On September 27, the 2021 Bologna International Ceramics and Bathroom Exhibition in Italy (hereinafter referred to as the "Bologna Exhibition") officially opened. As the largest and most professional ceramics exhibition in the world, Bologna has always been a place of pilgrimage for ceramic practitioners and designers, and is known as the vane of product trends. According to frontline media reports, the products displayed at this year's Bologna exhibition pay more attention to surface texture and process effects. Through the superposition of glazes and multiple processes, the texture of ceramic tiles is more delicate, the texture is more realistic, and the layering is stronger.
Looking at the brand design performance of various ceramic-related exhibitions this year and the new products launched by domestic and foreign ceramic tile brands, the phenomenon of paying more attention to surface texture and craftsmanship has become more and more obvious, and has formed a product that cannot be ignored Trends. Results-oriented, ceramic tile brands use glazes, various process superpositions, etc. to make the "texture" of the ceramic tile surface more superior. This trend points to "texture-based" ceramic tiles.
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Why did texture tiles emerge out of nowhere?
The rise of textured ceramic tiles is actually related to the "wabi-sabi style" which has been very popular in the design industry in the past two years.
In the past two years, especially this year, the popularity of wabi-sabi style, which originated from Japanese aesthetic consciousness, has continued to rise, and it has been favored by designers in various fields, especially in the field of home decoration design. On sharing platforms such as Xiaohongshu, where emerging consumer market groups such as the post-90s and post-00s generation dominate, wabi-sabi style remains highly popular and has become a favorite trend among young people. Wabi-sabi style emphasizes the incomplete beauty mottled by time, without luxurious decoration and pretentious design. It pays special attention to natural texture in the selection of materials, emphasizes integration with nature, and creates a simple and simple space atmosphere.
▲The Kardashians’ wabi-sabi style mansion< /span>
In the building ceramics industry, ceramic tile product trends largely depend on home decoration style trends. Therefore, in order to cater to the rise of wabi-sabi decoration style, many ceramic tile brands have focused more on the expressiveness of ceramic tile texture in product development and design, and texture ceramic tiles have become widely popular.
The textured ceramic tiles greatly reduce the glossy surface design and increase the soft light and matte products. The surface texture chooses light colors and simple patterns. You can choose imitation cement, imitation stone, imitation metal, imitation leather texture, etc. Pay attention to details such as color, light, and craftsmanship. In addition, in order to be more in line with the artistic conception of wabi-sabi style decoration with a sense of age and natural texture, textured ceramic tiles usually use a variety of glazes and surface techniques to create a textured surface during production, making the surface of the ceramic tiles richer and more tactile. More delicate. Commonly used glazes and techniques for textured ceramic tiles include metallic glaze, candy glaze, dry particle polishing, digital fine carving, digital mold, etc.
2
The texture system is actually an upgraded evolution of modern antiques
Before the emergence of textured ceramic tiles, there had always been a unique ceramic tile category in the building ceramics industry—modern antique tiles.
It is understood that the concept of modern antique bricks was formed due to the popularity of "modern simplicity" and was defined to distinguish traditional classic antique bricks. Modern antique bricks get rid of the limitations of traditional antique styles. At the same time, they have different improvements in design, color, specifications, craftsmanship, etc., and incorporate more individual, simple, and fashionable elements. There are no restrictions on design and color, such as stone, cement, wood grain, Cloth textures, metals, etc. can be presented, and the tones are mainly "black, white, and gray". The craftsmanship is mostly antique surface, semi-polished surface, or mold surface. The texture and style of the product are relatively simple, grand, and fashionable, aiming to cater to the younger generation who are more simple. Stylish decoration needs.
From the perspective of decoration style, the textured ceramic tiles and modern antique tiles, both designed to create a simple and rustic space visual effect, have the same origin.
In the building ceramics industry, Jin Yitao was the first to make textured ceramic tiles. It is no exaggeration to call him the founder of the "textured" ceramic tile genre. As early as the beginning of 2017, Jinyitao upgraded the brand to "Jinyitao texture tiles" and upgraded it again to "high-end texture tiles" in 2020. It also upgraded its "killer" candy glaze product again and launched Candy Glaze 5.0 Glory series. The original glaze of this series of products is inherently delicate, and then undergoes a unique fine candy rubbing and polishing technology. The quality surface is visually fluorescent and tactilely delicate and soft.
In addition to Jinyi Ceramics, ceramic tile brands such as Geshi Ceramics, Owen Lai, and Fiona are also "leaders" in the research and development and production of textured ceramic tiles. As the earliest brand in China to produce modern antique bricks, Geshi Tao YuIn 2021, focusing on multi-dimensional upgrades such as color, texture, touch, and luminosity, a new texture-based "matte surface" product will be launched, aiming to match users' texture space needs. Owen Lai is famous for its plain ceramic tiles. In 2021, it launched the "Touch 5 Series" that focuses on the touch and light of the ceramic tile surface, using multiple technologies such as "GL Soft Touch Technology" to achieve a new texture. Ferona focuses on cement tiles and launched a new generation of concrete U series cement tiles in 2020. The products are simpler and cleaner, closer to the texture of cement, and are more inclusive and adaptable in wabi-sabi style home decoration.
▲Jinyitao Candy Glaze 5.0 Product
With the mature application of domestic colored glaze ink and inkjet technology, combined with the iterative development process of ceramic tile brand products, the texture system is actually an upgrade and evolution of modern antique tiles.
3
Falling technology costs + high value-added drive product trends
Driven by popular Internet celebrity decoration styles such as "Wabi-sabi style" and "absolute poverty style", textured ceramic tiles (or modern antique tiles) that originally existed in the industry but did not develop into a trend have suddenly become all kinds of ceramic tiles. Brands are vying to launch flagship products.
In fact, in addition to the promotion of home decoration design trends, there are two reasons why textured ceramic tiles are favored by ceramic tile brands.
First, domestic glaze ink and inkjet technologies continue to mature, causing production costs to plummet. Texture tiles focus on surface texture and craftsmanship. Its formation requires powerful inkjet technology and excellent glaze ink support. In the early years, when inkjet technology was first introduced, the domestic production technology and processes were immature, resulting in high costs, making it difficult to promote this type of ceramic tiles in the industry. With the maturity and advancement of technology, the production costs of domestic colored glaze ink and inkjet technology have plummeted, and the ceramic tile production of ceramic tile brands has been iteratively upgraded, creating more possibilities for product development and design.
Second, textured ceramic tiles have become high value-added products in the ceramic tile category due to the superposition of multiple processes. At present, the price war in the building ceramics industry is intensifying. It is reported that glazed tiles, which account for the largest proportion of ceramic tile production capacity in the country, have entered the price shopping stage since 2018. At that time, the 800×800mm glazed tiles in the mid-to-low-end market even fell below 20 yuan/piece. The ceramic tile price war in the current terminal market is even worse. In this kind ofUnder such circumstances, textured ceramic tiles with higher added value and larger profit margins have become differentiated products for ceramic tile brands and dealers to break through the price war dilemma.
Nowadays, the cycle of updates and changes in decoration styles and products is getting shorter and shorter. Some senior industry insiders predict that the trend of textured ceramic tiles may be popular in the industry in the next two to three years, but new trends will catch up in the future.
What do you think of this trend? Welcome to leave a message for discussion!
(Author: Sitao)
