Cristiano Galli Zugaro, CEO of hospitality supplies designer and manufacturer Italtrim, offers luxury hotels an insight into the process of sourcing premium bathroom products.

What’s the most important thing that luxury hotels need to consider when procuring bathroom products?

First of all, the quality of the product. When it comes, for example, to chemical products, the ingredients must be of excellent quality and the products shouldn’t have any side effects on the skin of guests.

What did you learn about sourcing high-end bathroom products from your experience of developing, owning and managing your own luxury resort, Moofushi in the Maldives, for nearly 20 years?

Not only from this experience, but more on the quality side and on the visual representation of the product itself, which needs to have a touch of class and good taste.

What bathroom products does Italtrim, and its own brand TerraMater, offer luxury hotels?

We offer many products that are unique such as the first plastic-free courtesy line made in Italy; the only and most complete line for children in the market made in Italy; and toothpaste, mouthwash and shaving foam all made in Italy, customisable for low quantities in order to fight the competition of major brands like Colgate.

How much demand from luxury hotels has there been for your innovative plastic-free, sodium-free and sulphate-free courtesy lines?

For now, not much because we were supposed to launch it in February 2020 when Covid19 started and the hospitality industries ceased all at once. Also, most hotels still think that the success of a courtesy line lies in a brand name with plastic containers, rather than an innovative product that will help our environment. Imagine if our product takes over, the industry of licenses on courtesy lines will die all of a sudden.

How important is it to you that many of your bathroom products for luxury hotels (eg your courtesy lines, cosmetic lines and baby lines) are made in Italy?

It is vital because you can trace the origin of the ingredients. Try to ask a Chinese factory to prove the origin of ingredients in a shampoo or body cream. You will not be able to trace the ingredients back to the source.

To what extent do you allow luxury hotels to customise courtesy lines and other bathroom amenities to incorporate their own branding?

There is no limitation on that and we will work all out to satisfy their needs, even supplying customised fragrances made in Europe. Also, we offer our creative expertise for free in order to meet clients’ tastes.

Which luxury hotels do you currently supply bathroom products to?

Many from Raffles, One&Only Resorts, Badrutt’s Palace in St Moritz and more besides.

What would be your advice to luxury hotels looking to outsource their bathroom-supply requirement?

Try our skills and creativity and see if we can respond to your needs.

For more information about the company and its products, check out the Italtrim website.

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