TLG Marex is one of the companies in the natural stone sector that is confident and on the right track… We visited Tolga Öner, the General Manager of the company, which has achieved significant successes especially in travertine exports and realised important projects, at its factory in Torbalı and talked about the course of the sector. Öner is a name who met with the natural stone sector in 2001 and has been regularly carrying his company, which he founded in 2004, forward for 20 years… So what is the secret of steady growth in these difficult trading conditions? Öner smiles and says, “We have always acted within our limits. The rest came,” he says.
We would like him to elaborate a little more on this issue. Tolga Öner explains as follows: “When I say we know our limits, I mean this. In our country, a guy who is 1.70 tall says he will dunk. People have dreams. However, we should not confuse the dream with the target. The main problem in our country is uncontrolled growth and acting without foresight. People do business without seeing one year ahead. Nobody says, “I’ll sell less, but I’ll sell it profitably! They run and run like hamsters, but they stop at the same place! You get tired! We have been growing steadily every year since 2004. However, we set a growth target of 10% and we achieved it. There cannot be a 200% growth target in 1 year! There may be years when such a situation is realised, but I would not fill this place to the brim by looking at a one-year picture!”
We move on to the travertine market… We remind you that travertine, which exploded especially during the pandemic, has recently started to decline. Öner underlines the following points: “The main reason for this leap in the pandemic was the renovation fashion all over the world, especially in the USA. People closed their homes and turned to beautifying their homes. But it came to the point I mentioned above again. Everyone thought travertine would always go like this. He invested when he had no money. You look now, many factories are for sale. Big troubles are at the door. But there is a chance. Australia’s ban on artificial products… If this ban spreads to the USA and Canada, there will be a return to natural stone.”
Finally, we come to the projects of TLG Marex… Tolga Öner emphasises the value of alternative markets and continues as follows: “We have recently completed a hospital in Qatar, a hotel in Dubai and a residence project in Portugal. 65-70% of our business is travertine. USA, Canada, Dubai, Qatar are of course available. However, apart from this, we had serious connections in South America. “We export to over 35 countries. “This is also very valuable for us.”
