Taste for luxury boosts SSAB''s sales

The Romanians” interest in premium products for use in decorating their homes that are branded as Valentino collections or have Swarovski crystals inlayed has driven up the sales of SSAB, a Bacau-based company that imports ceramic tiles and sanitary ware. SSAB expects turnover to be of 6.5 million euros this year, up 20% on 2004. “The demand for luxury products is going up by 10-20% a year, but those that buy such products account for 10% of our turnover,” stated Mariana Slic, the company”s general manager. The price of such premium products is about 400-500 RON (100-150 euros) per square metre, whilst regular ceramic tiles cost 20-25 RON, according to the data made available by the company. “Romanians prefer strong colours like red, yellow, green, and there is also a newer trend that favours imitation wood and stone,” Slic says. “We will continue to promote exclusive products, made in limited series and will also present the new Valentino collections and ceramic tiles with Swarovski crystals. The ceramic tiles can be personalised either by stamping or by laser cutting to any shape,” Slic explains. ZF