Fires & Fireplaces, 01 December 1999
Marble magic produces a co-ordinated concept
MARBLE-OUS! That is the only way to describe the progress made in two years by a Cheltenham company which started life in a draughty warehouse equipped only with a second-hand desk, telephone… and fan heater.
The marketplace has warmed to Montpellier Marble since, writes John Jordan.
The company, formed by husband and wife team Mike Mellor and Eve Iravani, took its first steps into the fireplace market at the end of 1997, made its debut at the Hearth & Home exhibition last year when it was short-listed in the awards, and this year took top prize in the surround category for its Valentino design in champagne marble (below).
The family concern was supplemented last year by sales & marketing director Dave Podmore, previously with RC Marble, and it has recently taken on its own stonemason, Dave Wright.
Eve remembers, “It was a venture which began with the first shipment of fireplaces being a fiasco due to breakages.” Since she has a degree in economics and was once heading for a career in banking, it was obvious the new business was not going to add up unless they re-did their sums.
Now in place is a small but winning combination in Cheltenham, backed by a workforce in Iran of 30 craftsman, hand-carving the unique Montpellier designs, two more experts buying stone and sourcing the best materials, and even three carpenters dedicated to packing and packaging the finished articles.
She says, “ I think it now takes longer to pack the marble than to carve it!”
The Persian marble arrives by regular containers into Felixstowe and the products are sold by 60 dealers all over the country.
Examples of the workmanship can be seen at the companys classy Cheltenham show room where the range of fireplace designs are complemented by a marble collection of dining and coffee tables, decorative ornaments and lamps, all arranged in room-sets.
Eve comments, “ The range of accessories to complement the surrounds is proving very popular with retailers, customers invariably buying a matching accessory when purchasing the fireplace.
”Customers are definitely warming to marble, with the days of marble being in white or white a thing of the past. We started with a choice of 16 colours, which have been narrowed down to the most popular five.”
She finds new ideas in the most unlikely places, the design for the corbels and floral motif on the new “Florentina”, for instance, being adapted from antique wooden church carvings discovered in a reclamation yard.
Montpellier offers made-to-order alternatives to its five standard designs, and at least two more fireplaces are planned for unveiling at Hearth & Home 2000.
”One will have a Millennium feel about it, ultra-contemporary, reflecting the steel and glass becoming increasingly popular in interior design, and another will allow the customer an additional personal design option never before offered with marble products, “Eve says.