Quartz and marble engineered stone company Compac aim to distinguish themselves with distinctive colourways that will strengthen the brand in the UK.
Some estimates give engineered quartz as much as 60% of the domestic and commercial worktop market these days. Early fears that it would take market share from natural granite do not seem to have materialised. Instead, quartz has given fabricators, almost all of whom started by processing granite, a bigger share of the market by taking sales from those materials not in the province of masons, such as faced wood-based boards, metals and ceramics. Certainly most stone fabricators have found engineered quartz a way to expand their business.
It was the growth in the popularity of engineered stone that encouraged Compac Marmol & Quartz, the Spanish company who make engineered marble products in Spain and quartz in Portugal, to start looking for warehouses of their own in the UK two years ago.
They were already selling through distributors in Britain before that – and continue to do so – but they felt that in order to really establish their brand in the UK they needed their own presence here.
They decided to open in London and in the North, although finding a suitable warehouse in London was difficult.
It took more than a year to find the premises they now occupy in Heston, near Heathrow, says Sergio Ramirez, who heads the operation, and then they had to install their own gantry crane. In the North, where the warehouse is managed by Tony Lleo, it was easy – and the premises they found, in Wakefield, even had a gantry already installed.
Both warehouses cover an area of about 1,200m2 and carry substantial stocks of the 40 different colours with various finishes currently produced by Compac – and more are being added all the time.
Because finding the right premises in London took some time, Compac's move into the UK could not be accomplished before September, and by then Sergio was in no doubt that trading conditions were a lot more difficult than they had been a year earlier when the search for premises began.
He has no illusions about the difficulties to be faced in the recession, but believes Compac’s continual product innovation will put them in a strong position.
“We try to differentiate ourselves with distinctive new colours,” he says.
Compac entered the engineered stone market with marble products (Marmol Compac) in 1975. They are still an important part of their range and six new engineered marble products were added last year.
But the biggest sellers in the UK are the Quartz Compacs, made in a factory Compac have opened in Abrantes in Portugal with four Breton production lines. They make tiles and slabs there.
When quartz was first introduced it did tend to emulate stone colours – both dark granite and light limestone. These days it has moved on to colours that are distinctive in their own right. Neutral colours are still available and remain popular, but now there are also stark primaries and subdued pastels.
Different finishes are also being introduced and last year Compac launched three new neutral colours in a matt finish that is particularly appreciated by architects. They are Cement (grey), Alaska (white) and Nero (black). They are also available polished.
Another new range from Compac last year carried the name of Karim Rashid. He is a designer who has worked with Armani, Ralph Loren and Prada, among many others. Last year he added Compac to his CV, giving them the range they launched at Marmomacc in Verona just after they had opened their warehouses in the UK.
While Sergio is not anticipating an easy year’s trading, he believes the warehouses in the UK will give Compac an advantage here in being able to show their range to designers and architects in London. And Compac especially wanted to reach that audience because they work internationally and can take Compac all over the world.
There should be a chance to see Compac at the KBB Review exhibition at ExCeL in May. Sergio is looking forward to a boost to business from that.