Blog posts tagged with 'event venues'

In 1807, Giuseppe Gaetano Descalzi from Chiavari, Italy was asked by the president of the Economic Society of Chiavari to rework some chairs. The result was the Chiavari Chair. And so, a chair that would change special events was born!

Although they are often mistakenly spelled Chivari Chairs, there is no mistaking their popularity in modern media. From award shows to reality competitions, Chiavari Chairs are popping up all over your television. Whenever a movie or tv show wants to imply elegance, class, or sophistication at the event they are filming, they lean on Chiavari Chairs. And there has been spillover from the media into reality. Chiavari Chairs are quickly becoming the Chair that brides and event planners clamour for.

Available in numerous colours and materials, it can be daunting to pick a Chiavari chair that will get you your best Return on Investment. Do you go with a standard white resin Chiavari chair knowing that it will be easy to decorate and is suitable for any environment, or do you go with natural wood Chiavari Chair in your more rustic facility.

Five things to know before investing in Chiavari Chairs:

1. Resin Chiavari Chairs that are factory assembled will be the clear winner in the strength category. Depending on their structure, some factory-assembled Resin Chiavari chairs are rated for drop tests of above 300lbs and can hold up to 1000lbs of static weight

2. Wood Chiavari Chairs can look more natural than their resin counterparts. Because they are made of wood that has been stained using furniture grade lacquers, some people find that wood chiavari chairs look more natural than their resin counterparts.

3. Aluminum Chiavari Chairs need a plywood-base cushion or you can warp the seat. Aluminum Chiavari Chairs need cushions because aluminum chairs are designed to be used only with something that provides support. If manufacturers were to manufacture aluminum Chiavari Chairs with seats thick enough to support the weight of a person, the chairs would be very expensive.

4. Knockdown chairs are cheap to ship but expensive to maintain. Knockdown chairs require constant maintenance to keep Chiavari Chairs from becoming wobbly. After every event you should be making sure that all screws or bolts are tight so that a chair doesn't collapse under a customer. Factory assembled chairs are designed to be put together forever, and use fasteners that their customers don't have.

5. Regardless of the Chiavari Chair material, these chairs are incredibly versatile and have unlimited decor options. With Chiavari Chairs you can change out chair cushions; use different coloured chair covers or sashes; or add bows in order to make the Chair fit the decor. The only limit is your imagination when it comes to decorating these chairs.

Event rental companies, banquet halls, party planners are all realizing the advantages of having Chiavari chairs available. As Fuzion Banquets, wrote:

"We had been receiving numerous requests for Chiavari Chairs for quite some time and now that we have them available in our inventory, we are seeing an increase in our bookings. The new Resin Chiavari Chairs allows us to meet our customers' needs without adding the additional time and expense needed to maintain a large inventory of Wood Chiavari Chairs."

Want to learn more about this fabulous chair and perhaps even see it yourself? Stop by our showroom, contact us for more information about National Event Supply’s Chiavari Chairs, or if you're not ready to speak with one of our sales representatives, request a physical copy of our table and chair catalogue.

One of the questions that we get asked every daily is "How much do your plastic folding tables cost?" On the one hand this is a very simple question to answer; on the other it is actually quite difficult.

It is simple because we, of course, sell plastic folding tables; as a result we have set pricing for our wide selection of NES Reliable Plastic Folding Tables. So then why is it also difficult? The difficulty comes when you choose to dig deeper into the specifics of the plastic folding table that you are looking to buy. Plastic Folding Tables range in price from about $30.00 all the way up to $330.00+, depending on a variety of factors including size, quality, brand, and which supplier you buy from. To take size out of the equation we will focus on the always popular 6-ft Rectangle Plastic Folding Tables. While many 6-ft Rectangle Plastic Folding Tables initially appear to be the same, there are three main differences that come into play to effect price which are quality, distribution, and brand.

Quality vs Price

The Quality of plastic tables sold currently varies dramatically. Some offer 6-ft Rectangle Plastic Folding Tables that are only capable of holding 250lbs evenly distributed across the top of the table, while others are capable of holding 1000lbs or more (including our 6-ft NES Reliable Rectangular Plastic Folding Tables). In terms of quality, the tables being sold by the vast majority of big box retailers (consumer-focused) simply do not compare to those being offered by companies that focus on Business to Business sales. The big box stores mainly focus on giving you the least expensive product possible, resulting in the lower weight rating. Many of these products will work very well for consumers looking for an inexpensive table that they will use once or twice a year for household parties and events. If you are planning to use the table more often however, you might want to consider the value being offered by a product at a similar or slightly higher price point. You also want to be cautious that you are really comparing two equal tables, especially if the price difference between them is low.

