Roca sells its flat ceramic business to Mexican group Lamosa

Roca Group has grown in recent decades through acquisitions, but it is not the first time that the Catalan industrial group has chosen to divest in a business area. In fact, until a few years ago the company operated through four divisions: radiators and boilers (its original business), air conditioning, flat ceramics, and sanitary porcelain for the bathroom. From now on, the group will focus all its efforts on being a leader in the bathroom space, as it has chosen to sell its ceramic flooring division to the Mexican group Lamosa. The withdrawal from the other two businesses occurred in 2005, the year in which it sold its heating division to Baxi and its air conditioning area to the American company York. In 2016, it also chose to divest in the German company Duravit, where it owned 25% of the capital.

With a turnover of 1.063 billion dollars in the last year, Grupo Lamosa is a Mexican company specialized in the manufacture and sale of ceramic coverings in the American continent and with a history of more than 130 years in the construction materials sector. Lamosa's acquisition of Roca's subsidiary will allow it to strengthen its position in America and expand into Europe. According to the company, with this acquisition, Lamosa is positioned "among the top 3 global manufacturers of flat ceramics."

According to Roca, the assets transferred to Lamosa have been valued at 260 million dollars (220 million euros) and include the subsidiary Cerámicas Belcaire, with a plant in La Vall d'Uixó (Castellón), and two factories in Brazil, located in Campo Largo and Sao Mateus do Sul. The three centers together produced 23.4 million square meters in 2020, which were mainly marketed in the United States, Brazil, and Spain.

Roca's CEO, Albert Magrans, justifies the sale by the group's desire to "strengthen its positioning in the bathroom space segment," with the production of all types of sanitary porcelain pieces (such as toilets, sinks, and bathtubs), faucets, and furniture. Precisely, growing in bathroom furniture is one of Roca's major strategic bets, which has led it this year to acquire 75% of Royo Group, one of the main companies in the sector. A few months ago, it also strengthened its position in Germany and in the components segment with the purchase of Sanit.

Headquartered in Barcelona and 100% family-owned, Roca invoiced 1,684 million euros in 2020, 9.5% less due to the pandemic. The group's EBITDA reached 306 million and net profit 60 million.