From a side venture in the 1960’s to Australia’s largest tile and bathroom ware retailer, Beaumont Tiles has cemented itself as the industry leader recently opening its 100th outlet in Australia.
Boasting more than 50,000m2 in retail space and the same again in its four distribution centres in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide, Beaumont Tiles has changed the face of retail in Australia.
Where once the industry was dominated by independent small businesses – many set up by ex-tilers – the Beaumont family have built a near national footprint and brand, introduced technology to provide a seamless business and consumer experience, and elevated the category into a home fashion must have.
Its 100th outlet is being opened in Sydney’s affluent northern beaches (opening November 22) in North Manly where the company has introduced a large stone range complementing the local beachside culture.
Beaumont Tiles Managing Director Bob Beaumont said the company has increased its national footprint by 25 per cent over the last five years with a current focus on growing its NSW presence.
“We’re incredibly proud to reach our 100th outlet. Our absolute goal however has been to be the best at what we do and the growth has followed. This philosophy runs across the people we employ, the technologies we deploy, the products we offer and the value we place on our customers,” Mr Beaumont said.
“We plough half our profits back into the business each year and a large part of this is to continually improve the customer experience.
“This plays out in our commitment to be the best in distribution so our product is close to consumers, so we can help them make the best choices, and by scouring the globe for the latest tiles to be at the forefront of style.”
In the last 12 months Beaumont Tiles has opened a new $11million start-of-the-art 10,000m2 distribution centre in Sydney’s West and in Queensland secured a13,000m2 warehouse and office facility in partnership with Goodmans.
Investing over $7 million in marketing each year, Beaumont Tiles has seen much success from sponsorships of runaway home renovation programs like The Block, House Rules and Channel ten’s new program, The Home Team.
Beaumont Tiles continues to set the pace in the Australian tile and retail sector with IT innovations including its Scan & Play soft ware where customers can see insitu what their choice of tile looks like.
The SA success story began in the 1960s when local greeting cards and travel goods distributor R J Beaumont decided to import tiles after being unable to source suitable product for his own home.
Today, the family-owned company turns over more than $200 million a year, employs 800 people and imports more than 100,000 tonnes of tiles a year in addition to those sourced locally.
“With a 50 per cent split of company owned and franchises store, it’s clear we’re happy to put our money where our mouth is. It’s been a great assurance to independent operators to realise the economy of scale they can achieve with our buying power, scale of infrastructure, and our own significant financial commitment,” Mr Beaumont said.
Beaumont buyers have literally criss-crossed the globe for 25 years, taking in what’s on trend in fashion and lifestyle and pulling those elements together for tile ranges.
Mr Beaumont said product innovations, such as larger format tiles and digitisation, and the versatility and low maintenance aspects of tiles, will continue to drive category growth in Australia.
Plans for the next five years include further penetration into the NSW market in metro and regional locations.