I asked a friend of mine from the Italian natural stone sector:
“How would you react if an Italian architect used 14 thousand square meters of Muğla marble instead of Carrara marble in a public project?”
The answer was so clear that I didn’t ask the second question:
“Why would he do such nonsense, is he mad?”
However, in Turkey importing foreign stones despite having their equals has become an illness!
As you know, Turkey is one of the special marble producers. Muğla White, Kemalpaşa White, Afyon White, Marmara White and their variations are among its most exported stones. They have become world brands.
In the global white marble market, Calacatta of Italy, Thassos of Greece, and Vietnam White are Turkey’s serious rivals. There is fierce competition particularly in America, the Middle East and Turkmenistan, where only white marbles are used in public buildings.
Although the Turkish stone is a huge challenge for its rivals in the international market, it keeps losing again and again in its own country.
I’ve been in the natural stone sector since 2002. If I wrote all the big public projects in which the Turkish stone suffered such betrayals, this page wouldn’t be enough.
Lastly, Greece has achieved victory with the 14 thousand square meters of Thassos White covering on the new building of the supreme court in Ankara.
If instead of Thassos White a foreign white stone was used in Athens for such a big public building project, this would probably provoke a serious reaction. But here in Turkey, the national natural stone sector gets backstabbed and can’t do anything but waiting for the next betrayal.
The first betrayal to the Turkish stone, which they are trying so hard to make a brand, is made by Turkey itself.
It is huge treason against the people who try their best to contribute to the Turkish economy despite all kinds of bureaucratic problems and high expenses in this dangerous atmosphere.
This is madness and it’s ridiculous.
In such a public Project, the public values must be protected.
