By Rick Bazerghi
2013 was the year that black tapware first raised its curious head and became popular with brave bathroom and kitchen remodellers. However there was little choice and most of the products were finished in a powdercoated black paint which has a tendency to scratch easily. The electroplated items were far more durable but only came in a gloss or semi-gloss finish which looked cheap and was unpopular with developers and builders. The complications and constant product returns caused retailers to lower prices to clear remaining stock.
By late 2014, many retailers discontinued their range of black tapware due to the unreliable quality and growing customer returns. During this time, they tried to convince customers that black tapware was a fad and that the trend would soon be over, even though they were getting up to a dozen queries a day! Instead of looking for alternative suppliers and learning about this growing trend, they saved face and stood by their earlier decision to limit their black tapware range. Big mistake!
2015 came around and there was a flood of interest in black tapware, mainly due to popular TV shows such as The Block.
The contestants were bold and edgy and believed that this trend would be around for a long, long time. They had perfect judgement, as black tapware was beginning to be seen as a soft tone that worked with almost any colour scheme and material such as stone or timber. Contestants continued to use black tapware in their renovations week after week.
Retailers started to scramble for stock at this point. Everyone wanted black and anyone that wasn’t stocking it didn’t get a second chance with customers. It was soon apparent that not having a range of black tapware was going to hurt more than they realised, but there was no way they could keep using the same imported products as before. Very sharply, the demand went from black tapware to specifically high-quality electroplated matte black tapware and customer satisfaction instantly rose.
No other bathware trend has produced this much demand or shown similar awareness other than chrome tapware when it was first introduced. Even tapware shapes and sizes seem to come and go in a flurry, while traditional round or square designs tend to stand the test of time.
Black tapware is now available in most retail stores around Australia and will continue to grow in both availability and range. We will soon see more stores devote more of their showroom space to black, which has its heels firmly in the ground.
–Rick Bazerghi is a director at Meir Australia, who produce a premium range of electroplated matte black tapware, showers and accessories containing European parts. Clients include architects, interior designers, builders, stores and retail customers. They recently started exporting products to New Zealand and the UK.
Ummm, I work at one of the largest plumbing/bathroom suppliers in Australia and I think these comments are a little misleading. There have been retailers offering a quality matt black product for years and the trend coincided with the timeless palette of grey, white and timber that started coming through in 2013/2014. It was driven by both designers and savvy consumers, who were well researched of colour trends, knowing that if done well, black will not date. Not all of my clients were influenced by The Block! Yes it requires a little more TLC, but like all things in life, the more you care for it, the longer it will last.
Hi Stee,
Great feedback. I agree that there were a number of factors that contributed to the increasing demand for black tapware, however we only highlighted the mainstream channels which had the most reach across Australia, especially in terms of awareness.
It’s great that your customers have been responsive on the possibilities when using black tapware together with different applications and that you’ve also seen the trend changes over the last few years first-hand.
Would love to connect with you on our social pages 🙂
– Emma
I just did a kitchen renovation in Late 2015. We chose a dramatic black kitchen mixer by Gessi Emporio. I saw it as the jewelry in the kitchen and it was a splurge. I just love it and find it always looks fantastic unlike chrome that required far more polishing. I would be surprised if it dates, as it has a classic modern shape that is timeless. If you want to see my reno – check out photos on my blog at http://www.decomama.blogspot.com – the date of the post was Dec 10, 2015. Even if it did date the kitchen in 10 yrs from now, no biggie – replace it with whatever happens to be on trend then. I will have gotten my money’s worth by then anyway. I love the unique touch it gives to the room. We live in a smallish town in Queensland and I am fairly certain we may have one of the only black mixers in town! LOL! Black is always in fashion!
I am doing a bathroom renovation and want to get it right as I am 62 I do not want to make a mistake.I have been told that the black tap wear will go out of fashion so stick to chrome so now I am confused on what to do I think the black looks classy but will it wear well thanks Julie.
Hi Julie. People have been saying black will go out for years and it hasn’t! It will wear well if you get the good stuff that is electroplated rather than powder coated. If you love it, I say go for it! Jen