Italtile, South Africa’s biggest floor tile manufacturer and owner of retailer CTM, says business has taken a knock due to rising competition from north of the Limpopo.
For years, Zimbabwe and Zambia were Italtile’s strongest regional markets. Not anymore. Both countries have built up tile factories, pumping out more stock than SADC consumers can absorb – and at a “predatory” price, according to Italtile in its latest financial report.
The company says Zimbabwe has also rolled out tariffs to protect producers, which will further hurt South African exports: “As the Zimbabwe tariffs took effect late in the year, they are expected to negatively impact year-on-year sales in the FY2026 year.”
Italtile says South Africa needs to be more competitive, which is ironic given Zimbabwe’s own deep economic problems that have held back manufacturers. Says Italtile: “The establishment of major new manufacturing facilities in neighbouring countries due to their investor-friendly environments, highlights South Africa’s difficult and relatively unsupportive investment climate for manufacturers.”
With Zimbabwe churning out more tiles, competition is getting messy. “Total production capacity in the SADC region is nearly double demand, resulting in distressed manufacturers deflating prices in the fight for market share,” the company says. Italtile accuses regional rivals of “predatory pricing.”
Italtile also owns Ezee Tile, which makes adhesives, grouts and related products at six plants in South Africa and one each in Kenya, Zambia and Zimbabwe. In Zimbabwe, Sunny Yi Feng, the country’s biggest tile producer, makes 35,000 square metres of tiles daily for local and export markets.
It is not only Italtile feeling the pressure from regional competitors in an already tough market. UK tile company Johnson Tiles, which has been in operation for over a century, is closing operations in South Africa after a “thorough strategic review” of the business.
