PORCELAIN TILES
TT&S: HTW has been in business for over 60 years, what have been their biggest changes?
JH: We have grown our business by being on the constant look-out for something new – you have to innovate to stay ahead and we have been fortunate that our drive to innovate has coincided with an explosion in home décor. The number of magazines, TV programmes and more recently blogs and social media platforms like Pinterest has allowed us to get our message across to consumers. We use our retail division with brands like The London Tile Company, to support our products in the consumer media, while our trade expertise is backed up by Hampshire Tile Warehouse, Valverdi and Orbry.
TT&S: You remain an independent company. What benefits does being independent bring?
60 YEARS
OF SUPPLY AND
SERVICE This month, TT&S caught up with Julian
Hase, Managing Director of Hampshire Tile Warehouse, a group of companies covering distribution and retail (The Tile Source, The London Tile Co), with products ranging from
internal and external tiles, underfloor heating and tiling accessories to wet room products.
HTW traces its roots back to the early 1950s when it began as a small tiling contractor, based in Aldershot, Hampshire and is now one of the largest independent porcelain and ceramic tile suppliers in the UK, sourcing tiles from around the world. It is a family-run business that thrives on providing the best customer service and quality products at competitive and attractive prices.
To complement their extensive portfolio of tiles, HTW stocks a comprehensive range of underfloor heating systems, wet room products, tile backer and insulation boards, decoupling membranes, tiling tools, and cleaning & sealing products.
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JH: We’re still a family-run business – HTW was set up in the 1950s by Hugh Hase and Ernie Williamson. Being independent means we can react quickly to trends and have flexibility on what we choose to prioritise. A good example of this is our indoor-out brand Valverdi, which we were able to bring to market very quickly once we’d identified a trend. We also visit many shows and factories throughout the year to carefully select ranges that we think our customers will love and to ensure we stock a great range of timeless classics like metro brick tiles, as well as the latest trends like wood-effect or exposed brick-effect.
TT&S: Tell us about Valverdi; the brand was something you developed personally wasn’t it?
JH: Yes, we had just built our house and had designed this wonderful living space, with bi-fold doors, and didn’t want that negative visual impact you can sometimes get with one colour or type of flooring inside and another outside. So we created something that would give a seamless transition, a harmonisation from indoors to out – and that was Valverdi. In the last eighteen months since we brought Valverdi to the market, we have really seen it take hold as an aspirational brand.
TT&S: What are the other key trends in the marketplace at the moment?
JH: We are seeing a lot of wood-effect and brick-effect tiles at the moment, which is an easier and cheaper way to get the effect you want. Wet rooms are becoming increasingly popular, which means that the walls and floors are fully tiled after being properly waterproofed. Then there is the indoor-outdoor trend, extending tiles onto the patio.
TT&S: What are the benefits of tiles over other floor coverings?
JH: They will add value to the development over and above other floor coverings. They are a finish customers aspire to, they do not fade, discolour, shrink, scratch and are unaffected by flooding. With high thermal mass they are the finish of choice for underfloor heating systems. Tiles are the perfect choice for so many different rooms in the home – from a traditional bathroom and hardwearing
www.tomorrowstileandstone.co.uk
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