So what of the $180.00 6-ft Rectangular Plastic Tables?

The 6-ft Rectangles that cost $180.00 are normally so expensive because they are sold through distribution. Yes, some will have higher weight ratings, and some will have special features to help improve their value proposition but some have neither. A great example of a large business built on distribution is National Public Seating. If you choose to purchase a National Public Seating product, you don’t buy directly from them. Instead you will buy from one of their retail partners. This has pros and cons. The pro is that you can generally find someone in your immediate area that carries their product. As a result you may be able to pick up the product the very same day, or the next day. This can make purchasing their table very convenient, especially if you are in a jam and need the product quickly. The con is that their price is likely higher because of the double mark-up. The double mark-up occurs because National Public Seating needs to make money on the product sale and the retailer needs to make money on the product sale.

Branding: Marketing Dollars at Work

The final cost factor is Brand. It is fair to say that most well-known brands command a premium over their unbranded or lesser known brand counter parts (had a Coke/Pepsi lately?). Both Coke and Pepsi are able to command higher prices because they are a known commodity compared to many of their competitors. As a result when they sell at a higher price point many people are happy to pay it because they have known quality behind the brand. When you buy a Coca-Cola or Pepsi, you know exactly what you are getting but the same is generally not true for small brands or store branded products since you likely have not dealt with them before.

So the next time you are looking to purchase a plastic folding table consider what goes into the cost. While some costs may be justified to you, others may not be. Some may prefer distribution over brand, while others will prefer quality over distribution. If you are looking for pricing on plastic folding tables that offer excellent value please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Since I started working at National Event Supply in 2010, we've shipped products across Canada and the United States. We've shipped tables and chairs to Nunavut in the North, and Aruba in the South. We've shipped dinnerware and cutlery to Vancouver, BC and St. John's Newfoundland. Most of the time, there are no problems. The products arrive on time, with no damage. On other occasions, products are lost or are damaged in transit.

When we find out that products are damaged in transit, we typically file a claim with the shipping company. As part of the claims process, the shipping company will refer to the bill of lading. If the customer has signed the bill of lading and has not indicated that there was any damage, the shipping company will typically deny the claim, as there was no damage indicated. This is why skids that ship from our warehouse in Toronto now have stickers on them that read "Inspect for Damage Before Accepting". But what should you be looking for?

4 Things to Look for Before Signing for your Order

Is the plastic skid wrap still intact?

National Event Supply wraps all skids in plastic wrap. For orders coming out of our Mississauga warehouse, we use a black wrap. Indianapolis and Vancouver both use clear wrap. The wrap should be tightly pulled around the products, and there should not be any tears or rips.

Is the pallet damaged?

If the pallet is falling apart or has noticeable damage, take a closer look at the whole skid. It could be that the skid was damaged while it was being loaded or unloaded at the shippers' depots.

Are there any dents or indentations on any of the boxes?

Take a look at the boxes on the skid. If there are holes or a corner is bashed in, then the skid may have been damaged in transit.

Is the skid leaning to one side, or does it look like it could topple over?

If the contents have shifted during shipping, there is a chance that the products within may be damaged.

Click to enlarge pictures.

What to Do if Your Order Arrives Damaged

If you discover that your order is potentially damaged in the course of your inspection, here is what you should do:

Take pictures of the damage while the driver is there. If you can take pictures of the skid on the truck that's even better.

This allows us to show the carrier that the product was damaged while they were responsible for it. It is important that the pictures of the skid are taken before the skid is broken down.

Write down on the Bill of Lading the exact damage that you have discovered and that you will be filing a claim

Be as specific as possible. If the corner is bashed in on the box that is third from the bottom, write that down. The more detail that we can give the shipping company claims department the better. Write down all the damage that you document with pictures.

Don't use the damaged product. Leave it in its box.

If the product is damaged, then you cannot use it. Let us know so that we can get replacement product out to you. Also, make sure that you keep the damaged product in its box at your facility so that if the claims adjuster wants to inspect it he can. If you return the product to us, the claims adjuster can dismiss the claim

Let us know and we will start the claims procedure.

The sooner you email or call us and let us know about the damage, the sooner we can get the ball rolling on the claims process. We'll need the photos that you have taken so we can give them to the shipping company and we'll need to know what happened when the shipping company arrived with your product.

As I wrote earlier, most of the time nothing goes wrong, the products arrive on time and in pristine condition. For those times that they don't however, it is important that you know what you're signing for. It's important to "Inspect for Damage Before Accepting".

We opened our warehouse in Indianapolis last year in the early spring and with the Douglass group helping our sales efforts from their Indianapolis head office, we have slowly been building our success in the US Midwest market. While the Douglass group have direct sales staff covering Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Wisconsin, Kentucky and West Virginia, we often ship to many other nearby states.

