The first thing you learn as a journalist is, unfortunately, deep scepticism.  And, if there is one thing certain to trigger the sceptic in any B2B journalist it is, surely, a mission statement.   By turns bland, boring, unintelligible, pompous, achingly politically correct or corporate clones, very few, it seems to me, provide much insight into a company.  So, it is a rare and pleasant surprise when you come across a mission statement that really captures the ethos of a particular company, and provides a deep understanding of just why they stand out from the crowd.

While conducting my post-Coverings research for Tile Addict, I clicked onto the website of Bellavita Tile; the Canadian company that offers some of the most beautiful and commercially-coherent ceramic, porcelain and glass tiles on the market.

Now, I should declare an interest here.  Bellavita’s Creative Development is in the hands of Ryan Fasan; someone who I am happy to call a friend.   I got to know Ryan through his mother, Patti Fasan, who single-handedly has taught me more about tiles that anyone else I have ever met.  But I should state that I admired Bellavita’s portfolio long before I knew of Ryan’s involvement.

And, in fairness, Bellavita is far more than the physical manifestation of one talented man’s in-depth knowledge of tiles.  Indeed, the company’s personable President, Duigan Mitchell, has assembled a team in every sense of the word, and it is this shared vision and shared commercial intelligence that shines through in the company’s products … and in its mission statement.

“We aspire to raise the bar on what constitutes “the good life” by being the benchmark company everyone wants to do business with, work for and be like.”

“A name is the first thing you put forward and the last thing people should forget. Our name, Bellavita (Italian for ‘good life’), embodies the experience we strive to create every day – for our customers, our team and the world.  Being Bellavita means being the type of company that is able to consistently sustain focus, energy, creativity, and commitment in order to improve the lives and businesses of everyone we work with.”

“How will we know when we have achieved our vision? By paying attention to the world around us. When our customers, employees, suppliers and industry look to us for both direction and inspiration we will know that we are on track.”

“But that is just the beginning. We recognize that the pursuit of our vision can be lost, far more easily than it was gained. For that reason, the achievement of our vision is secondary to the pursuit of our purpose.”

Established in 2004, Bellavita has built a strong reputation for innovative and reliable products.  Read on and it is easy to see why.

“There is immense joy in unbridled creation.  But why must creativity be the sole domain of the artist?  Why can’t business be art?  Why can’t innovation be striven for by all parts of a company?”

“Glory in a new manufacturing method?  Why not?  Inspiration from a new material. Absolutely.  A new service idea from a customer call?  Certainly.”

“Creativity, contrary to traditional business models, cannot be contained or commoditized – nor should it be.  By limiting creation to a box (or cubicle) and denying the creative spark that burns bright in everyone – countless great ideas are forever lost by companies with names you’ve probably already forgotten and employees who’ve already moved along.”

“But not here.  At Bellavita, everything we do – is about designing a better way.  Because a funny thing happens when you allow everyone to innovate all the time.  They do.”

So, you are probably wondering if Bellavita truly delivers on this ambition.  Well, sceptic as I am, I have to say, Yes, they really do!  I have selected just two examples from an impressive portfolio.  Archtype is offered in four designs: aluminium, horn, Mojave and Waynesboro.  The names alone stimulate interest.  Horn?  As the wide-mouthed frog might say: “You don’t get a lot of those around here!”

Bellavita take on Archetype is: “Sometimes we come across something that defies definition by comparison – an archetype that becomes its own definition – an archetype that creates its own definition simply by being.  With diverse inspiration from hand-woven textiles, worked ancient timbers and antique patinas of stone we believe our new porcelain collection fits the bill.”

Guaranteed to inspire, the Archetype collection’s glazed porcelain tiles are available in 600 by 600, 600 by 300 and 300 by 300mm modular formats, plus a choice of  strip and square mosaics

Deliciously soft, invitingly comfortable and warm … there’s a reason why everyone loves cashmere.  However, translating this into tiles seems a stretch.  But Bellavita has accepted the challenge.  The company’s Cashmere mosaics employ a combination of mi- cro-texture and hand-brushed glaze.  The end result is a natural diffusion of light and depth of colour much like the exclusive textile that inspired this mosaic range.

Available in four organic-inspired blends in a dynamic multi-strip format, Cashmere mosaics provide just the right mix of comfort and exclusivity to elevate any project.   They are manufactured in clear float glass with a glazed rear face.  As with Arcetype, Cashmere’s four design options have intriguing names: Alaskan Malamute, Arctic Fox, Mountain Lion and Timber Wolf.  No, these are not new Apple Operating Systems; but clues as to how the soft texture of Bellavita’s established Creekside range has been fused with hand-brushed glaze application to create warm and elegant textile inspired mosaics.

Bellavita Tile

A new post by Joe Simpson, Diary of a Tile Addict, June 2017.