Investor Presentaiton
October 12, 2021
GBM
THE US MARKET: AN OPPORTUNITY FOR MEXICO
Fierce competition in the US floor covering market. Historically, carpets have been the go-to choice
for flooring in the country, but as new options emerge as a result of new technologies, they are rapidly
losing share to other products. Meanwhile, innovation has made ceramic tiles or luxury vinyl tile (LVT)
more appealing to consumer preferences and are gaining market share. In the case of LVT, it presents
extraordinary dynamics, which in our view are attributed to the following reasons:
.
Shift towards the vinyl sheet. Clients are prefering LVT over vinyl sheet or floor tile because of the
enhanced characteristics of the former.
• Versatility. LVT offers a wide variety of colors, designs, and patterns. It can look like real wood or
stone, although it is just PVC.
•
•
Installation cost. Since labor in the U.S. comes at a high cost, and ceramic tiles take several hours
more to install than LVT, the latter beats the former on that front.
Ease of installation. This characteristic fits perfectly the Americans' preference to carry out home
improvements on their own and take labor costs off a home remodeling budget.
It is easy to see why Americans have chosen LVT over other products in the past. However, ceramic tiles
still have a compelling story and value proposition. To their defense, it is the only floor covering (besides
LVT) that has enjoyed constant growth in the past decade. In our view, this is attributed to its durability,
design, and luxury, gaining preference across a large portion of Americans. In turn, with -70% of the
country's demand coming from imports on account of the supply/demand dynamics, Mexican producers
are in a very favorable position to capitalize on the growth of ceramic tiles in the United States. A very
good example of this is Daltile Mexico, which is a subsidiary of the largest ceramic tiles player in the
world, Mohawk Industries, and exports -50% of its Mexican production to the U.S. market.
Value of Floor Covering Market Sales
Ceramic Tiles Market Comparison
United States
Mexico
End Use
Remodeling
60%
80%
Construction
40%
20%
Product Type
Porcelain
65%
10%
35%
90%
Ceramic
Product Source
Imports
65%
15%
Domestic Manufacturing
35%
85%
Distribution Channel
Independent Distributors
25%
65%
35%
15%
40%
20%
Home Center
Commercial
2011
53.2%
11.5%
12.3%
10.8%
12.2%
2019
41.0%
13.0%
14.1%
17.4%
4.8% 9.8%
Carpet and area rugs
Hardwood
Ceramic floor and wall tile
Luxury vinyl tile
Vinyl sheet and floor tile
Others
Source: Leading Indicator of Remodeling Activity (LIRA)
Notable differences between the American and Mexican ceramic tiles markets. In our view, some key
characteristics make each market so unique in many ways. One could say it is all about preferences
or culture, or maybe it is the weather or the purchasing power of households. Let us take LVT as an
example. Vinyl is not quite common in Mexico because it is not as durable (it gets damaged easily)
as other hard flooring choices like ceramic tiles or wood. However, it is a popular choice in the U.S.
because of the do-it-yourself culture, lower installation costs, and ease of replacement. Colder weather
conditions could be the feature that makes carpets a choice for Americans while not for Mexicans.
In the case of ceramic tiles, they are a highly popular choice in Mexico given their durability, wide range
of costs, low installation and labor costs, and design. However, high installation costs in the United
States make ceramic tiles more of a (still pretty large) premium niche market for Americans. In our
opinion, this is why the product mix is more tilted towards the higher-priced porcelain when compared
to Mexico.
LAMOSA/CERAMIC: THE ROAD TO GROWTH IS PAVED WITH TILES. | 17View entire presentation