The tile you keep seeing

Flip through any glossy home magazine and one tile name keeps surfacing. Neil Patrick Harris, Max Humphrey and Jean Stoffer have all put Ann Sacks tile in their work.

It started with trivets

In 1980, Ann Sacks was walking a Mexican market and saw earthenware Talavera tiles being sold as trivets. That was the spark for the whole company.

Founded in a bungalow

She went home to Portland, Oregon and started the business out of her small house. Her first showroom opened the next year, built around Mexican hand glazes.

From front desk to design chief

DeeDee Gundberg joined in 1994 as an administrative assistant in the Portland showroom. Four years in sales, then Ann's assistant at corporate, then the top design job.

“where I learned every aspect of the business”

Handed the creative keys

Ann retired in 2003 and Gundberg took over product development. She now sets the creative direction for the entire assortment plus the showrooms and slab galleries.

Ceramic, marble, concrete

The line runs modern across a lot of materials, including terra cotta, and carries designer collections from Kelly Wearstler and Robert Kuo.

“I love the MADE Modern and Modern ribbed collection. It's so simple, yet so versatile.”

Trends with staying power

Gundberg watches the market but filters hard for what will last. Textured dimensional plaster is hot right now, and it underpins the new Senso collection with Kelly Wearstler.

“I try not to engage in trendy trends, but rather trends that have staying power or can influence timeless design.”

Prototype in clay first

Before anything is made, the team works out thickness, weak points, line weight, how the glaze will break and how the mold releases. Prototypes catch what drawings cannot.

“We create prototypes in clay or plaster, which is one of the most important steps”

Nine touches per tile

Rubber positives press the design, then several glaze types get tested on it. In production, tiles are hand trimmed, hand sanded and hand sprayed.

“Our tiles are extruded or pressed and, during the production process, the human hand touches each tile up to nine times.”

Owning the factory helps

The MADE factory is theirs, which decides what reaches the market. It is also where the waste work happens: less clay per part, salvaged defects, less glaze burned off.

“Ann Sacks is unique in that we own the MADE factory, and this gives us a lot more control over what we bring to market”

Nineteen showrooms and counting

Kate Middleton has been spotted eyeing terra-cotta floors in the London showroom. A new showroom format is open in San Francisco, Orange County and Nashville, with Los Angeles next.

“Portland is a city that values craft and innovation, and it has an authenticity and energy that is palpable.”

Buy it for ten years

Check the maker's usage rating, since a crackle glaze is literally cracked and water gets in. Decide if the tile is the star or the backdrop, and learn what sealing it will need.

“Install what you love. Don't worry about what is popular or trending since you will live with your selection for many years.”