Pew replacement project with the VERA™ theater seat with traditional pew end panel option
reinforcing the decision to go with theater seating over pews from a stewardship perspective .
FABRIC SELECTIONS : We have seen a marked shift in fabric selections over the past 5 to 7 years . Today , churches are prioritizing low-maintenance fabrics over more typical and traditional upholstery options on their seating , especially due to the increased presence of in-house coffee shops located in nearly every church community . We have responded by providing advanced fabrics not found anywhere else that are ( 1 ) anti-microbial , ( 2 ) anti-bacterial , and ( 3 ) stain-resistant , making clean-up easier and less time-consuming for facility managers each week . In addition , the fabric covers on our theater seats and stacker chairs are all easy to remove and replace if needed ( in a matter of a couple of minutes ). And , because of our production volume as a global seating manufacturer , we are able to provide these advanced and innovative upholstery options to the church market at the same price as the typical standard offerings .
Q : For church leaders who are considering buying new seating — a significant investment — what makes SERIES ® Seating unique among other providers ?
ROLLEFSON :
MANUFACTURER vs . RESELLER The biggest differentiator is that we are a design and manufacturing company , not just a reseller of someone else ’ s products like many companies today . With hundreds of unique seat and chair models available — and dozens of critical design patents — SERIES ® Seating is known around the world for innovation in seating design and manufacturing in a wide number of applications , including prestigious Performing Arts & Concert Hall seating ; Sporting Venue VIP & Team Film Room seating ; Higher Education & Lecture hall seating ; Corporate HQ seating ; and of course , Worship center seating solutions , as well as many others .
ADVANCED DESIGN FEATURES THAT ARE “ STANDARD ” Because of our expertise in seat design and manufacturing ( not simply a reseller ), seating products designed for our worship customers incorporate many invaluable design elements and features as standard that other seating providers either cannot offer or offer only as costly upgrades .
INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS We have a real understanding of our customers ’ unique needs . And we are hyper-focused on providing solutions not found anywhere else . A few examples include
1 . Our MODEL K ™ stacking theater seat that can boost seat capacity by 20 % versus traditional church stacking chairs and can stack three times more chairs in the same space as typical church chairs .
2 . Our MODEL H ™ high-density fully upholstered stacker stacks 30 high in our custom storage carts , and
3 . Our VERA TL ™ stacker chair is designed to harmonize perfectly with our VERA ™ fixed theater seat .
All of these represent solutions to unique challenges that have not been addressed or answered by anyone else .
DEDICATED WORSHIP TEAM Even though our company provides seating for a variety of different markets and applications , my team and I exclusively work with church customers — meaning that every day , we are singularly focused on meeting their needs and providing solutions to church-related challenges . At SERIES ® Seating , we really do believe in our mission and purpose : Serving by Design . We consider it a privilege to serve and partner with a continually growing community of ministries and would be honored to partner with your church community .
Ryan Rollefson , Director of Worship Division , has been with SERIES Seating since 2002 and is based at the company ’ s international corporate headquarters in Miami , Fla .
22 CHURCH EXECUTIVE | JANUARY 2025