ELIE SAAB collaborates with RAK Ceramics to launch an exquisite bathroom and surface collection
ELIE SAAB continues expanding into a lifestyle brand that delivers a unique experience of the brand’s universe. The ceramic creations will further enhance a luxury living expression, exclusively presented by RAK Ceramics: where luxury design meets ceramic expertise. This debut range between ELIE SAAB and RAK Ceramics will be revealed at Downtown Design in Dubai.
Both companies founded in the 80s with a history firmly rooted in the region, ELIE SAAB and RAK Ceramics, are leading companies in their respective fields and share a vision of exquisite design, impeccable craftsmanship and uncompromising excellence in luxury living. Beautiful finishes, elegant marble textures, classic and contemporary colour combinations are produced using only the finest raw materials and the latest technology. The ELIE SAAB Bathroom and Surface Collections inspire interior designers and architects to create unique, luxurious, and distinctive living environments, and this first foray into the world of ceramics will be yet another beautiful brand addition to the world of ELIE SAAB.
Five elegant collections are brought to life, encompassing: Glamour, Liquid Metal, Royal, Soft Lux and Travertinum. With its stunning and sophisticated onyx, palissandro and dark marble finishes, the Glamour collection makes a fashion statement touching every corner, where Liquid Metal is more spontaneous in striking gold with concrete finishes, adding a unique and contemporary touch to interiors. With uncompromising attention to detail, the Royal collection adds a commanding elegance to any contemporary living space. Soft Lux adds a genuinely luxurious decadence to the range with its golden and gleaming qualities and elegant marble textures. Finally, the organic textures and timeless golden accents of Travertinum add a natural charm and enduring elegance to any prestigious living space.
Elie Saab Jr, CEO of ELIE SAAB Group: “Collaborating with RAK Ceramics broadens the scope of our product offerings and extends the brand’s DNA by introducing another way of luxury living and translating the heritage of ELIE SAAB’s signature with our distinctive style combining contemporary and timeless. We are working towards offering our clients and brand’s enthusiastic a 360-degree experience of ELIE SAAB lifestyle”
Abdallah Massaad, Group CEO, RAK Ceramics, commented “We are proud to have collaborated with Elie Saab and his team to create a truly remarkable tiles and bathroom collection which raise the bar in terms of ceramic design and manufacturing.” He continued, “RAK Ceramics and ELIE SAAB share a vision of exquisite design, impeccable craftsmanship, and uncompromising ceramics excellence, and we look forward to creating more products in the future.”
The ELIE SAAB Bathroom and Surface Collections are available exclusively through RAK Ceramics.
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RAK Ceramics joins Design Middle East Awards 2021 as a Gold sponsor
We are pleased to announce that RAK Ceramics has teamed up with Design Middle East Awards 2021 as a Gold sponsor.
RAK Ceramics is one of the largest ceramics brands in the world. Specialising in ceramic and gres porcelain wall and floor tiles, and sanitaryware. The company produces 123 million square metres of tiles and 5 million pieces of sanitaryware per year at their 22 state-of-the-art plants across the United Arab Emirates, India, and Bangladesh.
Headquartered in the UAE, the brand serves clients in more than 150 countries through its network of operational hubs in Europe, Middle East and North Africa, Asia, North and South America, and Australia. Across their global operations, they employ approximately 12,000 staff from more than 40 nationalities.
RAK Ceramics is a publically listed company on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange in the UAE and on the Dhaka Stock Exchange in Bangladesh and as a group have an annual turnover of approximately US$1 billion.
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Azizi Developments assigns RAK Ceramics for Riviera project in MBR City
Azizi Developments has assigned RAK Ceramics as the supplier for its floor and wall tiles, kitchen and bathroom fittings, and more, for 26 of its prestigious developments in Riviera, MBR City.
For Riviera’s kitchens and vanity counter tops, Azizi has procured RAK’s MAXIMUS mega slab collection with marble effect, made from single pieces of porcelain creating a stunning visual and seamless design. Corridors will be tiled with the Allepo stone collection, and balconies with porcelain tiles from the concrete collection. Bathroom floors and walls will be fitted with modern glazed porcelain tiles, inspired by natural earthly rocks, from RAK’s shine stone collection. Further to this, wooden design living and bedroom porcelain flooring will add a contemporary rustic timber style to Riviera’s highly esteemed homes.
