Weston-Super-Mare has always relied heavily on tourism with the area boasting a range of tourist activities. There is a rather vibrant café culture in the area, however new plans issued by the council may damage this. The proposed changes include, all food eaten outside is served by waiters, all outdoor furniture such as aluminium tables and outdoor chairs must be removed from Regent Street and food or drink cannot be served to anyone sitting down.

Businesses in the area currently holding street café licences were outraged by the proposals with one of the owners calling the new rules completely “gibberish”.

Café/bistro owners are worried that if they do not stick to these rules, they could have their licences revoked by North Somerset Council, whereas others, who own businesses on the Regent Street are more concerned with the business that they will lose particularly in the peak summer months.

A meeting held by the council’s licencing department, saw the discussion of the new rules, speaking at the meeting was Grand Pier and Waterfront Fish Bar owner Kerry Michael. He stood up for the café and business owners in the area saying that the new rules made no sense.

He added: “These plans are gibberish. That is possibly the widest thoroughfare in Weston, so if we cannot have tables and chairs there, how can they be allowed elsewhere?

“We want to be able to sell what we want to our customers, when they want and we don’t want the local authority telling us what we can and can’t do.”

It seems it was not only Mr Michael that was concerned over the new plans, Andreas Macrides, co-owner of La Costa bar and restaurant said that if the outdoor café furniture was taken away, there will not be enough space for people along Regent Street and more litter will accumulate as a consequence.

Following the meeting that was held on 8/11/11, officers will be having a consultation that ends on the 25^th of November where they may amend the proposal, however as it stands at the moment the changes will be implemented at the beginning of next year.

You would have thought that cafes located near to the Olympic grounds would be pleased that the Olympic Games were being held near their grounds as the business received from the tourists would actually be beneficial, however you would be wrong. There are increasing concerns that the games would actually cause disruption to their business. Tom Seaton who owns a small café within a stone’s throw from the park commented:

“From the local community’s point of view, the sooner the Olympics are gone, the better,” Together with his sister Seaton converted a derelict warehouse into the Counter Café. The rustic rundown look was kept with most of the expense was invested in the café furniture, the café tables and café chairs. This has over time become a hotspot for the arty trendy community from Fish Island just across from the park located near to the café.

The Games will begin on the 27^th July 2012 and continue to through to the 12^th August. This means that during this period the area outside the stadium will be occupied by security and huge numbers of people. The likely situation is that he will have to close his outdoor seating area and bring in all of his outdoor furniture including his aluminium chairs and aluminium tables as the area will be too crowded. This in turn will decrease the amount of people he can seat and therefore decrease business. Who would want to sit outside and eat or drink coffee in the middle of a crowd?

Not only this, Seaton also owned another café very close to the main stadium is being forced to close during the games which will mean a loss of business in a peak time during the summer.

Peter Vlachos an expert on events management at Greenwich University believes that the businesses close to the games will suffer. Though there is little evidence to go on about the Games doing this, there is evidence on related research that suggests that those who own businesses that are close to the hub, even if it is a positive one, are likely to suffer.

It seems that while the majority of people will be welcoming the games next year, there are some that worry for their businesses and their livelihood. Some thought should be taken in trying to protect local businesses and perhaps even compensating them for the loss of businesses, particularly those that tend to thrive in the summer months.

The Japanese company Nendo have always been at the forefront of café  and with their latest project “Tokyo Baby Café” they haven’t failed in delivering yet another innovative idea. Situated in Aoyama the café is a place in which parents can sit back and enjoy a coffee without having to worry about the welfare of their children. Unlike other cafes, the Tokyo Baby Café is a haven of oversized furniture, books and toys to occupy the children whilst parents can sit back and relax safe in the knowledge that their children are catered for with nursing and baby changing provided.
The café is decorated in a soothing light blue colour which completes the look, and after its opening just a few months ago has been well received by the public. We may see more of these types of cafes popping up internationally as the success of this one grows.

Cafe reality have recently supplied new cafe and canteen furniture to the Royal Marine training centre at Lympstone near Exmouth. The installation included Arabica and Ice cafe tables in brushed chrome with Werzalit tops in wenge and porta rosa. After careful consideration the Opera bar stools were chosen with cream faux leather seat pads. Tulip Bistro chairs accompanied the tables again with a cream faux leather seat and Elle leather sofas in Cougar Brazil. The canteen furniture was installed using our own installation service. Cafe Reality fought off stiff competition to win this project which was awarded based on value and attention to detail. Our client was delighted with the end result Please contact us if you are planning a project we provide a free design and survey service in support of our proposals.

Angela Cafe furniture project manager