To get some answers, we spoke to Vincent Lepais, a highly gifted technician who is responsible at Blanchon for buying products. He doesn’t have to think long about the subject which he wants to consider, namely fitting a seal on colour oil. When he spoke about the takeover as well, he hardly had to think. This was how he expressed it: ‘Obviously, this was a takeover, but in practice it’s more of a strategic, industrial, and commercial synergy, which is the result of a highly flexible partnership.’

‘Actually, there are very few techniques which are unknown to the better parquet floor fitters, although some floor fitters don’t like to apply colour because of bad experiences in the past. However, that shouldn’t be a reason for working colourless, certainly when you realise that you miss out on considerable extra income,’ Vincent Lepais replies. ‘As you know, you can apply colour on site in three ways, including the distressing narrative. I find it particularly interesting in this connection to consider in more detail how you apply colour oil and then a seal on top. I notice that Belgian parquet floor fitters like to use oil and think it’s nicer to look at (as I do myself), so I want to help fitters to use it properly because it gives so much more flare.’

Fitting high-traffic floors
In his explanation Mr Lepais refers to the Blanchon product which stands out the most, namely Solid'Oil™. This product has already yielded exceptional results for several years and is particularly suitable for high-traffic areas. References such as the Pleyel Hall, various Printemps stores in Paris, and Ile de France or the men’s fashion specialist Gant stores are testimony to that.

‘Making parquet watertight with a lacquer offers superior protection to that of oil and also has its place in the ordinary interior. If we think, for instance of the current trend of allowing parquet to run into the kitchen, a high-traffic area. There, too, you have to meet various requirements to keep it looking good. In these cases the use of lacquer on a colour oil is recommended.’

‘A lot of parquet floor fitters prefer to apply only tinted oil, and that leads to a splendid effect via a simple manner of application, but they thereby forget that clients also opt for easy maintenance. That’s why you can best apply a seal with a finish system which combines decorative beauty and easy maintenance both safely and durably.’

Extra cost is relative
Vincent Lepais points out that the costs as compared to traditional oil and varnish are quite modest. Certainly when you realise there’s a remarkable end result just waiting for fitters and end users.

‘That’s particularly the case with the application of a colour before one or two coats of varnish, where very often an interim application of a hard primer is needed to ‘establish’ the colour before the lacquer and at least two layers of kit for maximum protection. In the case of white and pearl grey on wood which contains tannic acid (most of the cases), an anti-tannin primer is recommended. In that case six coats are needed, something which is practically and financially unaffordable.’

‘With the “tinted oil + kit” system, it’s seldom necessary to apply two coats of oil. However, it is possible to achieve great depths in colour in certain shades such as white, black, or anthracite. This achieves decoration and protection in three coats (sometimes four).’

Takeover of Debal Finance
Over to the takeover of Debal Coatings, or, rather, Debal Finance, well known under the Ciranova and Geka trademarks, in June of last year. This family business is located in Roeselare (Belgium), has over 90 years of history, and specialises in the development and production of finish products for floors, furniture, and related products for professional and industrial clients. Geka Coatings produces special UV coatings for diverse industrial applications.’

Our interviewee explains: ‘This takeover is part of the Blanchon Group’s strategy to speed up its international growth and become a European leader in the protection, maintenance, renovation, and decoration of wooden and vinyl floors. Due to the complementarity of the Blanchon and Ciranova product lines, our strong brand awareness, and the respective client portfolios, this takeover has made the Blanchon Group the Belgian leader in the supply of products and services to professional and industrial clients.’

‘What I particularly want to emphasise is that this takeover hasn’t involved even the slightest bit of aggression. Both companies have known each other for many years and got on well with each other. Actually, it’s best to call the takeover an enthusiastic partnership because we’ve allowed all 60 well trained Ciranova employees to join our multifunctional Blanchon teams.

Moreover, the former owners, Katrien Vandermarliere and Wouter Devaere, are still fully involved in the company and they’ve taken over the general responsibility for the industry segment for both groups and, together with the current shareholders, they’ve invested in the Blanchon Group.’

‘The reason for this takeover? It enables us to offer our clients new product innovations and services worldwide. Our ambition here is twofold. Firstly, we want to support the development of all our clients in the short, medium, and long term, and, secondly, we’re aiming to expand the market share of the Group considerably both in the professional and industrial segments.’