Afzaal Hussain, CEO at Azizi Developments, said: “Our valued customers – investment-savvy families of over 100 nationalities – deserve the very best. We pride ourselves on our developments embodying unparalleled modern luxury – a design and construction philosophy that sets us apart and ensures investor satisfaction. RAK Ceramic’s world-renowned, premium collection of ceramic products was selected as the ideal fit, perfectly matching Riviera’s remarkably high quality standards. We are delighted to have finalised our agreement with this reputable manufacturer, who much like ourselves is a homegrown UAE brand, and look forward to integrating their exceptional, wide product range.”
Ohannes Tomassian, vice president – Tiles and Sanitaryware Division of RAK Ceramics PJSC said: “RAK Ceramics is highly committed to ceramic lifestyle innovation, and we are delighted and proud to be partnering with Azizi Developments to showcase some of our most exciting and contemporary tiles and mega-slab products in our home market of the United Arab Emirates.”
This premium supplier selection comes as a surprise and at no additional cost to Azizi’s customers, with over 95% of the first phase and more than 80% of the second phase already having sold out. Azizi prides itself on continuously enriching the designs and build quality of its projects even after sales have been made, in an effort to ensure customer satisfaction and loyalty.
RAK Ceramics announces stable Q1 2020 financial results
RAK Ceramics PJSC has announced its financial results for the quarter ended 31 March 2020.
Measures to manage impact of Covid-19
RAK Ceramics was proactive in implementing a raft of measures designed to mitigate the impact of Covid-19 and the corresponding lockdowns across all its markets.
It was one of the first UAE companies to adopt social distancing, and apply working from home model to most of its administrative employees.
The company also completely shut down production in India and Bangladesh in line with the government’s guidelines as of the end of March 2020, and reduced production in the UAE. Alternative sales channels have been opened in markets where retail operations are closed, and the company’s website now includes a virtual reality showroom experience.
RAK Ceramics has taken measures to manage its liquidity, reducing discretionary expenses, and placing non-essential capex plans on hold.
Stable performance despite market slowdown
RAK Ceramics delivered stable revenues of AED 592.8mn that decreased marginally by 2.7% when compared to the same period in 2019, primarily due to lower sanitaryware and tableware revenue.
Total gross profit margin increased by 110 bps due to improvements and efficiencies in operations of the tiles business. This was largely driven by efficiencies in the UAE, where production lines were optimised to match demand.
Reported net profit decreased by 18.1% year on year to AED 30.2mn, with a margin of 5.1% due to decrease in revenue and investments in upgraded branding and showrooms, as well as higher freight costs.
Working capital and working capital days remained stable, reflecting the strength of the business.
Growth in Saudi Arabia
Total revenue in Saudi Arabia increased significantly when compared to the same period in 2019, driven by an 80.8% increase in tiles revenue. RAK Ceramics’ operations in Saudi Arabia followed the UAE business model, which has proved effective. The Company is optimistic for long-term growth in Saudi Arabia post-Covid-19 economic recovery.
Abdallah Massaad, Group CEO, RAK Ceramics commented: “RAK Ceramics delivered satisfactory results in Q1 2020 considering the COVID-19 pandemic began to impact our business from the end of January.
The nature of our business is closely linked to the construction and hospitality sector, which were heavily affected by the pandemic. We expect this situation to impact our performance in the next few months but we are confident given our stable results in Q1, our strong foundations and a sound business model, we will be able to face this unprecedented challenge and move forward.
To manage the impact of Covid-19, we have implemented cost efficiency measures across all our operations, while prioritising the health and safety of our workforce. We have also taken measures to ensure our liquidity is managed and to mitigate the closure of retail channels by launching alternative options, including a virtual reality showroom experience on our website www.rakceramics.com.
Contingency plans are in place and are being constantly updated to reflect the evolving situation. I believe that the strong foundation we have built up to date will help us navigate the current challenging environment and enable us to deliver value to our shareholders in the long term.”