“We Made Kitchen Countertops A Sub-Sector Of The Marble Sector And Became A Pioneer In The Sector”
How did everything start? Can you introduce your company first?
We started our work with the Artı Marble brand that we founded in 2007. In the beginning, our subjects included all natural stone applications. What are they? Floor coverings, wall and facade coverings, stair coverings, kitchen countertops… Operating in all these branches from 2007 to 2012, we decided to treat kitchen counter as a separate business from 2012. We organized our entire investment and organization accordingly and started working only on the kitchen counter. The most important reason we have taken this decision is that the sensitivities of kitchen countertops applications are higher than other items and these sensitivities are not met in the sector. Also, individual users don’t know whose door to knock on when they need a kitchen counter. Are they going to marble workshops or kitchen shops? At this point, we decided to make kitchen countertops a sector as a solution and we became a pioneer in this regard in Turkey. We have established the Taştezgah brand in order to reach its customers in the shortest and correct way and to serve their needs at the highest level. We have created all our processes from sales to dimensioning , from production to assembly and even after-sales services to meet the needs of our customers ‘ kitchen countertops in the best conditions and we continue to continue successfully since 2012.
Turkey’s most qualified projects are maded in Bodrum.
Your firm was established in İzmir, how did you become into operation in Bodrum?
We have a national growth target to bring the Taştezgah experience to more people. In this sense, we took the first step in Bodrum. We have already been taking part in the most qualified projects in Bodrum for many years, and we also serve our individual customers with the branch we opened at the beginning of 2019. Because we are a company based in Izmir, we are much stronger in Izmir, but we also actively operate in the cities of Istanbul, Çanakkale, Bursa, Konya. We are also very strong in Bodrum, we do not separate it from Izmir. In fact, the most qualified projects of Turkey are currently being done in Bodrum and we are included in almost all of them. Now construction companies also know that they can achieve this with Taştezgah when they want to provide an accurate and high-quality product on the kitchen countertop.
Can you tell me about your product range?
Products that generally fall within the scope of stone. If we list natural stones such as marble and granite, quartz composite stones and products in porcelain Construction whose use is increasing day by day. But currently, the most preferred product is quartz composite stones. A product containing 93% Quartz mineral, combined with binding, color and effect transmitting substances. It contains much more advantages than natural stones in its use on the kitchen counter. Why? Because marble is quickly affected by acid and easily stains, granites usually contain heavy metals and their non-smooth structure causes bacteria to stay alive, live. Quartz composite stones, on the other hand, do not easily stain due to the fact that the liquid absorption rate is very low, and do not allow bacteria to live with their non-porous structure. Also at the forefront of porcelain as a trend. Although the acceleration of the currency is slowed by the rapid increase, its use is increasing day by day.
What is your most preferred product? What is the reason why it is preferred, can you talk about its advantages and disadvantages?
We work extensively with Dekton and Neolith brands in porcelain type products and Silestone, Çimstone, Belenco and Coante brands in quartz composite stones. Here, we prioritize the preferences of our customers. We introduce all materials and brands to our customers, talk about their advantages and disadvantages, ultimately leave the choice to our customers.
How is your mechanism progressing?
Firstly, we give information about materials to customers. First, it is decided what the material will be. Then it is selected which brand and which product is in the brand itself. After that, the production and assembly of kitchen furniture needs to be completed so that we can produce kitchen countertops. We follow these processes. According to the manufacturing measurements we receive on site, we also perform and assemble kitchen countertops with the raw materials we supply in the form of plates, with which product the countertops will be made.
Most important step is select the material
What is the most important point while decided to countertop?
First step is select the material. We must first decide whether to choose porcelain, quartz or natural stone. While looking that, be careful about advantages and disadvantages. If you ask which material suitable for countertops, I answer to this question “porcelain. It’s heat-resistant up to 300 degrees. In other words, you can put a tray that you take from the oven directly on it, you can put a pot that you take from the stove directly on it. It’s definitely not affected by heat. You can cut it with a knife even without using a highly scratch-resistant board. If we add the fashion side of the business, porcelain is definitely at the forefront. Although the prices of these products are higher than other materials, we offer our customers on extremely favorable terms. As we usually perform batch work based on the project, we offer our individual customers the opportunity to benefit from the same price. Second, I recommend quartz composite stones.
What is your annual production capacity?
50 thousand meters of kitchen countertops per year. For example, if we consider that there are five meters of bench in an apartment, we reach a capacity of ten thousand apartments.
What projects are you at the forefront of? If you sample the big projects you do, which ones will you talk about?
We are at the forefront of the customer sector, which cares about quality and has adopted to do the most correct job at once. We completed the batch Tower in Izmir Mistral example, Folkart Blu, Folkart Hills, Folkart Çeşme, Nayman Suites, Narova, maviyak variant Plus, Stephen Nif; kaplanka to Canyon Ranch in the basement, Epique island, Le Chic, Anthaven, Rebis, Iasos Exclusive, Vernus, one park in Istanbul, Kağıthane axis; Bakgor 1000 residences in Bursa City; the heroic park of the city, I can count on at the landscape projects.
Do you participate in any foreign projects other than your domestic work as company activities? Are you doing export?
We are also working towards America. We care about Europe very much, but we are also interested in North American countries because it is an alternative and have large market.
How was the year 2019 for your company? Did the contraction in the construction sector affect you?
Of course, it was. Already this contraction began in the 2016. But we operate widely. We began to take measures on the one hand, anticipating that the sector would shrink. What are these measures? We work widely in retail and export. I can’t say that we were very impressed with our preparation before.
What are your expectations as a company from 2020?
2019 was the year in which our Bodrum branch became operational. It was a different and new step for us. It was a year in which we focused on retail and exports as well as bulk business. From this point of view, 2019 was very positive. Our expectation from 2020 is also that we aim to increase our export turnover. In addition, it will be a year when we will evaluate the work we have done in Bodrum and make our decisions about growth in the domestic market.
Do you also operate in the public spaces? Are you involved in TOKI etc?
As the cost is at the forefront of activities in public spaces, our company’s product range is not very suitable for such jobs. So we don’t have such a goal or work. Cost is certainly important, but we cannot take part in projects where the only element is cost.
News: Ayşenur Ustaoğlu
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