RANGE REVIEW: TILES & TILING
MADE TRENDY
Decorative tiling has taken social media by storm, and has brought about a younger set of consumers to the market looking to improve their own spaces with the latest trends found online. Kiran Grewal reports.
he digital age has seen businesses move towards a more technological focused strategy, which appeals
driving growth in the sector and moving to more unique designs when renovating their homes. Internet
sales assistant at Tile
to consumers who are used to the convenience and dependence of online shopping and motivated by the influence of social media – whether it’s looking for inspiration on Pinterest, or shopping through the ‘swipe up’ feature on Instagram, it’s never been more vital to be savvy with social media. In the tiling industry, these channels has had a huge effect on trends, and is ultimately attracting a new generation of consumers who are
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Choice, Jessica Beasley says home renovation has helped the market grow: “On the whole the tile market forecasts a predicted growth of 7% between 2017 and 2021. This growth is being driven by strong demand from contract and residential end- user sectors along with design and innovation trends adding value to products. With confidence in the housing market returning this has helped the tile market to grow, as well as people looking to ‘improve not move’,” she says. This growth is primarily coming from the younger
TILING T
generation, many of whom are first time buyers and want to put their own stamp on a home with unique, eye catching designs which can be used to create focal points in the home. “We are seeing the younger generation use tiles more of the home also as they are so low maintenance and hygienic,” she says.
Chairman of Tile Mountain, Mo Iqbal says: “The next set of customers coming through; their first experience of shopping is online. These 30-somethings are now coming into home ownership. They are the customers of the future. I spend a lot of time in our showrooms; especially at the weekends, and I listen a lot to customers to monitor their behaviour, their wants and needs. Instagram and Pinterest – that’s where they go to do research for their home/purchases. They get inspiration from those sites for what they want and they are then so driven by that. It might be that they’ve seen a bathroom with a patterned tiled floor and they want that look.” Interestingly, on the other side
of the coin, Tile Giant’s managing director, James Heese doesn’t agree the younger generation are the cause behind a change in momentum and says if forced to generalise he would say “that younger customers may have a little less disposable income and will therefore go for safer options. They may include a feature wall but it’s expensive to get it wrong and most people want a look that will last rather than something that dates too quickly.”
It’s fashion darling Jessica also says a large range of patterned tiles stocked at Tile Choice has “expanded rapidly over the past few months” and with the industry evolving with new design trends, advancements in printing mean ceramic and porcelain tiles which mimic wood, concrete, stone and granite are no longer one dimensional replicas. Jessica
explains: “The image is
embedded in the surface creating a convincing, realistic texture which is easier
to install and maintain
than the real thing, giving tiles a competitive edge.”
14 JUNE 2019 DIY WEEK 23
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