Cement tiles used to be affordable, but they can cost 10 times more than subway tiles

Business Insider
Business Insider
  • 3 days ago
Cement-tile artisans use colorful pigments to form hundreds of designs. The tiles have been popular for nearly 200 years as a beautiful and affordable building material, but today, they can cost over 10 times as much as some ceramic subway tiles. And despite the premium, many workshops have struggled to stay in business. Now, the price for their main ingredient has skyrocketed, aggravated by supply-chain issues and shortages. So, what's made cement tiles more expensive? And can new trends sustain this traditional craft?

So Expensive

15:40
I
Up next
Cement tiles used to be affordable, but they can cost 10 times more than subway tiles
Business Insider
13:01
Why less snow is threatening Japan's expensive Kanzuri chile paste
Business Insider
14:12
Why Seeing Eye dogs are so expensive to breed and train
Business Insider
12:54
Why this obsolete mechanism makes watches more expensive
Business Insider
12:03
Why pedal harps are so expensive
Business Insider
13:22
Inside the hidden hotels that keep Mount Everest running
Business Insider
8:02
Every piece of gear you need to summit Everest, according to a Sherpa guide
Business Insider
10:30
Egyptian cotton sheets can cost $900, but the internet is filled with fakes
Business Insider
1:41:02
10 African businesses making the world's most expensive products
Business Insider
9:54
Why hot-air balloons are so expensive
Business Insider
1:42:54
11 of the most dangerous and expensive mining expeditions in the world
Business Insider
10:07
How 20,000 pounds of anchovies spend 3 years transforming into expensive anchovy sauce
Business Insider
2:09:02
How the most expensive foods are made around the world
Business Insider
10:21
Why luxury candles are so expensive
Business Insider
12:06
How farmers in one Indian village crafted the most expensive nutmeg and mace
Business Insider
13:13
The US spent millions eradicating corn smut (huitlacoche). Now it's a fine-dining delicacy.
Business Insider
11:48
How miners find, cut, and transport the most expensive amethysts in the world
Business Insider
13:23
Why American-made Martin acoustic guitars are so expensive
Business Insider
9:51
Why Louis Vuitton and Tom Ford spend up to $15,000 for one kilo of Bulgarian rose oil
Business Insider
14:36
Why Buddha's hand citron is so expensive
Business Insider
11:24
How Chinese demand for fish maw (swim bladder) fuels a $52 million industry in Uganda
Business Insider
15:52
Why French fleur de sel costs 230 times more than table salt
Business Insider
11:25
Why West African red palm oil is so expensive
Business Insider
12:49
Why Kamebishi 20-year-aged soy sauce is so expensive
Business Insider
11:07
Why New Zealand's golden kiwis are so expensive
Business Insider
56:41
Why 6 of the world's priciest seafoods are so expensive
Business Insider
12:28
Why white asparagus is so expensive
Business Insider
11:57
Why Pure Grade A Maple Syrup Is So Expensive
Business Insider
9:50
One pair of professional hair scissors can cost over $2,000. Here's why.
Business Insider
10:45
Why stockfish is so expensive
Business Insider
15:01
Kampot white peppercorns cost $28 per kilogram wholesale. Online, they can cost over $100 per kilogram.
Business Insider
13:29
Why wild panela sugar is so expensive
Business Insider
12:12
Here's why Japanese calligraphy ink can cost over $1,000
Business Insider
50:19
Why five of the world's priciest fabrics are so expensive
Business Insider
8:01
Pearl lobsters cost more than 6 times as much as Maine lobsters. Here's why they're so expensive.
Business Insider
13:13
Why artisans receive little profit even though Moroccan rugs can cost over $2,000
Business Insider
9:02
Why Korean bronzeware, or bangjja yugi, is so expensive
Business Insider
8:40
Why meerschaum pipes are so expensive
Business Insider
12:06
Why a Chiso kimono can cost over $10,000
Business Insider
9:30
Why South Sea pearls are so expensive
Business Insider
8:20
Why Pigini Accordions Can Cost Almost $40,000
Business Insider
10:17
Royal quinoa is known as the "mother of all grains". Here's why it's so expensive.
Business Insider
8:41
East African shea butter is more expensive than the common West African kind. Here's why.
Business Insider
7:51
Why handmade porcelain dinnerware is so expensive
Business Insider
8:13
Why escamoles, sometimes called ant egg caviar, can cost $50 per pound
Business Insider
9:22
Here's why Kenya's award-winning indigenous river reed salt is almost 22 times the price of standard sea salt
Business Insider
8:13
Rattan is a staple in wicker furniture. Here's why it can cost hundreds, even thousands, of dollars.
Business Insider
6:37
Why Australian black opal is one of the most expensive gemstones in the world
Business Insider
4:29
Find out what makes Icelandic sea salt 30 times more expensive than table salt
Business Insider
5:16
Why Canada Goose jackets are so expensive
Business Insider
6:00
Why Đông Tảo chickens are so expensive
Business Insider
7:10
Why gongs are so expensive
Business Insider
6:46
Why Persian rugs are so expensive
Business Insider
5:40
Lotus silk is one of the rarest fabrics in the world, but what makes it so expensive?
Business Insider
6:12
Why frankincense and myrrh are so expensive
Business Insider
8:17
Argan oil can cost as much as $300 per liter. Why is it so expensive?
Business Insider
6:28
First-grade agarwood can cost as much as $100,000 per kilogram. Why is it so expensive?
Business Insider
3:20
Why YETI coolers are so expensive
Business Insider
6:50
Real saffron can cost you over $10,000 per kilo. Here's what makes it so expensive
Business Insider
8:36
Why Rolls-Royce cars are so expensive
Business Insider
6:32
Why thoroughbred horse semen is the world's most expensive liquid
Business Insider
6:15
Why is modern art so expensive?
Business Insider
7:20
Why palm oil is so cheap
Business Insider
6:43
Why air travel is so cheap
Business Insider

