CIOT: Site Visit Report

Yesterday we went on a field trip to CIOT!
It was a very informative tour of the showroom and fabrication areas on St-Laurent;
9151 St Laurent
Montreal, QC H2N 1N2
(514) 382-7330

The company was established in Montreal in 1950 by founding President Giovanni Battista Ciot and has since evolved and expanded. They are obviously doing something right because they are still in the process of expanding their St-Laurent location to make it even bigger.

^from the website ^

The company is divided into three main sections;

Habitat for the retail customer and home-owner.

Tecnica which assists designers on commercial projects.

Fabrica which is the custom and oone of a kind specialization area.

I had previously been there on a recon mission of my own but it was nice to have an official guided tour and see how the whole place functions. The lovely Marie-Claude showed us around and gave an informative "animation" but she chose to speak in french which was "un peu pire" because of my francais. It was also quite loud in the fabrication area so there was some info that I missed I am sure. Nontheless a very interesting behind the scenes look at what goes on.

I particularly enjoyed the natural stone section and the mosaic fabrication area. It was nice to see that the mosaics are still done the good old fashioned way, tumbled and hand cut to the detail. Each design is unique.

Here is a great example of a book match application of marble in the front entry way of the showroom.



Before we were told that pictures were not allowed I had snapped a few shots so I will share here (but don't tell anyone!)


Modular porcelain tile w/detailed relief.
Mosaic shower application.

Different designs in varioius sizes.

Cool Stuff from Europe

Firstly from Muurbloem, a dutch company. As well as some rad wallcoverings, they also have some really amazing furniture which is not really what you would expect when you think furnishings.


This is Budri, another innovative Italian company that is putting out some fabulous flooring. Lasercut inlay marble flooring in very intricate designs really makes a statement.