Five Benefits of Converting from Pews to Church Chairs

Places of worship were once known for their beautiful wooden pews. The pews allow members of the congregation to sit close to each other, and they’re highly durable. But as congregations have changed, there has been an interior transformation taking place. As a result, many places of worship are choosing to convert to church pew chairs.

If your congregation is considering upgrading from pews to church chairs, there are numerous benefits:

Improve Member Comfort

While pews are long-lasting, they lack comfort. When people sit in pews for long periods of time, they’ll keep shifting back and forth. The hardness of the seat makes it uncomfortable, and if members have any of the following, a pew can be very uncomfortable:

• Back pain
• Physical ailments

Members prefer chairs due to their cushioning and comfort. In fact, members are more likely to return to a church when there’s comfortable seating instead of the space being uncomfortable.

And depending on the chairs chosen, you can have chairs with armrests. The armrests add support, but they’re even more important to older members who have difficulty sitting and standing. Armrests allow these members to sit and stand comfortably, which is vital for them returning to your place of worship.

Offer More Personal Space

Personal space has taken center stage in today’s world, where social distancing is the norm. Members like to have their own space, and it’s beneficial even outside of the coronavirus. For example, flu and colds are less likely to spread when members can stay apart.

The extra personal space is a good option for new members, too.

Many members go to church to socialize, but some people want to focus on worship without socialization. Offering chairs makes members more comfortable and allows new members to learn what your church has to offer without sitting in a pew.

Improve Interior Flexibility

Pews are long, and many of these pews are 20’ in length. The length allows for minimal chair setups. When you add in church chairs, you can arrange them any way that works for your church. For example, you can line the chairs up straight in rows, circular patterns or more.

Small and large groups are easy to accommodate with church chairs.

And they also allow you to have functional seating that gives your church options. For example, if you want to have small group meetings with 10 people, you can grab the chairs and bring them into a conference room.

You can’t bring large pews into a small room.

Chairs offer you flexibility and are also easier to maintain.

Easy Maintenance

If a church pew breaks, you lose seating for 5 to 10 people at a time. When a pew needs maintenance, it creates a major inconvenience for members. Chairs are easier to maintain and swap out as necessary.

Chairs offer:

• A singular seating loss that’s easy to make up for
• Easy replacement if a chair breaks
• Minimal maintenance if the chair has been thoroughly tested

Replacing and maintaining church chairs is much easier than fixing a pew. If you have a large congregation, your risk of breaking seating increases. A broken seat is far better than broken pews.

And you can easily replace or remove a chair or two without members of your congregation being inconvenienced in the process.

Add Splashes of Color

Churches, in the past, weren’t known for their array of colors outside of stained glass windows. However, chairs can add a range of colors to your sanctuary. You can choose chairs based on:

• Colors
• Fabric
• Styles

Standard colors also exist, including purple, maroon, blue, black and others. Darker-colored chairs tend to hide stains and require less cleaning, which is something to consider for larger congregations.

Church Chairs vs. Church Pews

Pews still have a place, especially in older churches where the entire church has revolved around the pew design. But newer churches that break free from the large, old churches that people attend can benefit from church chairs.

The chairs offer greater flexibility while also offering a cost-effective option for churches struggling to secure donations.

And if your church is just opening, chairs are delivered much faster than their pew counterparts. Church pews must be ordered months in advance because they’re often custom orders that are filled on-demand.

Converting from church pews to chairs may be a good option for your church, especially if you consider all of the benefits above.

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