A Complete Office Furniture Buying Guide

Whether you are working from home or office, there’s one thing that everyone needs: proper furniture! By buying the right office furniture, it will help support your work and increase your productivity. Knowing that you need to be ‘choosing the right office furniture’ is different than knowing ‘how to buy office furniture’! For this very reason, we have developed an office furniture buying guide.

Office furniture is considered as the highlight of any business space or home. It plays a vital role in creating the ideal ambience for the workplace and putting employees in the right mindset. By creating a productive atmosphere that is conducive to your personal style, you’ll be able to work with any problems.

With so many aspects to think about and consider while choosing office furniture, buying office furniture can be difficult. Therefore, we wanted to develop a one-stop information centre to make you feel a little more comfortable while you are buying office furniture! 

In this office furniture buying guide, we will outline some of the most crucial things to consider while preparing to buy office furniture. Therefore, in this guide, we will be talking about the following topics:

1. Office Furniture Buying Process
2. How office furniture affects productivity/health/teamwork
3. Types of Furniture Styles
4. Essential office furniture checklist – Ultimate office checklist
5. Benefits of Ergonomic furniture
6. 10 best office layouts – comparing large companies styles and small companies

Office Furniture Buying Process

Choosing office furniture for a revamp, or for a brand new office, you will want to make sure you start off on the right foot. For the typical person, the importance of office furniture may not cross their mind. However, we can’t stress enough the benefits of buying the right office furniture. Above all, the right furniture is critical to increasing employee productivity, wellbeing, and happiness.

When it comes to knowing how to buy office furniture, it may not be as straightforward as you thought. There are nuances that you should be aware of while buying office furniture. These nuances depend on if you need custom made furniture or you need to work directly with an experienced dealer. You will want to understand the ins and outs of buying office furniture. 

How Office Furniture Affects Productivity

Business.com talks about how choosing the right office furniture can improve your office productivity. From adding electronics to changing the layout of your office, and even being innovative with the type of office furniture you use, you can increase your team’s productivity!

Office furniture will affect more than just your employees’ productivity! A report by the University of North Carolina highlights just how crucial choosing the right office furniture is when it comes to health. Their report discusses various pieces of office furniture and how to optimize each piece for its proper use in an office space! Moreover, it outlines how different furniture and different furniture styles can contribute to productivity and the health of your employees.

Health, productivity and wellbeing are all interconnected. How much these factors can negatively or positively affect your employees, and your business relies heavily on your office fitout. Moreover, office furniture such as desks and chairs will equally affect them. With so many complexities attributing an increase in productivity of one or two per cent, we advise you to spend a little extra time on buying the right office furniture. 

These factors have led to us writing a blog on how office furniture affects your team’s productivity.

Types of Furniture Styles

There are countless types of different furniture styles. They all say something unique and essential for your company. Some styles represent professionalism, whilst others can say easy going and fun. Depending on the type of brand you want to design, you can incorporate different styles of office furniture.

You can even consider promoting sustainability in the office when it comes to choosing the right office furniture. ABC News highlights how Australian designers are promoting sustainable options within their furniture by using locally sourced sustainable wool to make their couches.

No matter if you are choosing modern or more traditional office furniture, it’s essential to consider the different messages they portray to your clients and employees. Office furniture can paint a picture of who you are and what you represent. While buying office furniture, consider what image you want to have in your clients head before they speak to you. If you are looking for a detailed guide to office furniture styles, we encourage you to read our blog about different furniture styles.

Essential office furniture checklist – Ultimate office checklist

Choosing essential office furniture takes time and the knowledge to ensure you are investing in the furniture that will have the most significant impact on your office. Business Matters Magazine, says choosing the right office furniture will have huge implications. Moreover, the right office furniture is essential for developing an inviting space that will entice prospective clients and stimulate your employees every day!

How to buy essential office furniture is what we focus on at Direct Office. We want to make sure our customers understand the various aspects of different furniture and office accessories. With new technology and equipment being rolled out daily, it’s essential to know what will benefit you, and what may just be a fancy gimmick that won’t give you a good return on investment. 

For these very reasons, we have developed a checklist for how to buy essential office furniture and what should be on your checklist next time you look to revamp your office, or you are moving to a new building!

Benefits of Ergonomic Furniture

When it comes to buying furniture, it is easy to get away with any material, style or comfort to fit in your homes. But it’s not quite the same for office furniture. You and your employees will spend a significant amount of time sitting in your office chairs or at your desks. 

Choosing ergonomic office furniture is crucial for keeping your employees healthy and safe. Most people think of ugly and unpractical designs when they think of ergonomic furniture. However, that’s not the case anymore. Recently, more effort and time has been put into creating a stylish, practical, and beneficial office chair for workplaces.

BBC describes the essentiality of ergonomics and how anthropometric data should be used. They highlight how furniture should be designed to enhance accessibility, as well as office furniture safety. This includes using different furniture for different body types. Whereas office chairs and desks are not a one-size-fits-all and should consider the user throughout the designing process.

We have created this list of must-haves in your office to detail how ergonomic furniture impacts your office environment and productivity.

5 Cool Office Layout Ideas For 2021

Before you dive in to find the ideal office layout, you need to think about the needs of your company, customers, and employees! Depending on the way these three factors will interact, you will want to plan accordingly. Therefore, it’s crucial to have a good understanding of the needs and wants of them, so you can adequately utilise your space, surrounding, and office furniture to maximize them!

The New York Times describes the different office fit-outs and the transition that has taken place over time. During their article, they touch upon how the wrong office fit-out can lead to dissatisfaction, boredom, and restlessness. All three of these factors can severely affect your business and your business’s output. 

To avoid this from happening, you should look into how to evaluate your needs and wants.  You can talk to your employees and customers, as well as look at other companies that are successful in the type of work you do. More prominent companies, like Facebook and Google, have the means to invest significant amounts of money in figuring out the right office fit-out!

So why not explore 5 cool office layout ideas for 2021? 

Office Furniture Buying Guide: Final Thoughts

Choosing the right office furniture is crucial for your revamp or your new office. Making sure to include furniture that speaks for itself and paints an unforgettable brand image should be one of your top goals when you are buying new office furniture. 

From ergonomic furniture to various styles of furniture, they will all have different benefits for your company. Employees may want office furniture that is relaxing and provides a calming work environment, or they might want something that says fun and energetic! No matter what your employees want and need, the most important thing to do is discuss it with everyone that the design will affect, and then, get a concrete plan on how to execute it!

Direct Office is a customer-focused business! We want to provide you with information to make well-informed decisions. Our office furniture buying guide aims to provide you with the information required to start your business off right. 

With our experienced team always ready to answer your questions, you can reach out to us here! To find out anything we may have overlooked for this guide, please contact us and let us know!