One of the UK’s fastest growing suppliers of architectural and sustainable tiles is celebrating a record twelve months, with news of a major showroom upgrade on the way.
Solus, which was founded by Peter Bentley in the family home in 1995, has seen sales soar from £16m in 2021 to £26m last year, with high profile projects currently being completed at Kensington Olympia and Finsbury Dials. The company’s commitment to ‘people’, ‘product’ and ‘planet’ has seen it develop an international network of trusted suppliers that provide unique ranges of sustainable tiles for architects, designers, commercial contracts and retail.
With strong growth seen across its satellite showrooms in London and Manchester, the company is also nearing completion of a significant upgrade to its Birmingham HQ and showroom on Warwick Road in Birmingham. “Last year was our 30th birthday and it gave us the perfect opportunity to celebrate what we’ve achieved in that time and, importantly, how we want to move forward over the next decade,” explained CEO Marcus Bentley, who is the son of founder Peter.
“We’ve been based at our HQ in Tyseley since 2008 and felt it was the right time to press the button on a complete transformation of the showroom, creating a unique space that will appeal to the residential market, as well as being a fantastic hub for architects and the design community.” He continued: “The layout has been carefully designed to deliver a clean, intuitive, and enjoyable customer journey.
“Thoughtful features, such as slab walls, cross-section displays, a free sample wall, and a fast quotation service, make it easy for clients to explore options and make confident decisions. We’re just putting the finishing touches to the ambitious project and will look at holding a special launch event in early March.”
Solus, which holds the Investors in People Gold’ standard, has built its success on strategic partnerships with leading factories and collaborations with top architects, designers and developers. Its current portfolio of high-quality tiles spans more than 300 different ranges, including LoopCrete and LoopStone (both incorporating 63% of pre and post-consumer recycled content) and its recently launched ‘carbon zero’ Caldera and Masso.
Since 2019, the company has supplied over 2.5million sq metres of tiles and has been involved in prestigious locations with Porsche, Five Guys, BMW and Aston Villa Football Club. Sam Frith, Creative Director at Solus, went on to add: “In the retail space and certainly in the West Midlands, we are probably the home improvement market’s best-kept secret.
“Our reputation is strong with architects, designers and big corporate specifiers and we can bring that same quality, attention to detail, innovation and customer service to the local public. The new HQ and showroom will display a carefully curated product range that blends exceptional quality with accessibility across all budgets.
“And this will be reinforced by our friendly and knowledgeable team that will be on hand to help homeowners choose the ideal tiling solutions for homes and gardens.”
