With Singapore’s warm and humid climate, given a choice, many Singaporeans would prefer to have their meals in the comfort of air-conditioned indoor spaces.

Nevertheless, Alfresco dining definitely has its charms.

On cooler days when the sun isn’t so bright, or on rainy days, it can be nice to dine outdoors and enjoy the natural breeze and fresh air.

Even on warmer days, evenings in Singapore are usually cool enough to make Alfresco dining enjoyable.

It’s also a nice breath of fresh air if you’ve been indoors all day at your office desk and just want a change of environment.

The last thing you want though, is for the sun to be shining directly on you or to be pelted by rain droplets while you’re trying to enjoy your meal.

That’s why for restaurants with outdoor seating, awnings are extremely important to keep unwanted elements away from customers.

One such type of restaurant is cafes. Many cafes in Singapore offer both indoor and outdoor seating, because when it comes to cafes, it’s not just about the food — it’s about the atmosphere and experience. Dining indoors and outdoors offers vastly different experiences, and that’s why cafes like to have both to cater to customers’ preferences.

Here’s why awnings are essential for cafes in Singapore to create Alfresco dining experiences.

1. Keeping The Sun And Rain Out

It’s not just about customers sitting under the awning. Even if customers already have a solid structure as shelter, the sun and rain can still get onto customers pretty easily since the rain still splatters onto the ground near them, and the sun will shine sideways and onto them.

An awning extends the shelter outwards, so that rain droplets don’t splatter right onto the ground beside them where they’re eating, and the sunlight will be kept further away from customers.

This not only keeps the sun and rain out, but also makes the area cooler for customers and makes outdoor dining more enjoyable.

2. Extending Usable Space

In Singapore, where land is scarce, rental prices are high, and businesses need to maximise whatever space they have.

Awnings are a very cost-effective way to immediately extend the amount of usable space for your customers. With an awning, the area under the awning becomes usable space for cafes to accommodate more customers, which could potentially increase revenue.

This may not be a huge help for cafes that can accommodate all customers comfortably, even during peak periods, but if your cafe is struggling to find enough space to accommodate customers, that’s lost revenue right there.

With the simple addition of an awning and some fans to cool the outdoor space down, you’ll be able to serve more customers with that space and immediately boost your cafe’s revenue without having to spend more money renting a larger space, and you’ll make back many times whatever you invested in the awning.

Besides extending usable space, another underrated function of awnings is making existing outdoor space more usable.

Even if you already have an outdoor area for customers with a solid structure overhead, as we mentioned earlier, an awning keeps more of the sun and rain out from customers.

While it doesn’t directly increase the amount of usable space you have, since that space was already usable, it does make it much more comfortable for customers.

The space will be cooler with the sun being further away, and when there’s rain, customers won’t have to worry as much about being pelted with rain droplets.

This means customers there can enjoy their meal better with a better experience, and are more likely to return.

Without an awning, your outdoor space is warmer, making customers less willing to sit there if your indoor area is full. As such, when your indoor area is full, you might be losing potential customers even if your outdoor space is available, because customers may not want to dine there due to the less comfortable conditions.

Customers who prefer to dine outdoors may also be turned off by the uncomfortable conditions.

So even if you’re not going to be using the area under your awning to serve customers, it still plays a valuable role in making your outdoor space more comfortable and appealing to customers, which can help attract more customers and boost your cafe’s revenue.

3. Aesthetics

Remember, a lot of people don’t visit cafes solely to enjoy the food. There’s a reason why cafe dishes need to be made as aesthetically and Instagram-worthy as possible.

When people visit cafes, especially youngsters, they want to have something they can put on the ‘gram. It’s one of the reasons why cafes can charge such exorbitant prices for their food — because they’re not just selling the food, but the experience and something that you can proudly share with others.

Awnings, specifically fabric awnings, can be highly customised to show off your brand identity and boost your cafe’s aesthetics. With a beautiful, customised awning, your outdoor space becomes a social media magnet where youngsters can take pictures to put on their ‘gram.

On top of that, let’s admit it, most cafes in Singapore are more or less the same. Clean and bright aesthetics, lattes, brunch menus, and so on. And the local cafe scene is highly competitive.

With all that in mind, an awning can be a powerful way to stand out and set yourself apart from the rest.

It makes your business more memorable and special, and with an awning, your business takes up more real estate. This means people walking by are more likely to notice you, which is the first step to having them consider patronising your cafe.

For example, if someone was considering where to eat and walking around the area, your awning could help capture their attention, and they could potentially end up deciding that your cafe looks interesting and give it a shot.

But without the awning to even get their attention, you would have lost this potential customer.

So Are Awnings Worth It?

Absolutely.

Awnings help your business stand out more, get more customers, and boost your revenue. And in Singapore’s competitive cafe landscape, you need every edge that you can get.

Sure investing in an established Singapore awning contractor may cost more, but the returns and benefits it’ll bring your cafe far outweigh the costs.