Be ahead of the market

Our today's interlocutor is a person without whose products it is impossible to imagine a modern house, whether it is a small apartment, a country mansion, or even a lobby of a huge residential complex. Please, meet Guzel Isyandavletova, Marketing Director for the Unitile Group of Companies, a leading Russian manufacturer of facing tiles and porcelain tiles.

— Let's talk about such thing as eternity. From a philosophical point of view, too much care about decorating something, including one’s house, is a redundant thing. Can one just be contended with whitewashed walls?

— Our house is not just four walls. It is not only our fortress, support, stronghold, you can use many terms from the category of the military strategy to describe our attitude to it. Our house is first and foremost a family hearth, a place where there is no place for insincerity and affectedness, where we reveal our inner nature, surrounded by those whom we love and who are dear to us. And that is why in all ages and times people have tried to improve their homes in the best possible way, to make them special and unique.

Each of us, wherever he or she is, does not simply organize the space around himself or herself. In fact, consciously or unconsciously, in this process, he or she reveals himself or herself, his or her attitude to the world, to those who are around him or her, his or her understanding of what is right or wrong, beautiful or not. So our home is a reflection of ourselves.

— At the Batimat exhibition, I was amazed at the abundance of formats, designs and colors. By the way, your Gracia Ceramica stand was the most vivid and memorable.

— Thank you for your evaluation. We tried to do our best and did a great job. Today, the latest technologies and unique design solutions open up virtually unlimited freedom for everyone with regard to expressing his or her individuality, creating an absolutely distinctive and inimitable atmosphere and environment. Moreover, I want to underscore the fact that this situation relates not only to an individual apartment but also to the public spaces in large residential complexes and apartment buildings.

We are carefully studying the latest trends, working closely with developers, and not only in the capital. Both the General Director of the Group of Companies and our representatives actively participate in various expert platforms - forums, roundtable discussions, meetings throughout the country. Plus, we constantly receive feedback from our customers.

I can say that today's customers have very high requirements. And there has been a clear tendency on their part to purchase a finished residential property. Therefore, we offered a unique product at the exhibition, which can be used for both in-door and out-door cladding. And, of course, for finishing of apartments.

What made this possible is that we have focused on our customers in order to enable them to mix not only elements within one collection but also to combine elements from different collections and of different formats with each other. In fact, the only limitation is fantasy.

— The predominance of small formats has also drawn my attention. Is this a current trend?

— One of the most sought after. Until recently, it has been insufficiently presented in the product assortment offered by the Russian manufacturers. Some collections were made by various brands, but on a piecemeal basis. Today, owing to the line of the small format Virtu & Maestria porcelain tile by Gracia Ceramica, we have filled this gap and are ready to compete with imports, which previously dominated in this niche. Moreover, our products are not inferior to any of them in terms of quality, but surpass them with regard to price.

— What explains such an appeal?

— A small format tile is virtually a constructor for any design. Take, for example, our Tozzi 20x20 collection. Here there are unique geometry and the entire range of the most ultra-fashionable trends from marble chips to carrara, cotto and wood texture hand-painted by the Italian artists. Moreover, each texture is self-sufficient and can be used with any collection.

Or take Ottavia, created for the 30x90 collection. Whatever tile you choose, you can lay it randomly and, unlike a fashionable clothing brand, your interior will never look like the interior of another person who made the same choice.

Besides, small formats ideally suit any room, however the size of the tile is essential for large spaces. But again, as I have already mentioned before, our collections of small formats can be mixed with elements of the large format collections, thereby complementing, enhancing and emphasizing the main design idea.

— By the way, among the collections was a tile that looked like a mettlach one.

— This is really a mettlakh tile. This tile takes its name from the city where it was originally made, it has certain parameters and should correspond to a number of criteria. And if you look at the collection of Conti or Prima, then you will understand why, since the 19th century this tile has been so popular. And the matter is not only in its impeccable functionality and durability but also in a huge variety of shapes and colors that enable you to create unique patterns for walls and floors in both large and small spaces.

In addition, we receive frequent requests from restorers who renovate century-old buildings. They use the mettlach tile in many of these houses, because this is the only tile that can help to restore the historical appearance of the building.

— Are there other aspects you would like to mention?

— As I have already said, this year we have presented the 7.5x30 and 10x20 collection which is ideal for finishing both rooms in apartments and facades of apartment buildings. If we talk about the best outdoor finish, then this tile is an excellent substitute for a more expensive and less durable clinker. One more of its advantages is a variety of colors and the possibility to mix them to make facades look vivid and inimitable, what cannot be achieved with the use of clinker. No wonder the popularity of such type of porcelain tile on part of the large developers is growing every year. We have also concluded contracts with several federal companies for the production of tiles, which are specifically tailored to their requirements and projects.

Some of these tiles, for example, Bellini and Bruno, can be used to finish loft-style apartments which are so popular now, especially when they are combined with collections of the wood or metal-effect tile.

— You haven’t stopped to surprise and excite the market with an abundance of new collections in recent years. How many collections have been presented this year?

— Sixty-five Virtu & Maestria collections and several new collections of the Unitile LIFE brand.

— Should we anticipate anything else in the near future?

— By all means. We've already begun to work on the creation of the 2019 novelties. But I will not elaborate on them with your permission. We will keep intrigue until the last moment, otherwise, life becomes boring. For partners, we have developed and are introducing several completely new and unique loyalty and marketing programs this year.

Our main rule is not merely to be ahead of the market, but to be close to our customers.