The economic crisis is not the only thing that has been changing the face of Israel's real estate industry in recent months.
Alony Marble CEO Dubi Mantin says, "Without a doubt, the water crisis is causing dramatic changes in the industry. Contractors and individuals are putting in showers instead of bathtubs. The number of bathtubs is falling and the number of showers is rising, as is awareness of environmental issues among contractors. We expanded our range of shower stalls, and there are valves and flow regulators for almost all products. We'll soon begin marketing a tap by Hamat that can be adjusted to halve the water flow."
Mantin added, "It's important to note that this is coming from the field, and contractors, renovators, and Israeli and foreign developers are taking the crisis into account and are acting to save water. The Jacuzzi, which was once a hot item, has almost disappeared in the past year. Today, people prefer laying tile outside instead of grass, which needs a lot of water. People are also switching to toilet tanks that have an option to greatly reduce the flush right down to a mere wash."
Alony Marble is one of Israel's largest suppliers of finished building materials and sanitary items, including marble, flooring, ceramics, tiles, and Terrazzo which makes the company highly exposed and sensitive to changes in demand in the real estate industry.
"Globes": How has the global crisis affected the building products and fixtures market?
Mantin: "The main thing that the crisis did was to make it possible for customers to buy higher end items at standard prices. This is because Chinese and Turkish manufacturers hastened to cut prices. Even though the dollar rose a bit during the quarter and cut into this reduction, the lower prices for raw materials and lower production costs have resulted in high-end products being sold at prices for standard items."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on May 25, 2009
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