Hastings Tile & Bath Celebrates Its Rich 125 Year History

Freeport, New York - The next time you visit the Statue of Liberty, look down instead of up and take note of the 800,000 hexagonal pavers surrounding this symbol of freedom and international friendship. All 800,000 pavers were provided by a company then called Hastings Pavement. Begun in 1885, the company now called Hastings Tile & Bath began its life in Hastings-on-the-Hudson, New York. For 85 years, they had a solid reputation as providers of asphalt pavers for large outdoor installations. In the 1970’s, inspired by some beautiful Mexican terracotta tiles, then President Mario Paone decided to take the company in a different direction and began importing indoor floor and wall tiles. On a buying trip in Bologna, he expanded from primarily tiles to faucets, basins, vanities, and bathtubs. The Hastings Tile & Bath Collection was born.

This year marks Hastings 125 year anniversary and the company could not be prouder of its accomplishments. Hastings Tile & Bath continues to thrive and grow its product lines, dealer network and company-operated showrooms. Two products from their VOLA line were just awarded the prestigious Chicago Athenaeum GOOD DESIGN Award 2009 for Bath and Accessories. Presented by The Chicago Athenaeum Museum of Architecture and Design and The European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies, these awards are the world’s most prestigious global awards for new product design and graphics.

The VOLA line is just one of Hastings Tile & Bath’s Collections of superior contemporary products. The Hastings Tile & Bath Collection encompasses a wide selection of European bath brands, including Fantini, Catalano and Tulli Zuccari. They have a full complement of high-style, contemporary shower and bath collections, vanities, storage solutions, and mirror collections. Hastings tile collection is ever-evolving, and with their prior expertise in pavers, they continue to specialize in large-format tiles. Hastings carries brands such as Grazia, Bardelli, Viva, Rex and Tagina. The designers whose products they represent are industry giants, such as Philippe Starck and Arne Jacobsen. Their buyers source these tiles primarily from Italy, seeking the extraordinary. Not satisfied with only porcelain, Hastings also has a full collection of glass mosaics, and glazed metallics. Its tile collection has provided inspiration in countless installations – architects and designers have come to depend on Hastings Tile & Bath for its expertise, customer service, and forward looking products. In a world gone crazy for all things contemporary, it’s nice to know that a 125 year old company is still considered cutting-edge.

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For 125 years, Hastings Tile & Bath has been at the forefront of providing architectural products to the building industry, beginning with pavers for large-scale installations, such as the walkways that surround New York City’s Central Park. In the 1970’s, the company began importing tile and bath products from Italy for the high-end home furnishings Industry. Today, Hastings has over 200 Bath and Tile dealers across the country, including their own fashionable showrooms in the A & D Building in New York and in Chicago’s Merchandise Mart. Known for providing a full range of innovative and functional products to architects and designers, Hastings Tile & Bath continues its long tradition of sourcing the best tile and plumbing products from Europe. Their collections have included some of the finest names in the industry; Philippe Starck, Andrée Putnam, Matteo Thun, Gio Ponti, and they are the exclusive importer and distributor of the Arne Jacobsen designed Vola line in the United States. They recently added the Sonia® line of contemporary bath products to their family. Visit Hastings Tile & Bath on the web at www.hastingstilebath.com. For additional information contact DRS and Associates at 818.981.8210 or www.drsandassociates.com.

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