Italian Simplicity

Italian Simplicity

Offering clean lines, high-level function and contemporary styling, singular and modular kitchen and bath products from Italy are now making headway in the U.S.

BY BARBARA CAPELLA LOEHR

Italian kitchen and bath products offer the contemporary look and clean lines that have been increasingly embraced over the past few years by the U.S. kitchen and bath market, note Italian manufacturers. As a result, it's no wonder that at the recent K/BIS in Chicago, the companies exhibiting their wares within the Italian Trade Commission's (ITC) pavilion made a huge splash.

Other European companies, such as Silestone by Cosentino, Abet Laminati, Zucchetti, Mobara, Valsan Bathrooms, Porcher, AGA and Enterprise Ireland which represents such Irish firms as Vitra Tiles and The Tipperary Furniture Co. also exhibited at the show in response to this growing demand for European kitchen and bath products. These companies, and those companies under the ITC umbrella such as Lady Cucine Srl, Jetair s.r.l., Mina, Brandoni, La Torre and PDP Box Doccia S.p.A., to name a few are enjoying a greater demand for their sleek, minimalist products, say European manufacturers.

Their products, along with many others that are coming out of Europe, showcase contemporary styling that features design simplicity and high function.

And while many of these singular products can be mixed and matched for an "unfussy," eclectic look, many more are being grouped as modular products, and as product suites.

STREAMLINED DESIGN
For years many companies stateside have been importing an increasing number of Italian and other European products such as cabinetry, faucets, plumbing fixtures and tile. Still many others have been bringing their

contemporary-style products directly to the U.S. The number is now becoming greater due to the increasing demand for kitchen and bath products that are contemporary and streamlined, note Italian manufacturers.

Indeed, an "understated modern look with clean lines, natural woods and finishes or natural countertop materials" from Europe, and especially from Italy, is gaining ground stateside, notes Lisa Nemrow, principal with Boston-MA-based Bis Bis. The company offers such kitchen and bath products as cabinetry, countertops and plumbing fixtures that are all designed and produced in Italy by companies such as Vetraria Toscana 2 (VT2).

However, adds Nemrow, "traditionalism is creeping back in."Giorgio Ameri and Annabella Ameri of Melbourne, FL-based Maverick International Trading and Consulting, Inc., concur, noting that while "contemporary design and minimalism are what the European trends are presently showing strongly for kitchens and baths the traditional-style kitchen and bath have always had their presence."

Maverick, which also has offices in Italy and Russia, represents seven Italian kitchen and bath manufacturers Caleido/ Co.Ge.Fin. Srl., Rubinetteria Giulini Giovanni SNC, Nouve Linee Bagno, Red Line SRL, I Valentini SRL, Speedy Idee Casa SNC and Zappalorto SRL in the U.S. Giorgio Ameri is Maverick's CEO, while Annabella Ameri is the firm's president and director of marketing and trade.

The Ameris add: "The bath, on the other hand, is recently living a new life, thanks to a very modern design, which is getting closer and closer to the aesthetics of the kitchen's."

The ITC also sees the interest in both the traditional and contemporary segments, noting the latest tile trends for each.

"Clean, modernist spaces are enhanced by state-of-the-art, through-body porcelains in a wide range of modular formats and colors. Cool neutral shades, elongated rectangular formats and rectified edges create simple, sophisticated looks," says the ITC, which cites Ceramica Viva's XiloBlack, Casalgrande Padana's Meteor, Fap Ceramiche's Vision and CO.EM's Lab-One tiles as examples of these trends.

As for traditional tile looks, the ITC points to a range of styles that encompass everything from "classic terracotta looks to intricately patterned surfaces in warm blues and yellows." It lists Vietri Antico's Puolo and Paipo, Eco Ceramica's Villa Romane, Astor's Cotto d'Epoca and Cerim's Ricordi-Cuoio tiles as examples.