Häfele’s venture into kitchens began with its core competency in kitchen hardware. Along the line, it added plenty of new kitchen products. Its drive to provide greater innovation, variety, and skill in the field of interior surfaces has led it to a new milestone today. After changing the face of Indian kitchens with elegant surfaces from its esteemed partnered brands, Hafele launches a new range. It is its first-ever in-house brand of premium quartz countertop surfaces “Terra”. Terra quartz countertops exhibit Hafele’s promise of exceptional German quality, the legacy of understanding kitchens, expertise in engineered stone, and dedication.
“Terra”, Hafele’s in-house brand of premium surfaces comes with a uniform and high color consistency running throughout the surface. Moreover, it owes the perfect color, style, and texture to the patented ‘Breton Technology’.
Terra surfaces are made with over 90% quartz along with other compositions, giving them strength and innate design flexibility. Available in 20mm thickness, Terra surfaces are easy to fabricate and install in different applications. Moreover, they are food-grade safe, non-porous as well as anti-bacterial. This makes them 100% safe, hygienic, and long-lasting. They are also extremely immune to varying temperatures and remain unchanged when exposed to anything too hot or too cold.
Owing to its composition and color consistency, Terra offers uniform and seamless design possibilities. Each color has a soul and unique characteristic, of its own. Terra comes with 6 elegant yet contemporary colors that add to the versatility of this range. Be it the woody feel of Cinnamon or the minimalistic tones of Alba White, the enamor and poise of Moonwhite or the decadent details of Vena Oro, the pastel warmth of Eggnog or the serenity of Himalayan White – every color has the potential to individualize your style, expression, and imagination.
Mr. Balakrishnan Pillai, Business Head – Surfaces & Water Solution, Häfele South Asia on Terra
B&I: Tell us about the uniqueness of Terra surfaces? What thicknesses and sizes are available? What price points are we talking about?BP: Terra is a premium quartz countertop surface and the first home-grown brand in the product portfolio of Hafele. Terra Quartz surfaces have been manufactured with the latest advancements in “Breton” technology. Moreover, it keeps in mind the palette of choice of the Indian customer. Breton is a pioneer in Quartz stone manufacture and is well known for its superior quality as well as finish. Hafele Surfaces quality standards make Terra attuned towards the usage in an Indian Household. Terra is a product that stands out both in terms of its color palette as well as unique features. It showcases high levels of heat resistance, scratch resistance, enhanced durability, color consistency, and stain resistance. All this makes it a practically maintenance-free product. Currently, Terra is offered in 6 colors that cater to all design languages from Baroque to Scandinavian. The range starts from 1100 Rs per sq ft available in both regular size as well as Jumbo size slabs with a thickness of 20 mm.
B&I: Who are Hafele’s key customer segments for Terra?BP: India’s middle-class and upper-middle-class populace are one of the largest in the world. And this particular group of customers has a need as well as demand for superior products and services. Ads  As a brand, Hafele Surfaces has been the market leader in the luxury segment through our products. But, we have never had a product specifically created catering to India’s largest pool of customers. So, coupled with our experience in the market as well as the demand from our customers, we decided to Launch “Terra”. A product that will exclusively cater to these customers and projects in the premium segment.
B&I: What is the distribution model for Terra Quartz Countertops?BP: Surfaces as a category is an Inventory heavy model. Also, owing to the dimensions of the slabs, transportation remains quite expensive pertaining to small quantities. So, if you were to study the market, most companies are only available through distributors in markets other than their home market with prices varying across markets. Hence, we decided to standardize our product offering across the country with a standard pricing structure and easy local availability. This was the reason why 7 years ago Hafele set up 4 warehouses allowing us to cater to every region and giving our customers access to our products without having to worry about the ever-increasing transportation/ handling costs. So, in terms of the distribution of Terra, we will be using this presence to our advantage and maintain inventory at all our company-owned warehouses. Also, we will appoint distributors and exclusive channel partners in key markets to ensure that Terra is just as easily accessible as the other Hafele Surfaces Brands.
B&I: Tell us about the installation and after-sales support, including guarantees/warranties?BP: Service is in many ways a cornerstone of Hafele’s German Heritage. So, while thinking about Terra we were clear that not only does it have to be a quality product but has to also be backed with strong service backing especially since our existing brands share tremendous goodwill and reputation in the Indian Market. Thus, even though Terra is a premium product it has to have luxury features. So Terra comes with a “Lifetime Warranty” coupled with Hafele’s professional and experienced customer care setup. Our experienced service team can offer on-the-ground guidance when it comes to installation as well as addressing any concerns a customer may have with respect to the product post-installation. All these attributes are unique and something we pioneer in.
B&I: You have a successful product in Caesarstone. How this new range of countertops is positioned vis-à-vis Caesarstone?BP: We started the journey of Hafele Surfaces with Caesarstone about 7 years ago. Caesarstone signifies “Luxury” in India and is both recognizable as well as well-respected. Its credit goes to both- its global lineage and the team’s hard work over the years. Caesarstone will continue to be our “Luxury” and “Aspirational” offering through its Supernatural and Ultra natural colors. Terra has been launched to fill a gap in our portfolio for an entry-level premium product that gives customers access to a vastly superior product at a relatively affordable price. It in many ways adds another string to our bow and allows us to cater to a set of customers with whom we currently don’t have a presence. In the end, Terra along with Caesarstone and Dekton gives us one of the largest product portfolios in the engineered surfaces segment in India. |
Terra is not only ideal for kitchen quartz countertop applications but has also found its place in other areas of the home like the bathroom, living room, and bedroom, spanning across applications like flooring and washbasin countertops. Also, this quartz surface is ideal for office reception counters, restaurant bar counters, or even backsplashes and wall-claddings in hotel lobbies and rooms.
