We like to highlight our collaborations. This month: Imex in Sweden. CEO and founder Anthony Fishwick talks about the added value of carpet tiles in Tapibel’s extensive range and the fine cooperation with Tapibel.
Imex is based in Gothenburg on the west coast of Sweden. Founder Anthony hails from the UK. The company produces and exports all kinds of flooring including underlayment, floor protection and acoustic flooring. They also have their own brand of carpet tiles and, since 2019, Tapibel carpet tiles are also part of the range.
“The carpet tiles are a smaller part of our sales,” Anthony explains. “We mainly focus on our other products such as acoustic carpet, protective flooring and underlay. But we strongly believe in the added value of carpet tiles.”We are sure there are opportunities to get the tiles to specific architects. That is what we are trying to do. That’s why we work with a separate company that sells our products to architects in Sweden and Norway.”
“We believe in the added value of carpet tiles and do everything we can to get them to the right architects.” – Anthony Fishwick
Imex is a true family business. Anthony runs the organization as CEO, his wife handles finances, son Oskar is key account manager and their daughter is also in the business. “That is also one of the reasons why we partnered with Tapibel. Like us, it is a real family business. And you can also feel those family values in the cooperation. Tapibel really is a loyal partner with quality products.”
“Tapibel a family business, just like us. You notice those family values in the cooperation. They are very loyal and reliable.” – Anthony Fishwick
Imex has now been around for 20 years and exports floor coverings all over Sweden and Norway.
Where the name comes from? “It’s a mix between ‘import’ and ‘export’. Imex. When we started the company, we weren’t sure exactly what products we wanted to produce. But we did know that we wanted to sell something. Hence the name.”
Yet the choice of floor coverings was not arbitrary. “My brother-in-law in the UK had been in the flooring industry for some time. We wanted to collaborate with him and make similar products.”
In Scandinavian countries, reversed tuft carpets are particularly popular. These are rougher and harder than ‘regular’ tuft carpets. “That is one of the reasons for choosing Tapibel, we were looking for a producer who offered quality reversed tuft carpets.” In addition, Imex also offers the sustainable Econyl® collections. “You can’t get around sustainability. It is increasingly a must in any (construction) project,” Anthony said
“The reversed tuft carpets are real tops in the Norwegian countries. In addition, sustainability is also a big trend. Tapibel’s collections respond well to this.” – Anthony Fishwick
In the coming years, the company plans to continue surfing on the same momentum and expand. Investing even more in carpet tiles is one of its goals. The biggest challenge? Recruiting people to grow with the company. “Recruiting new colleagues is not easy. It is difficult to find the right people who fit the company.”
As CEO, Anthony mainly has an advisory role in the company. He is in contact with the suppliers, of which Tapibel is one. “The best thing about my job? The freedom to do our own thing and make our own decisions. We are not dependent on another company. We can keep up with trends and move quickly.”
“The freedom to make our own choices, keep up with trends and move quickly is what I love most about my job.” – Anthony Fishwick
