Introduction to the company & history
Leaders in bathroom design, Crosswater Holdings has been welcomed by the specialist bathroom retailer market since it was established in 1998. Excelling with a vast, exciting and innovative product range has led them to become one of the most pioneering companies in the UK with three distinctive and prevailing brands; Crosswater, Simpsons and Bauhaus.
Crosswater
Crosswater offers a comprehensive range of unique brassware solutions designed by a pool of carefully selected leading European designers to provide unparalleled design, superior materials and function. The design team is led by David Hance (Group Chairman) who has also designed a number of stylish collections. Using advanced techniques, standards are unrivalled to offer exceptional value and high design that embraces the latest technology such as Cool Touch valves, the best water delivery and air infused showerheads.
Bauhaus
Dedicated to bringing the UK cutting edge design and innovation to meet the demands of today’s modern bathroom schemes, the sister company’s latest collections of bathroom furniture, sanitary ware and washbasins are designed for generously sized bathrooms and more compact spaces alike. Excellence in design quality is the cornerstone of all Bauhaus sanitary ware. Every porcelain product is made from the distinctive vitreous clay and fine fireclay that has been designed and manufactured by genuine ceramic artisans in Civita Castellano, Italy. To enhance the function in bathrooms, state of the art technology has been integrated into all collections. From speakers with Bluetooth® wireless technology, LED lighting and infrared switches, to demisting mirrors with built in digital clocks that depict latest in bathroom design and the best in performance.
Simpsons
For over 20 years, Simpsons have strived for the perfection they are now renowned for in showering. The product offer includes an innovative portfolio of sleek, frameless screens, beautifully clear glass, and ultra-low-level trays. Their natural design prowess combined with cutting edge technology guarantees the ultimate showering experience without compromising on style or quality.
Flexibility, function and sophisticated design exude each shower enclosure and accessory. From minimalist designs to elegantly chic styles, there’s a shape, style and finish to suit all forms of showering. There’s also a comprehensive choice of modern wetroom solutions, from level access to step up showers; the range is designed and manufactured to the highest standards.
Designed with meticulous attention to detail and advanced technology, all Simpsons products are supported by an impressive lifetime guarantee. There’s a bespoke service on selected ranges and also a variety of coloured glass finishes to personalise any chosen bathroom scheme. There is also an effective invisible coating – Simpsons Clear Glass Protection – that acts as a lasting protective barrier on the surface of the glass to keep showers looking brand new.
History
The company originated from a car boot full of kitchen taps and a young salesman with a thrive for quality, design prowess and passion for success – who is the current Group Chairman; David Hance. Crosswater has seen a few milestones over the years; moving from Hance’s garage base through two office and warehouse locations to its current position of four units in Greenhithe – not forgetting its planned move to the Bridge estate in Dartford this summer. Despite an overall decline in the UK bathroom market, Crosswater’s commitment to new product design, innovation and quality has resulted in significant organic growth across the group and resulted in a £40 million+ turnover in 2013.
The services it offers
As well established suppliers, Crosswater is renowned for their fresh approach to bringing innovative and quality designs to the market. Their vision remains unsurpassed and they take great pride in creating original designs that combine good looks with premium function.
Crosswater source the best designers and materials to offer the retail and contract market the finest in design, innovation and quality. The company works closely with its customers to ensure expectations are fulfilled and exceeded; and to deliver on performance and stunning design.
Crosswater currently employs 150 staff which includes 35 internal sales office members and one of the best aftersales departments in the industry.
New products
Kelly Hoppen
Crosswater has recently collaborated its high quality materials with renowned interior designer Kelly Hoppen MBE’s eye for great design, producing four ranges (with more to follow) of designer contemporary bathroom brassware which emanates from a focus on art. The much anticipated collection presents Kelly’s signature style and achieves the interior designer’s aim of creating elements of the bathroom with personality by combining sleek design with ultimate functionality, resulting in a luxury pampering heaven. The product offer includes KH Zero 1 and KH Zero 4 – both architectural designs for a statement look which gives a real centrepiece for the bathroom, KH Zero 2 with its sleek, sophisticated lines and soft curves and KH Zero 3; a slim, angular silhouette with daring lines.
