Stone and tile wholesalers Beltrami have moved into new, purpose-built premises in Halesowen that give them a lot more space to offer an even deeper and wider range

Beltrami’s sales of slab and tiles in the UK have grown by between 25% and 30% each year since the Belgium wholesalers opened their depot in Dudley, West Midlands, in 2004. Faced with that level of growth they were creaking at the seams and in June last year bought the land for new offices, warehouse and a showroom in Halesowen that gave them 3,400m² of covered space rather than the 1,200m² they had in Dudley.

Had they known then how bad the economy was going to be this year they probably would have put the expansion on hold, but autumn last year saw the usual busy period up to Christmas and by the time sales fell off the edge of a cliff at the start of this year the new premises were built and Beltrami were ready to move in.

At least the quiet period made the move easier to accommodate and the fact that the lease on the Dudley premises does not end until February next year has meant there is no great rush to move out and into the new premises. Indeed, Beltrami have continued to hold stock in Dudley and have traded from both premises this year.

While the first quarter of the year was nerve-wracking for everyone, this year has not been all doom and gloom for Beltrami – June’s sales were even up on last year’s – and everyone is hoping that the busy period in the autumn will arrive as usual. Martin Dolby, who heads Beltrami’s operation in the UK, is optimistic that by the end of the year sales will be no more than 10% down.

As well as providing extra space in the new warehouse that has allowed the range of materials being stocked to be increased as well as simply increasing the volume, the new, purpose-built premises include comfortable offices for Martin, Suey Ranaweera, who deals with slab sales, Tabatha Smith for tiles, and the other staff. And, on the first floor, there is an area that will shortly be fitted out as a showroom.

For now, Herwig Callewier, who heads the whole Beltrami operation internationally, is concentrating on a new showroom and factory on a 4hectare site in Belgium that brings together what had poreviously been two sites. The new showroom there will open there in November. After that Beltrami can turn their attention to the UK and Martin hopes the showroom in Halesowen will be open by the new year.

It was decided a showroom would be of benefit because more of Beltrami’s fabricator customers are bringing their clients to Beltrami to choose materials. And more of them are looking for marbles and limestones for bathrooms. Part of the reason Beltrami needed more space was to display a wider range of marble and limestone to satisfy the growing demand for stone for bathrooms.

Sales of tiles are also an important part of Beltrami’s business and this year, says Martin, tile sales have held up better than slab sales and currently account for half their business. The reason, he says, is because people wanting stone floors tend to be at the wealthier end of the market that is continuing with projects, while builders, in particular, have put developments on hold. Even where builders have gone ahead with developments they have often looked for less expensive surfaces.

On the slab side it has also tended to be projects for wealthier clients that have progressed. As Beltrami aim to be more of a specialist supplier they believe this has benefited them because wealthier clients are willing to look beyond Impala. It is why Martin encourages fabricators to bring their customers in to look at the materials. Many people are not even aware of the variety available and are suitably impressed and enthused when they see such a range.

Not all customers are prepared to go to Halesowen to view the slabs and because it is expensive to send out samples all the time Beltrami have now produced a loose-leaf binder of photographs of their range.

It costs £5 in postage alone to send out samples, let alone the cost of production of the samples and the loss of the edge of the slab the sample is taken from. So instead, Beltrami have now had high quality photographs taken that are presented in a folder to which new materials can easily be added.

The photographs show a larger area of stone than is possible with samples, giving a better representation of variations in the materials. And the folder is easier for fabricators to keep up-dated to show their customers the different stones available.

The internet is, of course, also a rapidly growing marketing tool and Beltrami have just launched a new website that shows all their products in two distinct areas, one for the public and one for the trade.

There is always something new to see in the Beltrami range and three of the latest additions are Coral Brown, Coral Gold and Colonial Cream, all from India. Martin hopes they will prove as popular as earlier introductions Celestial Brown from India and Autumn and Casablanca from Brazil that have become best sellers.

No range is complete these days without engineered quartz and Beltrami’s version is called Traffic Stone. The latest additions are four beige and brown colours – Amalfi, Apulia, Caledonia and Othello. Three finishes are available on the quartz – polished, honed and leather.

In the new warehouse four gantry cranes load and unload the slabs from a specially designed loading bay that speeds up the process considerably – especially beneficial for fabricators who come to collect their slabs themselves, although Beltrami do make deliveries. They have one lorry tractor unit and two trailers, so that one is being loaded while the other is making deliveries. The plan is to add another tractor and two more trailers this year. Deliveries are also made using contracted transport and by the lorries that bring the stone from the factories in Belgium to Halesowen – and there are usually two or three of those a week – so there are no long waits for stone.

But because the lorries from Belgium are coming up from the South coast and going back that way, it has made deliveries to the South of the UK easier than to the North. However, Beltrami have always been strong in the North and expect sales to expand in that direction now they have their new lorry.

Like everyone else, Beltrami have had to work hard to win orders this year but believe the quality of their materials and their service has been their strength. Martin Dolby encourages fabricators to pay him a visit in Halesowen to see for themselves what Beltrami have to offer.