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Immerse yourself in a world of selections at one of our stunning East Coast showrooms. Architessa sources our tile both domestically and internationally, bringing the best of porcelain, natural stone, ceramic, and more to convenient locations and through our national commercial representatives Contact us to explore an in-store or virtual appointment with an Architessan. Orders ship worldwide or can be picked up at Architessa's warehouse locations. Delivery options are available for orders within Virginia, Maryland, and D.C.
When you are a part of the CTDA (Ceramic Tile Distributor Association), you're given a unique opportunity to explore parts of the tile community you'd never have been able to before. As a member of the CTDA for over 10 years, Architectural Ceramics has time and again been able to expand our tile selections, our product knowledge, and our design network thanks to opportunities like this.
Earlier this year, the CTDA approached its long list of members and suggested everyone join together for a trip to Istanbul on behalf of Turkish Ceramics Association of Turkey. In early June, Betty Sullivan and David Benson from Architectural Ceramics embarked on a journey with the rest of the CTDA to the country of Turkey. The trip was three days long, with the flight over spanning about 10 hours.
Upon our arrival in Turkey, we were delighted to see that our trip from the airport to where we were staying offered several amazing views along the way. While it was a long drive, it felt amazing to be in such a new place with several days of excitement stil in store for us. When we did finally arrive at the hotel, we were greeted and checked in flawlessly which was no surprise because the CTDA always makes sure to pick the most accomodating stays. After getting some rest, Betty and David headed to the opening reception on an amazing roof top, the nice breeze cooling them as they got to meet with many manufacturers and learn a little bit more about what was to come the next couple of days.
Day 1 officially started the next morning, beginning with a European breakfast bar call Manzara. Manzara had everything from eggs, to sliced meats, to fresh honey literally hanging from the honeycomb. Everyone loved it! After breakfast, we went to our morning session, which was like a mini-tradeshow almost. We had the opportunity to hear from multiple professionals in the industry. Guvan, the head of a well known marketing group, taught us the history on ceramics in Turkey, as well as more about the culture itself. We were then introduced to the President of the Turkish Ceramics Association and we learned about the 30+ porcelain/ceramic manufacturers in Turkey trying increase exports to the USA, instead of just appealing to the European market.
Trade shows are always exciting because they show us more of what their factories have to offer. Below are some photos of what really stood out from a product standpoint. A really great aspect to know is that Turkey can produce HD quality products, just like the US or Italy. However, consensus seems to show there is still a lot of growth that needs to occur.
We can't wait for our next trip to Turkey, and are eager to share more with you all in the future!