Now, less than 18 months later, we are growing our Canada/US presence once again. We have been thinking about this for quite a while now and had considered starting earlier this year but were concerned with everything that was happening in Europe. Now 6 months later, not much has changed in Europe (the economy is still as shaky as before) but we have decided it was time to bite the bullet and start warehousing some of our best-selling NES Reliable Plastic Folding Tables, plastic folding chairs and NES Wood Folding Tables in Vancouver.

We regularly get calls from across western Canada and in particular, BC and Alberta. While we get great shipping rates and ship coast to coast across Canada as well as into the far north (and of course throughout the US), shipping from Toronto usually takes a week and many of our western Canada Customers often need the product today or tomorrow. We provide same day and next day service throughout the Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal corridor and have felt this type of responsiveness was also needed for Vancouver and lower mainland area. Shipping to Calgary and Edmonton will be just 2 days (versus the 3 to 5 days it takes from Toronto).

What products will NES be warehousing in Vancouver?

We are starting off with a range of our best-selling NES Reliable Plastic folding tables and folding chairs as well as our most popular NES Wood folding tables. Over time we hope to expand the range to offer most of what we have available in Toronto as far as tables and chairs are concerned and later in 2013 we would like start stocking our popular Quadrato, Ovali and Hotelier dinnerware lines, our porcelain platters and bowls and some of our best-selling cutlery lines.

Our first shipments are arriving into the Locher Evers warehouse with the following expected schedule:

August 3rd

• 6ft and 8ft NES Reliable Rectangular Plastic Folding Tables
• 60 inch NES Reliable Round Plastic Folding Tables
• Tall NES Reliable Round Plastic Folding Cocktail Table

August 8th

• NES Wood Folding Tables, 4ft, 6ft and 8ft folding Banquet tables
• NES Wood Folding Tables, 48 inch, 60 inch and 72 inch round folding tables

August 9th

• NES Reliable White Wedding-Style Resin Folding Chairs (and Black)
• NES Folding Chair Carts

August 10th

• NES Reliable Series 3000 Plastic Folding Chairs in Black on Black, White on White, Grey on Grey, and Burgundy on Grey (additional colours will come later in the fall)
• 72 inch NES Reliable Round Blow Mold Folding Tables

Since we’re doing business with some very large companies in the movement of our products, these arrival date may slip a little. If there is something you are interested in picking up right away, give us a call and we can give you the latest information on when it is expected to arrive into the warehouse.

Where is the warehouse located?

We are warehousing our product with our strategic partner Locher Evers International and their sister company Westcon Terminals. The warehouse is conveniently located in the Annacis Business Park at the following address. This is located at the Alex Fraser Bridge and highway #91 with quick and easy on and off access.

456 Humber Place,
Annacis Business Park
New Westminster, BC
V3M 6A5

How do you order from the New Vancouver Warehouse?

The same as you always do, you can send us an email, call us at 905-795-1667 or toll free at 800-827-8953, or fill out one of our contact forms on our website and we would be pleased to help you. We already have well established relationships with national carriers for shipping and we’ll be able to provide you with even more cost effective shipping options now that we can ship from Vancouver to BC, Alberta and Washington State. For Saskatchewan and Manitoba, we’ll figure out which shipping options (Vancouver or Toronto) are the most cost effective.

Can I pick-up at the Warehouse?

Absolutely, we just need 24 hours notice so we can have the warehouse pull your order and get it ready for pick-up the next day in the afternoon. For larger orders, we’ll need to know the type of vehicle you’re picking up with so we can either have the skid of tables/chairs shrink wrapped or ready for hand loading. Rush pick-ups can also be accommodated but hopefully your customers aren’t always leaving changes to the last minute.

Click to enlarge pictures.

We loaded up one of our NES Reliable White Resin Folding Chairs with 12 cases of our Maria 18/10 Table Knives. If you`ve ever handled cases of cutlery you`ll know these can be pretty heavy. Each case of our Maria Table Knives contains 15 dozen knives and weigh a little more than 40lbs each. We weighed each of the cases and the weights ranged from a low of 40.25lbs to a high of 41.25lbs for a total weight 483.4lbs. We left the 12 cases of Maria Table Knives on the chair seat for about 15 minutes in total. It is interesting to note that the only stress noises we heard and saw came from the cardboard boxes holding the cutlery and not our chair. As you can see from the pictures we had to tape the boxes together to make sure that they would stay on the chair and not fall over.

Before performing this informal test, we felt positive that our chair would not just survive the test, but would fare no ill effects from the weight that was piled on. After performing this informal test, we feel we can confidently say that our NES Reliable White Resin Folding chairs will hold people who weigh up to 500lbs.