Emphasizing that they focused on foreign markets last year as the 100 percent domestic capital’s brand Creavit, Hasan Tuzcuoğlu, General Manager of Çanakcılar Seramik stated that they presented their innovative designs in all product groups, including the FOGLIA bathroom series designed by World-renowned designer Defne Koz for Creavit to the market again for the first time this year at UNICERA Fair.
Çanakcılar Seramik, which has achieved innovative designs and sales successes in Turkey and the world market with its100 percent of domestic brand Creavit, is implementing strategies for stagnant periods in the domestic market to be overcome with an export-oriented global vision. Hasan Tuzcuoğlu, General Manager of Çanakcılar Seramik emphasized that they see UNICERA Fair as an important international showcase for their innovative designs. Tuzcuoğlu, share their assessments of the fair and sector with the magazine Ceramics Turkey.
How do you evaluate the year we left behind?
2019 was a year when imbalances and uncertainties were felt intensely as a result of the current economic climate. The economy and associated market dynamics have often varied both inside and outside. As a result of the fluctuation in the exchange rate, the bounce of raw material prices and the stagnation in the domestic market, we are experiencing the stagnation that is foreseen in the sector together with the increase in production and consumption costs. As a brand that works with the goal of becoming a global Turkish brand in the bathroom, we focus on producing solutions for this new situation that started to give its signals from mid-2018, rather than calling this process a crisis.
What are the sectoral solutions to overcome stagnation?
In such periods, we should turn to new and more logical ways of using resources that become more and more scarce every day. In order to overcome the stagnation brought by the economic period we are in, both our industry and the whole business world should focus on creating more added value. With this perspective, we have focused on investments and actions that will contribute to our exports this year.
What kind of initiatives do you carry out for foreign markets?
We are increasing our number of showrooms abroad. While we regularly export to 65 countries with more than 150 showrooms abroad, we continue to be one of the leading brands in our industry with the 55% export rate we have achieved in 2019, even though we focus more on exports. We opened in Casablanca, and in April in Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan. Again, this year, we have been proud to prefer the brand of 100% local capital Creavit in our neighboring geography in the middle east, especially in Palestine, Jordan, Iraq, and in many private sector and public projects.
How was the year 2019 for you in terms of investment?
We have made a long-term investment process since 2016. In this context, the modernization project of our foundry department is ongoing. In addition, our investments continue in order to increase efficiency in our business processes, manage resources effectively, and sustainability of our product and service quality. With the SAP system, which we started to implement at the beginning of 2019, we increased our digital transformation to a level that can compete with global brands. As a result, we see 2019 as a milestone that everyone should learn lessons, requires defects and deficiencies, to focus on producing more added value, to make investment decisions on people and technology in order not to get confused in the uncertainties of 2020.
How do you shape your product development strategies?
As Creavit, we constantly research and shape our production in this direction, taking into consideration the aesthetic perception and usage priorities, to offer functional and stylish bathrooms to meet different tastes. For the first time this year, we exhibited brand new products that will meet consumer expectations and different lifestyles at UNICERA.
What kind of new products will you introduce to the market in UNICERA 2020?
For the first time in UNICERA, we presented the brand new product family Loop countertop basin series, which is a brandnew product line of Ultra washbasin family with its 5mm edge thickness, which we interpret differently. Again, we increased the number of Rim-Off products with ductless toilet technology, which is very preferred in our vitrified product group, and this year, we introduced new products to the Solo, Mare and Elegant series in this category.
We realized another user-focused innovation in our bathroom furniture product group. In the lower module, we offered alternatives with 60-65-80 and 100 cm dimensions, single drawer, double drawer or cover. At the same time, we have exhibited our Modular bathroom set, which offers the opportunity to have exactly the combination that the user needs, with different mirrored cabinet options in the upper module, for the first time this year.
In Arc and Terra, two new products in built-in reservoir control panels, we focus on minimal, simple and complementary details, while we offer new color options to those who want to be free when designing their bathroom with new colors added to our Drop control panel series. Bevel series, which consists of washbasin, bathroom and 2 different sink faucets, was also presented to the users in this fair for the first time. Our visitors who closely followed the design trends in the bathroom had the chance to see the FOGLIA bathroom series designed by the world-famous designer Defne Koz for Creavit at this fair.
