Barstools are central to many hospitality venues. But almost all of them have one particular feature that is different to almost all chairs – they have footrests that bear the brunt of wear and tear from customers’ shoes.
Footrests will always get marked more quickly than the rest of the stool frame, so sometimes are made of a more robust material – some wooden stools have metal footrests, for example.
If the footrest is painted timber or powder-coated metal, it will tend to be more vulnerable to scuffing, chipping and scratching. If this is a concern, you can sometimes specify a protective cover. This cover (also called a kickplate) may be available at no extra cost or may attract a surcharge; in other instances a cover is not available.
Please do bear this in mind when specifying barstools.
Paint chipping on powder-coated metal footrest
Metal powder-coated footrest with a protective cover
For more advice about barstools for hospitality use, read our blogs: Tips for Specifying Barstools & Getting Barstool Heights Right.