Island Stone Cladding
Island Stone in Indonesia
Yes, we invented Pebble Tile.
But how?
Well, that’s a story worth telling

Imagine Bali over twenty years ago. (Go on, dream for a moment.) The open, sandy beaches are dappled with the gentle shade of towering palms. Out from the beaches, and around the headlands, the powerful, regular waves break into rolling, glittering surf. A few Balinese work quietly in the deep green of the fields and foliage. Their beautiful, courteous children play in the yards between scattered village houses. There are few Westerners anywhere.

Maybe that’s enough scene setting. But you can understand why we fell in love with Bali.

Through the 70’s and 80’s our founders (most still with the company) visited it year in year out, for weeks at a time. They came to surf, to explore the villages and temples, learn more about the ancient ways of island life, its designs, its architecture, and immerse themselves in the unique, exquisite, timeless Balinese culture.

One thing (among many) that the Balinese do superbly is work with their hands. They’re the world’s finest craftspeople. And they use pebbles with care, set decoratively in walls, in the yards of their houses and elsewhere. Our founders were struck by this. Was it possible, they wondered, to turn this handicraft with pebbles into something that could be enjoyed elsewhere in the world? Could it somehow enable others to experience the beauty of this place? Could it provide new employment? Could it be the basis of a tile?

Answering those questions led our founders to experiment with backings, with formats, interlocks, with pebble selection, glues, laying methods, all the details of manufacturing something perfectly new. For months, they roamed distant Indonesian beaches, travelling by local fishing boats, staying in places hardly anyone visited, living with local families. They talked to elders and communities about helping in the idea. They sought out pebble colours and textures.

We’ve been told that for every pebble used in our prototype tiles, sometimes fifty would be dropped back on the beach. The search for perfection is no quick journey. And sometimes, in some places, you can give things the time they deserve.

Ten years ago, we hit on the answers. We created pebble tiles that are still the standard others are judged by. We brought something of the beauty, the care, the patience, the naturalness of Bali to the world.

Well, Bali’s not quite as peaceful these days. And plenty of others have tried to copy what we’ve started. (Without, we have to say, the respect for the people or the place that we see as essential.)  But we keep these memories because they explain how our global company came about. We still work closely with local communities throughout the islands of Indonesia.

We still choose our pebbles with more care than anyone else, and place them by hand. We still introduce new settings, new combinations, new ways of enjoying pebbles and other Indonesian stone. We still visit the beaches ourselves, learning how we can manage the resource to community benefit, avoiding waste, avoiding taking what we don’t need.

And the people in our factories? Well, no-one has ever left our employment for work elsewhere. (Believe us, they get plenty of offers from start-up traders and entrepreneurs.) They wear the factory clothing we provide, and have the safety equipment and standards of employment they need. No, there’s a better description. They smile. Genuinely. Just as they did all those years ago.

We provide work, yes, but we provide more than just that. We make sure we provide qualities of personal and professional care, of human care, beyond the usual. Far beyond the usual. Why? It’s easy to answer. We still live here. We still love the place and the people. We still love what we do. With all our hearts.

There is, as we say, no other way to make the most exciting tiles and claddings in the world.