cafes they aim to complete the work in situ avoiding unnecessary costs for the client, which means regularly working through the night and where the work may affect business in busy pubs and bars, for example, Furniture Medic will leave a replacement table if they need to take the damaged one to be fixed off site.

Ramler Furniture provided the furnishings for much of the Westfield Shopping Centre in Derby, including the food court. A spokesperson for the company commented: "Furniture Medic has provided a most professional furniture solution to our clients throughout the UK, including the largest owner of shopping malls who require continual attention due to their high traffic. We are a most satisfied customer and look forward to working with Furniture Medic on future projects."