Recommended

0:38
13 Plants That Will Attract Birds To Your Garden
Southern Living
14:14
Amazing Construction Tiles And Cement Working - How To Build Tiles on Wall
Construction Worker
9:48
How to make flower pot from Tiles Molds - Cement Crafts idea - DIY planters
Crafts99
10:02
01. Creative From Cement and Broken Ceramic Tiles
R661idea
3:30
[HOT] The floor that used to be cement meets terracotta tiles and is reborn exoticly, 구해줘! 홈즈 230817
MBC Entertainment
1:26
5 Different Ways To Jazz Up Subway Tiles (863) 655-0164
Trendterrazzo
2:23
[HOT] The top of the bathroom wall is Subway tiles!, 구해줘! 홈즈 220605
MBC Entertainment
1:52
New York Subway Tiles That Look Like Confederate Flags to be Modified
Tribune Broadcasting
1:17
3 Amazing Reasons To Decor Your Home With Subway Tiles
MyTyles
1:27
Bathroom,washroom , toilet tiles design,wall tiles design,floor tiles tiles design,small bathroom design, beautiful washroom tiles, toilet tiles design
Home decoration ideas kitchen design and washroom
4:58
Differences between Vitrified tiles and Ceramic Tiles | Which type of tile is better for construction | What is vitrified tiles? | What is Ceramic Tiles?
Nilshri-Civil Engineering World
2:09
Washroom design, bathroom tiles design, bathroom floor tiles design, bathroom wall tiles design,small bathroom design ideas, toilet tiles design,
Home decoration ideas kitchen design and washroom
0:51
top producing countries of ceramic tiles, tiles production, tiles export, production of tiles
Rajeev Saini
0:49
top exporter countries of ceramic tiles, ceramic tiles export, exporter countries of ceramic tiles
Rajeev Saini
5:10
Installation of tiles on stairs | tiles on stairs | how to install tiles on stairs
Digitech education
7:38
Washroom Tiles Design | Latest Bathroom Tiles Price in Pakistan | Matt Tiles
Hamariweb
2:54
Pink Piano Tiles | Music Tiles | Piano TIles Record | Music Game
Crazy Game Studios
5:21
properly_ tiles fixing Who too making Tiles work size 1800×900 | full size style tiles lagane ka tarika | ceramic work Ustad Sami
USTAD SAMI
0:45
top importer countries of ceramic tiles, demand of ceramic tiles, ceramic tiles export
Rajeev Saini
3:33
installing a cast iron bath tiles Floor Tiles Installation How to tile a Bathroom New Project
vetovlogss

Business Insider

1:34
The biggest bombshells from Trump's hush money trial
Business Insider
38:04
Our never-before-seen interview with Roger Corman, a Hollywood legend who revolutionized the movie business
Business Insider
6:06
The cryptocurrencies that are worth investing in, from bitcoin to altcoins to meme coins
Business Insider
22:55
How counterfeit Rolexes are produced and distributed, according to an investigator
Business Insider
20:33
NYC firefighter rates 10 firefighting scenes in movies and television
Business Insider
4:15
How Hoka became a billion-dollar brand by selling comfort
Business Insider

Featured channels

More from
SportsGrid
More from
TMZ
More from
Genius
More from
Eater
More from
AccuWeather
More from
Delish