Mike Pro
Mike Pro was designed with interior designers and specifiers in mind, taking on board feedback from those in the industry who work with and specify these products on a daily basis. For bathrooms that are as beautifully crafted as they are designed, the Mike Pro Collection is a combination of function, style and quality for a look that encapsulates a modern elegance. The iconic look of the range reflects its precision engineering, superior performance and quality components. The product offer is also available in a choice of smart brushed stainless steel or bright chrome to achieve a variant of tones, and provides a comprehensive choice to suit any bathroom set up covering showering, bathing and a range of basin mixers.
Elite Walk in Easy Access
Newly launched by Crosswater sister company Simpsons is a sophisticated walk in easy access enclosure in the stylish Elite range. Designed to make showering easy, it comes with a robust 8mm toughened glass screen with an elegantly polished chrome profile, and a folding panel to enable easy in and out access. It’s also compatible with a range of 25mm low profile shower trays so it can be floor mounted with no step up – for a total integrated, modern bathroom look.
Solo – new colours
Solo has already proved to be a hit in the house builder market, offering a versatile width with added storage and a choice of modern colours – and now two new colours have been introduced to the offer. Moving away from the neutral tones of bathroom furniture, Crosswater’s sister company Bauhaus has dared to inject some colour into the bathroom with its ‘Azure’ blue gloss finish. Accompanying this offer is a soft grey which, along with the bright blue finish will work great with designer bathrooms looking to achieve a boutique hotel glamour look.
Bauhaus Bluetooth mirrors: Cucina
Fabulous design that evokes a certain desire for luxury, our beautiful range of kitchen taps range from architectural forms to the ever popular curvaceous designs to meet all style requirements. Integral features such as filtered water, intelligent cartridge technology and easy to clean nozzles all make Cucina one of the UK’s widest ranges.
New building
The commission of a new headquarters for Crosswater Holdings was announced in September 2013; to mark the company’s fourth move
Since the commission last September, we’ve been working enthusiastically with the architects to make Crosswater’s new headquarters bigger and better for business. Consolidating five warehouses into just one and three separate offices in to two floors and all under one roof, this 131,000 square foot development will not only make the everyday running of Crosswater easier, it will also have a brand new trade showroom for visitors too.
With the continued growth of the Crosswater business, we’ve outgrown our current HQ, so we’re moving on to pastures new; along with our sister brand European Bathrooms. The new 4.73 acre location in the Bridge Business Park, Dartford will have 28,000 square feet of offices, training facilities and recreational space for staff, not forgetting a showroom with all our latest products on display.
The operational benefits of merging five warehouses into one means our warehouse operators can pick orders quicker and easier and will give us more room, moving from 6k of pallet space to 17k – but moving over 5,000 stock lines will be one of our biggest tasks by far! This process will begin in June, with the office move over being planned for July 2014.
We’ve got a camera set up taking pictures every 15 minutes 12 hours a day, so stay tuned to our Twitter page (@CrosswaterLtd) for more news and pictures of the development every week!
Market predictions
Dave Hance, Group Chairman: “This month I’ve been back to the heart of bathroom design; where it all happens first and where I get most of my inspiration from – Italy. Super slim basins, wood finished vanity units and even glass basins are on trend now. It’s also encouraging to know we’re bringing you the latest in design in all aspects of bathroom furniture, in particular, the recent launch of our gallery basin collection. And, not forgetting one of my favourite subjects, advancing shower valve technology. Exciting progressions are being made and traditional is definitely making a comeback, even classic finishes such as gold and nickel are coming back with a statement. Stay tuned (Belgravia fans)!”
Other market trends…
- Safety in the bathroom – safe thermostatic valve operations
- Showering – becoming more prominent
- Water saving – consumers are becoming ever more eco-friendly and want to know they are getting this from their bathroom
- Technology in the bathroom – Digital has already taken off with this as well as Bluetooth mirrors in Bauhaus, but more technology and smart devices are being introduced
- Thermostatic valve technology
- Storage
- Traditional (& nickel finishes) – Belgravia currently covers this, but even nickel finishes are coming back
