Mário Rocha
Manuel Monteiro
Marco Mussini
Chairman of Gres Panaria Portugal
He was born in Sassuolo, Italy, where the tradition of ceramics is deep rooted. Because his father had several projects in this area, before eventually founding Panaria, in 1974, Marco Mussini grew up in the midst of this field, while inheriting, without even being aware of it, the passion his father had for this sector. Marco studied Business Administration and Economics and began his career at Panariagroup Italia in January 1998. In 2002, when the group decided to invest in the acquisition of Margres, Marco moved to Portugal and since then has been chairman of Gres Panaria Portugal (GPP).
Was Portugal always a market Panariagroup Industrie Ceramiche S.p.A. had in its sights for expansion plans?
We cannot say that the Portuguese market was a priority for us, not least because of its size. At the time we made our first acquisition, with the purchase of Margres in 2002, the Portuguese market began to grow and became important. As a result, this was followed by the acquisition of a new industrial unit in 2005, currently associated with the Love Tiles brand, with a complementary product type.
What assessment do you make of the financial results of Gres Panaria Portugal?
My assessment is extremely positive. After a period of crisis felt worldwide, which forced us to rethink our strategy, we began to have double digit growth. We are leaders in the national market with the brands Margres and Love Tiles, and we export approximately 65% of our product. As far as turnover is concerned, we reached €74 million Euros in 2017 and had an EBITDA of almost €12 million.
Do the Margres and Love Tiles brands replace each other of complement each other?
They are complementary and at the same time distinctive brands. Margres offers high quality and high resistance solutions. It is also a brand geared towards architects; its collections are hence more minimalist and focused on technical characteristics. Love Tiles offers solutions that can be used not only as a structural element, but also decorative. It is geared towards the residential market. The environments the solution creates feature colour, irreverent design and a strong graphic component.
«Between 2014 and 2017, we invested more than 20 million Euros in technology to renew and deal with the latest market solutions»
How is technology and partnerships with universities key to GPP’s growth?
We made the decision to invest in state-of-the-art technology, ensuring the development of innovative pieces for the global market. Between 2014 and 2017, we invested more than 20 million Euros in technology to renew and deal with the latest market solutions. Many of our technicians are from the University of Aveiro and are specialised in this area.
Your major investment is in the international market. What new markets do you intend to reach in the short term?
We want to maintain our leading position in Portugal and, at a strategic level, grow in importance in some European countries. We are already present in a large number of European countries and in the most influential markets, so our goal is to consolidate and grow in markets that we feel have room for growth.
