Within six months, the brand is now available in 103 retailers nationwide

Premium sanitaryware brand Sottini is “on track within the first six months” to meet its showroom target, following its relaunch at 100% Design in September 2015.

The brand currently has 103 retailers and Sottini has a target of 160 showrooms within the first year.

Head of product category Leanne Martin reported around 300 products were now on display across the year, and sales of Sottini had doubled that of last year.

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She explained the brand “was doing really well in retail but also with developers and in hotels. We’re hitting both the residential market and the retail market now.”

Martin stated Sottini sales were a 60:40 split towards specification but added: “That’s very different to where Sottini was two years’ ago, which was much more specification orientated at probably 80:20. So it’s a real turnaround.”

The brand has been specified by the likes of regional developer Cameron Homes, as well as the first Park Regis Hotel in the UK, sited in Birmingham.

Martin explained why she thought the brand had been successful: “Everyone has taken to the new look of the brand really well. It was still a popular brand in the retail environment, even though it wasn’t overly displayed or overly sold; there was still affection for it. The products have really brought that back for a lot of the retailers.”

She pointed out: “It is different to other brands out there on the product look and the collateral. The retailers love it because the brochure gives the look and feel of the brand. People are buying into that premium brand.”

Sottini has plans to further expand its portfolio in 2017, with models curated from existing European brands owned by its parent company Ideal Standard, but Marten reported most of the products will be new.

The brand launched with 640SKUs and now stands at 890, including its latest launches from KBB, but Marten suggested the portfolio will grow to around 1,000-1,5000 SKUS: “We need to make sure we have enough breadth in the product categories.”

Although originally introduced as individual pieces which were divided into four design categories of Precision Lines, Crafted Creativity, Minimal Elegance and Organic Forms; Sottini has since seen the introduction of suites including Mavone which is the entry into the brand.

Martin explained why the brand has seemingly made a turnaround decision on the deconstructed way it had looked at suites: “There will always be a one or two suites, [which will be] more for specifications as they still want a little bit of help of how to put [a look] together.”

Although the Sottini brand is currently meeting the company’s expectations, Martin stated: “It’s not an overnight turnaround. It’s a long-term plan for us.”