I was scouting around for computer chairs for my mini SOHO space. We have all been through this phase of life of looking at hundreds of computer tables and chairs only to find after buying that it did not either suit the style quotient we expected or the functionality we wanted. Maintaining such furniture has routinely become a pain in the neck as well.
In these days of do it yourself furniture minus the hassle of a carpenter, things have become a bit more easier, but nevertheless the value for money with regards to materials being used is still a question in everyone’s minds.
I happen to work with an MNC where they have some really tough, reliable and solidly functional office chairs which has made my back feel much better since four to five years now. I happened to google the net for [**Bristol**](http://www.bristol.com.my/Home.aspx), a furniture company from Malaysia which provides these for my office. I also have a nostalic connection with Malaysia since a decade now and hence I was biased even more when I understood this was a Malaysian brand.
Their subsidiary Kleiber Interiors at Domlur along Inner Ring Road in Bangalore are the partners who procure and sell these furniture to corporate houses in bulk. However when I negotiated with them on a single piece of computer chair furniture, they were okay to procure the same for me.
Coming to the chair I bought its called Presa model, and there are a lot of things which are good about it for the given price range. For those scouting around for a chair its quite easy to understand that a decent one costs anywhere between 5000 bucks to 15000 bucks depending on how the design is. The Presa from Bristol is a chair that falls a bit shy of the 10000 bucks mark and is in between this range and offers a good bang for your buck.
Today most chairs come with a V-shaped back which takes care of your lower back region. In Presa this is sturdy and you can be rest assured that you cannot have an unergonomic seating position with this lower back support. There is a netted material made of tough reliable strands that support your back all long upto your shoulder level which goes well in tune with the lower back support.
The seat itself is made of very thick grade foam and is very comfortable and sturdy to sit on. I did find that the foam itself was a bit hard but then that is what brings about a correct seating posture and proper support for your thigh and lower leg. Initially I was thinking whether the seat height would be enough to cover my ergonomic seating position on the table where I am expected to keep both my arms on the desk while typing stuff, and I must say I was impressed. The gas lift does a sufficiently good job of raising the seat level to a decent height more than what you may actually want.
There are two levers on the chair below the seat – one for tilt adjustment, and one for height adjustment which we already spoke about. While one lever moves up or down, the other one moves front or back. Both levers are of high grade quality and precisely control the action of the chair. The tilt functionality is great, and the chair locks up exactly in whichever position you want it to and remains glued there until you unlock again. But nudging your back on the chair you can quickly click unlock the tilt and bring it back to a normal position.
This aside, there are five wheels to the chair which most unfortunately do not have a lock which other common chairs in this cateogory come with. The lock would have prevented a free spin of the chair and in the case of Presa variety, its quite easy for kids to climb onto and unknowingly slide away to crash into a wall or furniture by accident. So if you have kids who are naughty then this is the chair to keep away from them. You could always keep a carpet or something to prevent free slide though and for an adult, this is not very bothersome during normal use. Personally though I would have preferred to have a wheel lock.
In my use so far for a couple of months, I have not found the chair to accumulate an awful load of filth on the wheels like hair, dust, etc. But only time will tell whether it may nor not. That is yet to be seen.
The armrests are too short to my liking and I would have preferred slightly longer ones. These rests have small buttons on the bottom, which would adjust their height as well. Its nicely done and can be appreciated for form and function.
Every bit of cloth, plastic and metal uniquely blends with one another and the whole chair looks professionally built and behaves that way. Frankly speaking Bristol surely puts a few other furniture brands to shame with their design purpose.
I would whole heartedly recommend Bristol to anyone who needs it and the sales experience with Kleiber Interiors was a mixed bag. They had indicated to me that it would take upto 6 weeks for delivery so I knew I had to wait. But sometimes my mails could have been answered in a shorter while than usual. This is strictly not a deal breaker though and frankly they guys there were very customer sensitive.
If you want to protect your back for a long time, need a sturdily built office chair, then look no further. Bristol is the place to go to to satisfy your buying urge.
