2023: a review of the tiling year

In 2023 it felt that the tiling sector returned to something like normal following three years severely impacted by Coronavirus, and - more recently - the war in Ukraine.? Of course, these massive geo-political issues are still having an impact, but the ceramic sector has largely adapted to the new normal.

The big four tile shows - Cevisama, Revestir, Coverings, and Cersaie - were all back to something like their pre-pandemic status.? Many in the industry were glad Cevisama took place at all, as there were rumours at the end of 2022 that the organisers might pull the plug.? So although exhibitor numbers were way down on the event's peak, with the Pamesa group brands notable amongst the absentees, it was still a vibrant and enjoyable show, particularly for lovers of small format, high end, wall tiles.? However, it remains doubtful if the Valencia-based show is sustainable the long term unless the Spanish manufacturers return en masse.

Revestir took a late decision to open its doors to visitors in 2023, and also showcased its huge new home: Sao Paulo Expo.? Held soon after lockdown restrictions were eased in Brazil, Revestir had a real celebratory atmosphere.? However, the late decision to run the event meant that there were far fewer overseas exhibitors and visitors than usual, and only three foreign journalists.? But it was still a great event: a powerful showcase for the creativity and technical capabilities of the Brazilian tile sector; and a live demonstration of the influence of social media marketing in South America.

Coverings saw few Chinese exhibitors or visitors, partly due to travel restrictions in China, and partly to draconian anti-dumping tariffs, but other than that the USA’s top tile show was pretty much back to its pre-pandemic level.? Supremely well organised, it still draws deep on the Spanish, Italian, North American/Mexican, and Brazilian trade associations, and the programme of seminars, discussion forums, demonstrations, etc, remains as strong as ever.

What is different is the sheer volume of cutting-edge designs on the show floor. Coverings 2023 featured many of Europe’s finest tile manufacturers, plus a who's who of top brands from other tile producing nations.? While punitive sanctions, and Covid restrictions, have held back Chinese factories, the slack has been taken up, most notably, by India’s tile producers.? 2022 saw Indian tile sales in the USA grow by over 30%, to reach over 13% by volume.

But the main take away from Coverings 2023 was the fantastic show put on by the USA’s indigenous producers.? The investment in the Tennessee tile hub by USA, European, Chinese, and Brazilian companies is now bearing real fruit in terms of tile design and product innovation.? Some of the most impressive stands at the show featured 100% American-made products; not something you could have said even five years ago.

In 2023 it was great to see Europe’s premier ceramic showcase - Cersaie - back to its bustling best.? The organisers put the official attendance at 99,319, up 8.8% year-on-year.? This included 47,634 international visitors.? While the total audience is lower than the event’s peak, 112,340 in 2019, it is still an impressive number. ?

At all these shows, the key design feature was the impact of next generation surface sculpting techniques, notable digital glues and granillas, and sinking inks, on the latest tile styles.? They allow manufacturers to offer stone-effects with real depth of tone and texture; embossed in resister designs, a gloriously tactile surfaces.

I have long felt that the emergence of softer, slip-resistant floor tiles would prove to be a real game changer for the global tile market.? If it was possible to specify R10 to R12 rated tiles that do not have the texture of coarse sandpaper or something even more abrasive, that would surely attract homeowners while also answering the regulatory concerns of specifiers.? Now brands such as Mayor, Keraben and Atlas Concorde are actively promoting these softer anti-slip surfaces, that offer maximum visual continuity indoors and out.?

The explosion of porcelain worktops, both 12mm and 20mm, has brought something new and exciting to Cersaie, including a reasons of l theatre.? This is partly because you need large room sets to do these fantastic materials justice, and partly because they come alive in a more proactive display.? So, following on from 2022,? ABK again featured cooking directly on a worktop using invisible induction hobs, to the accompaniment of a saxophone player, and fronted by an exhuberant chef who seems as well versed in porcelain technology as he does in the secrets of successful sautéing.? But ABK did not have it all their own way this year, with Grespania demonstrating something similar, with less razzamatazz, on its Coverlam Top brand.? I particularly like RAK’s demo worktop, as this was a small, wheel-mounted, mobile unit.? You could see this taking a showroom tour and wowing specifiers and home owners from Bathurst to Bunbury.

When it comes to the worktop designs themselves, Cersaie was awash with all the established favourites, Carrara, Calacatta, and Statuario white marbles, Nero Marquina and Emperador black marbles, Brazilian granite, labradorite, basalt, Nero Zimbabwe, Macchia Vecchia, and all the rest.

Reconnecting with nature is a key design trend and, while we may be more accustomed to clean lines and polished, glossy finishes, kitchen worktops have witnessed a marked shift towards raw, rougher textures, that are being fused with traditional sleeker finishes to create a look that you could call ‘rough luxe’.

Italy’s tile industry hit record revenues of 7.2 billion euros in 2022, although sales volumes fell 1.4% to 449 million sq. metres; but momentum slowed in first quarter of 2023, with a 25% drop in export volumes.? 2022 results achieved from Italy’s 128 industrial-scale manufacturers, showed that production and sales volumes remained broadly unchanged, while revenues rose significantly. ? In 2022, the average selling price for Italian tiles rose from 10.6 euros per sq. metre to 12.43 euros per sq. metre on the domestic market, and from 14.3 euros per sq. metre to 16.76 euros per sq. metre in export market.? This compares to about 10 euros for Spanish tiles, and 8 euros for Turkish tiles.? The figures for India, China, Mexico, etc, are believed to be much lower still.? This indicates one of the driving factors in today’s market: design and innovation are the best way to sidestep the global price war and race to the bottom.? This probably explains one of the major trends in the commercial tile sector, the emergence of powerful new multi-brand multi-national groups, that are driving the market forward, particularly in the higher end segment.

