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“Working with APSS has been easy at every stage and we would recommend them for any future projects you may have. Everyone I worked with provided an excellent service, were easily contactable and dealt with any issues quickly and professionally. The tradesman on the shopfloor were also courteous, professional and created no issues for my staff or customers.”

Will Pennell, Managing Director

The Brief

Popular Lincoln retail business, Pennells Garden Centre wanted to modernise its restaurant, providing a fresh new look and colour scheme. The design needed to incorporate as many seats as possible to the original capacity and due to the popularity of the restaurant, the client wanted to ensure customers were still able to use the facility whilst work was ongoing.

The toilet facilities also required a full refurbishment with new toilet cubicles, urinals, vanity units and sinks.

The Challenge

The design incorporated larger feature dining tables to ensure we could achieve maximum capacity for the space. The types and style of seating was designed with variety in mind to allow for all different types of customers. This included soft seating, standard table seating and higher chairs and tables.

The refurbishment of the restaurant was carried out whilst it remained open to customers. To minimise disruption, work was carried out in three phases. Barriers were created between customers and where work was ongoing to reduce noise and disruption to the business.

Specific access routes were created to allow safe travel for diners between the service area and seating areas. Work that needed to be carried out in designated customer dining areas was done out of hours to ensure minimal disruption.

APSS worked very closely with the client to ensure works carried out and managed by APSS were carefully co-ordinated with the works the client took on themselves to reduce costs and remain in budget.

The Outcome

The 352-capacity restaurant has been uplifted with a modern feel, fresh paint, featured wallpaper and bespoke joinery. A variety of new furniture has been integrated with existing furniture to provide a range of different seating styles to suits coffee lovers, family diners and those who like a higher perch.

The male, female and disabled toilet facilities have been refurbished along with the baby change facilities. These now include new, bespoke joinery cubicles and vanity units.

The Details

Having worked with APSS previously, Pennells Garden Centre wanted a new design and refurbishment for both its restaurant and toilet facilities at its Lincoln branch.

Will Pennell, Managing Director for Pennells Garden Centre knew the space needed to change and be updated, but they didn’t have the personal knowledge and skills in house to design and delivery the project themselves.

The APSS sales and design team worked closely with Will to be able to create a fresh new, modern look for both the restaurant and toilet facilities and came up with several different options to ensure the finished project worked within Pennell’s budget.

The focused was on creating a modern design, using brighter, more vibrant colours. With the restaurant being part of a garden centre, neutral earth tones were used, and the garden theme was brought into the restaurant with “shed” style seating spaces for additional privacy.

Different styles of tables, from low coffee tables, standard dining tables and higher tables to featured bespoke joinery wall hanging tables were incorporated. Hanging ceiling rafters were designed to be a platform for hanging plants which the customer wanted to include. This also helped to break up the space due to high ceilings and meant the plants could be changed seasonally.

Existing furniture was upcycled and incorporated into the design to meet the client’s budget as well as reduce the environmental impact.

Whilst work was ongoing, it was important to the owner that there was no disruption to the service.

Once the design was finalised, the projects team worked with Pennells to ensure the project could be delivered without the restaurant closing at all, so there was no disruption to service. It was delivered across three stages to ensure Pennell’s customers always had seating space and a clear walkway from the service area through the restaurant. Work was then carried out in the service area after hours so there was no disruption to staff or customers.

The finished look for the restaurant incorporated bespoke joinery aspects including hanging tables, feature partitions, bench seating, planter and storage units and featured hanging ceiling rafts. New tables, chairs and sofas were supplied with wipeable and bleachable fabrics due to it being a restaurant. It was also decorated throughout to create a brighter space with featured wallpaper.

The toilet facilities were stripped completely back and revived with new flooring and decoration. Bespoke joinery was created for the toilet cubicles and vanity units to fit the space exactly as well as the client’s choice of sanitaryware.

Services provided by APSS

Full design and build including:

  • Bespoke joinery
  • Furniture supply
  • Biophilic design
  • Decoration
  • Branded signage
  • Plumbing