May 15, 2017

Meet Alex Chu of WalkOn Tile in Wilshire Boulevard

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to Alex Chu.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Alex. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
WalkOn Tile opened its doors on Wilshire Boulevard back in 2004 at the apex of the tile industry. More than at any other time, homeowners and designers were better versed about the medium and the demand for high quality, luxury tile skyrocketed. Enamored with the form and function of such a versatile product, owner Patricia Chu decided to open a high end, design oriented showroom featuring contemporary tiles that were unique for their color, composition and large format. Bucking convention, her goal was to provide customers with a unique shopping experience where one could expect to find the unexpected. Before long WalkOn Tile became synonymous with uniquely contemporary product selections. Even now it is not unusual to find porcelains or stone that mimic crocodile skin, water jet tiles made from mother of pearl, or 3D ceramics in iridescent pastels and metallic glazes. As the next generation in a family owned business I was tasked with taking over the day to day operations of the company and cement the appeal and relevance of the WalkOn Tile brand. This means juggling many balls, from product importation to commercial specification and our retail operation. I am proud to say that we have remained a trend setter by championing new styles.

Has it been a smooth road?
During the economic downturn of the early 2000’s WalkOn Tile’s growth, like many other construction related businesses, began to slow down. Many homeowners and developers stopped investing in property. Once the economy began to pick up many changes, both good and bad, were obvious. Forced to close their doors, there were fewer competitors to contend with, manufacturing innovation grew by leaps and bounds and a more educated, price savvy consumer emerged. On the flip side, those same manufacturers were forced to sell more tile at a cheaper price to keep their doors open and tile of all sorts flooded the market. The luster of a once artistic, cottage industry began to dull. The line between high and low end tile began to blur in the mind of consumers and WalkOn Tile was forced to re-define itself in the new era as a showroom committed to innovative, contemporary, luxury tiles.

So, let’s switch gears a bit and go into the WalkOn Tile story. Tell us more about the business.
Stepping in to WalkOn Tile is unlike any other showroom experience. Trendy, edgy, contemporary is how we have defined ourselves. We don’t always play it safe when selecting products because we understand that the choices we make must speak to the designer in everyone so that they can express their personality in the spaces they create. Keeping with this core idea our showroom is designed to allow all our tiles to be clearly displayed so customers have the opportunity of viewing each piece unencumbered by the chaos and clutter of too much product competing for shelf space. With so much to choose from we know that making such big decisions can be daunting but WalkOn Tile employs a full staff of experienced design sales associates to assist customers. Whether it is a powder room, a whole home or commercial spaces, the design services at WalkOn Tile are always free of charge.

How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
WalkOn Tile is always looking to the future, pushing the boundaries of style and vigorously exploring new trends. Who can say what the look will be in 5 or even 10 years. The tile industry is very similar to fashion and can change from one season to the next. As long as there are renovations and new construction there will always be an innovative homeowner, designer or architect looking for new ideas. As the person responsible for product development, I attend the trade shows within the US and abroad and often feel that this is the year to top all others until the following year when more beautiful, ostentatious or grandiose creations prove me wrong. One thing is for certain, there will be no shortage of options and the products in the market will only get better as improvements in the technology that is used to make them is developed.

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