The biggest name of all is Mohawk.? This USA-based flooring giant is now the world’s largest tile company by sales revenue.? Mohawk’s tiling brands include some of the most recognised in the industry: Daltile, Emilceramica, Eliane, Elizabeth, Karastan, Marazzi, and Vitromex.? While 2022/23 has not been that successful for Mohawk’s ceramic businesses, by leveraging synergies across the brands, the group has been able to partially offset weakening market conditions, and has also begun to leverage sales of its total product portfolio to expand its distribution.

In Italy, Italcer is pushing ahead with its aggressive expansion through acquisition strategy.? The Group, led by Graziano Verdi and controlled by the Mindful Capital Partners Investment Fund, now encompasses the Fondovalle, La Fabbrica-AVA, Elios Ceramica, Devon&Devon, Ceramica Rondine, Bottega, Equipe Ceramicas, and Opificio Ceramico brands.? It has just completed the acquisition of Terratinta Group, bringing the Group turnover close to 400 million euros.? This means that four more brands have been added to its offer: Terratinta Ceramiche, Ceramica Magica, Sartoria, and Micro.

Another increasingly powerful player is Victoria plc.? Victoria’s tile brands include Ascot, an Italian brand known for cutting-edge style and innovation;? Casabella Ceramiche, that offers ceramic wall and floor coverings for indoors, outdoors, and public spaces; Casainfinita, known for natural looking tile collections inspired by stone, wood, metal, and more; Capri, a high-end manufacturer; Colli, known for beauty and uniqueness; Dom Ceramiche, a brand built on quality and style; Ibero Ceramica; an technically sophisticated producer of ceramic floor and wall tiles;? Keraben, a reference brand offering quality ceramic solutions; Keradom, a leader in pressed digital ceramic skirting boards, and decorative small-sized wall and floor tiles; Metropol, a Keraben Grupo brand known for colourful collections and creative combinations; Saloni, a designer brand for residential or commercial applications; and Vallelunga and Ceramiche Serra, two price-competitive manufacturers of ceramic floor and wall tiles.? In the USA, Victoria owns San Diego-based CALI that reaches customers through a variety of B2C and B2B platforms and partners; and International Wholesale Tile.

Other powerful groups include Grupo Empresarial Pamesa, which owns six brands:? Pamesa, Tau, Navarti, Prissmacer, Ecoceramic and Geotiles. ? Founded in 1972,? it celebrated its 50th anniversary last year.

Then there is the Mexcican-based Grupo Lamosa, with the Lamosa, Porcelanite, Mallorca, Euroceramica, Roca, and Incepa brands, among others.

The Kale Group, with the Canakkale Sermik, Kalebodur, Edilcuoghi, and Edilgres brands is another to watch: as is SCG Ceramics from Thailand, which owns the Cotto, Campana, Prime, Kia, Trend, and Impress brands.

Along with Spain’s STN Group, Brazil’s Ceramica Carmelo Fior, and India’s top two - Kajaria and Company - it is these multi-brand groups that are accelerating the investment cycle, particularity in continuous pressing, while also leveraging the economies of scale that come from operating across different continents and production/distribution sites.

Consolidation has just not been restricted to manufacturing.? Louisville Tile, a tile distributor based in Kentucky, acquired American Olean Midwest, a wholesale tile distributor headquartered in Illinois. The acquisition expands Louisville Tile's footprint to nine contiguous US states: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Tennessee, and Wisconsin.?

But perhaps the most significant single news story from 2023 concerns Brazil’s Portobello Grupo.? It fired up its new Portobello America plant in Tennessee, the group’s first factory outside of Brazil. This will give Portobello - already world class in terms of design - the capacity to provide better service levels and enhanced competitiveness. The new factory - expected to generate additional revenue of approximately $150 million for the group - has an annual production capacity of 38 million sq. feet.

On the negative side, April 2023 saw Steuler Tile Group, one of the largest tile manufacturers in Europe, file for insolvency.? The Steuler Tile Group resulted from merger of Norddeutsche Steingut, Nordceram, Steuler-Fliesen, and Kerateam. Production took place almost exclusively in Germany, with the group employing around 650 people at four locations.

So what are we to expect in 2024?? I predict more acquisitions as both investment companies, and existing ceramic tile manufacturers, seek to boost export sales across different regions, and acquire?a portfolio of brands that will allow them to woe different retailers, and distributors, with non-competitive collections.?

I also foresee the focus on tariffs and other protectionist ways to protect indigenous producers being expanded beyond Europe and the USA to other countries and continents.?

I also expect to see the establishment off more satellite factories in the USA, and perhaps in other key export market such as France,and? Australia.?

I predict steady growth of capacity and export sales for tiles from India.?

2024 could also see the long-anticipated development of new specialised distributors and fabricators for XXL format gauged porcelain panels. ?

But if there are two factors that could really change the structure and dynamics of the global ceramic tile sector, they will be the increasingly use of just in time manufacture, and the leveraging of dynamic digital decoration techniques, and continuous pressing, to allow more and more retailers and distributors to create and market truly unique product ranges that are bespoke manufactured to their own design templates.?

There are already manufacturers out there who have the capacity and knowledge to offer comparatively short-run bespoke tiles as very competitive rates.? It will surely not be too long before the world largest retailers realise that being able to offer unique tile ranges gets over the issue of on-line price trawling and comparative shopping, and also facilitates the perfect alignment of marketing proposition and product portfolio. ?

Perhaps 2024 is too soon, but this kind of made to order tile production is surely coming to a tile shop near you in the near future.

Joe Simpson

www.DiaryofaTileAddict.com