G
GazTech
Topps
Piles of Tiles with Smiles
A review by WormThatTurned
Author's product rating:
Advantages: Range, Price, Service Recommend to potential buyers: yes
Full review During my D.I.Y experiences over the years I have always considered ceramic tiles expensive items to purchase. I tended to use local tile specialist's mainly because there was a lack of a national tile retailer around. I always thought there was a niche in the market for someone to fill and so they have in the mould of Topps Tiles. ~The history of Topps Tiles~
Topps Tiles can be traced back to 1963 when it's first shop opened in Manchester, it was called 'Multi Tile' back then and although this business flourished, it was confined to the North-West. In the early eighties Multi Tile joined forces with another tile company based in London, at this stage the combined business had roughly fifty stores between them. Over the next few years, a name change (Topps Tiles) and a floating on the stock exchange slowly enabled the business to grow. It was a big struggle at this stage because tiles weren't as fashionable as they are now and the company had limited borrowing. It wasn't until the late nineties until Topps Tiles really began to flourish nationwide, by 1999 they had 98 stores,2003 157. By 2008 they hope to have 300 in Britain and even more across mainland Europe. They have literally took off in the last 10 years, partly because tiles are now highly fashionable, partly because they included laminate wood flooring into their range and partly because they stood in a strong position enabling them to have huge buying power. Topps Tiles are not just the best and cheapest tiling and flooring company in the land, they are the only one offering the service nationally! They now have a turnover of millions, employ thousands of staff and their profits continue to grow annually.Some of the founder directors are still the biggest shareholders so you can see that the company is in good hands.
~The product~
Topps Tiles stock a huge range of ceramic tiles and laminate flooring for kitchens, bathrooms and floors, they vary in size, style, colour and quality and are available for both domestic and business use. They mainly specialise in tiles but as laminate flooring becomes more and more popular so their floor space in the shops begins to increase too. The most impressive aspect about Topps Tiles is the price of their products which is up to 50% cheaper than any other tile retailer - for instance I picked up some good quality bathroom tiles for 99p each and some mosaic kitchen tiles for £13 a square metre, I also noticed the other week that they have plain white kitchen tiles at 8p each. How can they have them so cheap ? surely there cheapo tiles I hear you say - well no actually they're not. I had the same thoughts but the reason why they are so cheap is that Topps Tiles buy them in huge bulk quantities saving huge amounts of money and they pass down the saving onto the customer, at the present time no major competitor can match this buying power therefore you will not find a tile company out there who can match their prices. Topps Tiles do not sell seconds either and all of their products carry a guarantee and on top of this they have a trial scheme where you can take some home with you before you decide to buy the job lot. On top of the prices displayed in the shop, you are entitled to a 30% quantity discount if you buy more than 4 meter squared of any given product. If you find a Topps Tiles product cheaper elsewhere they guarantee they will match that price plus give an extra 5% discount. These are all examples of a customer-focused company who deserve to be congratulated for providing a service no other company can offer, they certainly have filled that niche I mentioned with size ten boots !One thing worth mentioning in my experience is that their tile adhesives and grouts are not the cheapest - personally I like to use good quality tile adhesive (which Topps sell) because it's just as important as the tile itself BUT some people don't care what adhesive they use (my Dad) and if you fall into that category then I suggest you go to B&Q who sell much cheaper adhesives. Topps Tiles claim they will only sell good adhesives because they don't believe in selling dodgy cheap adhesives with their good quality tiles but that doesn't wash with me - most people will buy the adhesive at the same place they buy the tiles, Topps Tiles are aware of this and are just raising their profit margins by doing so, in my view they should cater for everyone with adhesives and grouts like they do with their tiles! the introduction of Palace and now Toppfix products are helping to achieve this.
Topps Tiles have monthly offers where they have tiles and flooring with big discounts (30% quantity discount doesn't apply) and sometimes they are great BUT don't forget to order well over what you need as these lines are quite often temporary lines or ones that are to be discontinued.~Customer Service~
Topps Tiles believe in great service as any other company would claim too but Topps Tiles are slightly different in that their store managers are all members of a company shares scheme (good job opportunity if you're interested!) and of course this means that they are hugely focused on making Topps Tiles a success because it means better shop sales, resulting in higher share prices and therefore higher incomes! For instance I ordered a batch of tiles but after damaging a few ran out of tiles to complete the job - upon returning to the store they had sold out of that type and the manager said he would transfer some from another store and would put them by for me. I didn't hold my breath but went back a week later, I was amazed to find he was true to his word. His actions to me are a rare example of good customer service thesedays. Of course he knew I would go back there if ever I needed tiles again but that's beside the point.
Another great service is the buy-back feature which means any tiles that you have left over they will buy back at full price as long as they haven't been damaged.~Website~
http://www.toppstiles.co.uk/3/frame-0offers.html
You can use the website to find out what their current offers are and their availability. You can also find out what your local stores are and how far they are away from you and you can also give them your details to obtain a copy of their FREE 40 page catalogue. There is a useful hints and tips section plus some help-lines if your having trouble.
~Summary~I fully recommend Topps Tiles to anyone who intends to buy tiles or laminate flooring in the near future, they are easily the best company out there offering these products. They are not just the cheapest but they are professional too and provide excellent customer service and after-sales. It is really good to see a company being successful because they deserve to be and I'm glad to be the first person on here singing their praises.
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