As anticipated, the warmer weather of the summer months saw a surge in spending in pubs and restaurants, even amid a climate of slowing consumer confidence - and could help to underpin any restaurant and pub furniture replacements or refreshes through the latter third of the year.
Figures from Barclaycard show that in July, the overall growth in consumer spending was 2.6%, off the back of stronger 3.6% growth in both May and June.
But with the warmer weather, lighter evenings and holiday season, hospitality spending surged across a range of different establishments.
Entertainment spending as a whole was up 10.7%, with pub spend up 12.2% and restaurant receipts rising by 12.8%.
Hotels also performed well, with spending up by 12.5%, while perhaps surprisingly, garden centres saw sales slump by 0.7% compared with the previous year.
Within the restaurant figures, it seems more foodservice venues are catering for a larger number of smaller groups, with perhaps an increase in snacking and 'light bite' orders too.
The total number of restaurant transactions was up 20.6% over the year to July, but the average value per transaction was down slightly by 6.5%.
While the growth in order numbers more than offsets the decline in average value, it is important that restaurants are able to cater for a larger number of diners in order to maximise this benefit.
Restaurant furniture packages from Trent Furniture are a great way to quickly increase the tables and seating you have available in the right ratio - typically four or six seats per table, depending on size.
Our restaurant furniture packages change over time, so it's always worth taking a look to see what's currently available, but there's generally a good range of choices in there.
For example, you might see traditional wooden shaker tables with straight-backed dining chairs in wood, upholstered or leather finishes, ideal for a conventional restaurant interior.
Alongside this, our American diner furniture is often available as a package deal too, allowing you to give diners a taste of the USA with the benefit again of buying in bulk.
With pub, bar and bistro packages too, there's usually a package available to suit any style of premises - and if not, you can always contact us for advice on which tables and chairs would work well together from our full catalogue.