Spring has settled across Pretoria and the long South African summer is now just a few weeks away, which has Unica Plastics focused on where people actually gather once the weather warms up: patios, lawns, pool decks, pavement tables and the open-air sections of restaurants, guesthouses and lodges. Manufacturing injection moulded plastic goods out of Pretoria West since 1998, the company is drawing attention to a selection of chairs and stools from its catalogue that are engineered to handle sun, rain and heavy use right through the year’s busiest outdoor stretch.
By October, plenty of households are already carrying furniture back into the garden, while hospitality operators brace for a string of sunny weekends, school holidays and festive-season bookings. Chairs that sat stacked in storage all winter are now being pulled out, counted and often swapped for new ones. Unica Plastics sees this as the right time to remind buyers that durable, practical outdoor seating is built here in Gauteng.
Seating that suits the South African outdoors
Furniture used outdoors in South Africa faces harsh sunlight, abrupt summer downpours and no shortage of rough handling. There is clear value, for homes and businesses alike, in a plastic chair light enough to reposition, quick to wipe down and easy to stack away once the rain hits. Unica Plastics builds its products around exactly this sort of daily reality, and a number of items in the range fit the coming months well.
The Lawn Chair illustrates the point best. Unica positions it as a seat for gardens, patios and poolsides, fitted with a generous seat and hand rests for added comfort. Its perforated back rest, offered in two patterns, is more than decorative: the gaps allow air to move and help keep the sitter cool when temperatures climb. Drainage holes in the seat let rain water escape instead of pooling, which counts for a lot in a part of the country where afternoon storms are a summer routine. Rated to carry 150 kg and able to stack 20 high, the Lawn Chair comes in a senior size with a choice of two back rest patterns, plus a junior version for children, in a range of colours with special colours produced to order.
A heavier option for cafés and busy venues
Where restaurants, coffee shops and canteens want something more robust, the Rocky Chair is made for the demands of constant daily service. Unica calls it a heavy duty chair at home in anything from a formal room to a fashionable cafeteria, with a soft, curved shape that settles easily into its surroundings. The ergonomic seat and back rest support the lumbar spine and spread pressure across the seating surface, while a reinforcing rib structure lends the strength needed for use on slippery floors. The Rocky Chair carries up to 200 kg, includes a handle on the back rest for easy lifting, and stacks 20 high. Black, maroon, dark green and dark blue are the standard colours, with special colours made on request. Owners weighing up plastic chairs for sale before the summer trade picks up will find full specifications on the product page.
Outdoor bars, braai areas and kitchens gain a further choice in the Revo Stool. Unica designed it to tackle a specific weakness of plastic stools: legs that snap under twisting forces. An independently rotational top eases torsional strain on the legs, something Unica identifies as a frequent cause of breakage in many plastic stools. Lightweight and fitted with a reinforcing rib structure, it stacks 20 high and handles loads of up to 130 kg, making it a fit for both home and commercial settings.
Events, catering and garden functions
Summer also brings a steady run of outdoor celebrations, from garden parties and family reunions to year-end functions. The Unica Party Chair has featured at South African gatherings for decades. It ranked among the very first products Unica created in 1998, back when, in the company’s own words, plenty of South African consumers would only accept furniture built from steel or wood. The chair went on to become a familiar presence across South Africa and the broader Southern African region. Produced in both senior and junior sizes, it has a reinforcing rib structure and stacks 20 high for storage and transport.
The Best Chair is pitched directly at the events and catering trade. Its light weight makes storage and transport straightforward, and a contoured seat eases pressure on the hips and upper legs during long stretches of sitting. Non-slip pads beneath the rear legs grip slippery floors, while a compact footprint lets planners squeeze more seating into a space. It supports up to 150 kg and is offered in three patterns.
For weddings and more formal outdoor occasions, Unica produces the Tiffany Chair locally. The company bills it as a locally made take on a design that has gained popularity worldwide and features heavily at weddings and events. A powder coated paint finish on the steel frame guards against rust, which is handy for seating that may spend time outdoors. It stacks 10 high and carries up to 200 kg, with gold, silver, white, red and black among the colour choices. Event firms and venues after Tiffany chairs for the upcoming function season can review the details online.
Made in Pretoria West since 1998
Founded in 1998 as the first manufacturing operation within what grew into the Unica Group, Unica Plastic Moulders is still the group’s main hub for research and development. Based in Edison Road, Pretoria West Industrial, the factory can turn out 400 tons of product a month. Unica says strict quality assurance and quality control measures apply at every stage, ensuring that only top quality products reach its retailers’ floors.
Beyond seating, Unica makes stadium seating, plastic desks, the all-purpose Desk in a Box, fold-up tables, a 240 litre wheelie bin and homeware items such as laundry baskets, basins and buckets. Among the brands it has created and brought to local and cross border markets are the Party Chair, Desk in a Box and Genie, The Better Bed.
A greener approach to plastic furniture
Sustainability through innovation sits at the heart of Unica’s mission, and the company says it continually searches for ways to improve its products and grow more sustainable in financial, environmental and social terms. By its own account, Unica consumes close to 4000 tons of recycled polymer each year. The company states that this spares 26 000 cubic yards of landfill space and preserves roughly 25 million kilowatt hours of electricity annually, enough to run 2000 typical households for a year. For anyone seeking outdoor furniture that is both hard-wearing and locally made, that recycling record is one more argument for shopping closer to home.
Why buying local matters this season
Opting for locally manufactured furniture keeps production, skills and employment within South Africa and narrows the gap between factory and buyer. A nearby manufacturer that holds stock in standard colours and offers special colours to order can simplify planning, whether a hospitality business needs to replace a few dozen chairs before December or a family is adding seats for a summer of braais and swimming. Every chair in the outdoor group described here stacks for storage, so seating can be tucked away in minutes when a storm approaches and set out again when the sun comes back.
Homeowners, café and restaurant owners, caterers, schools and event planners can browse the full product range, compare specifications and reach the sales team at https://plastics.unica.co.za/.
About Unica Plastics
Unica Plastics, trading as Unica Plastic Moulders, forms part of the Unica Group and has been making injection moulded plastic products in Pretoria West, Gauteng, since 1998 for local and cross border markets. Its range spans stackable plastic chairs for events, functions and schools, stadium seating, plastic desks and fold-up tables, a 240 litre wheelie bin and homeware such as laundry baskets, basins and buckets. The company created brands including the Party Chair, Desk in a Box and Genie, The Better Bed, and its factory can manufacture 400 tons each month.
Media Contact
Unica Plastics
Email: [email protected]
Phone: +27 12 386 0838
Website: https://plastics.unica.co.za/
