It’s been said that necessity is the mother of invention. And in 2005, the City of Beaufort had one huge necessity. “They were rebuilding the waterfront and wanted to lay down something similar to what they originally had, which was form-poured tabby,” said Savannah Surfaces owner Jonathan Rhangos. There was just one catch. “Over time, mother nature had taken its toll on the original tabby, so it was heaving and cracking. And they asked us to find a solution that they wouldn’t have to come back and repair in five to ten years.”
The City of Beaufort had come to the right place. As the Lowcountry’s premiere provider of stone, tiles, pavers, bricks and anything else you need for interior or exterior surfaces, Savannah Surfaces is well-versed in balancing beauty and durability. The situation called for a solution. What Savannah Surfaces came up with was something so much bigger than just one park.
“We said, ‘Why not try making tabby as a modular paver?’ That way it won’t crack or degrade over time. And if it does it’s an easy fix,” Rhangos said. “So that’s what we did.”
Whereas traditional tabby is poured in large molds, as it has been for centuries, Savannah Surfaces found a way to pour the blend of shells, sand and lime and into a paver-depth mold. Once the material hardens, they buff off the top and expose the beautiful oyster shells underneath. It’s the same material as the tabby that has come to serve as a visual shorthand for our region, just smarter.
Their new product line, Old World Tabby, was born. The modular nature of this new product meant that it was easier than ever for builders and remodelers to infuse a home’s design with tabby, giving it that signature look of the Lowcountry. And if you’ve noticed how incredibly popular tabby accents and walkways are in new-build and renovated homes lately, you can imagine how quickly demand grew.
“The only drawback is that it’s labor intensive,” Rhangos said. “We quickly found out we could only produce a certain amount. We produce it, then we sell out.”
Once again, necessity reared its head and Savannah Surfaces was more than ready for the challenge of invention. What they needed was something that carried the distinctive look and feel of tabby, its contrast of gritty sand and sparkling oyster, but could be mass produced. This time, what they would create would prove popular far beyond the Lowcountry.
“We came up with the idea of doing it in porcelain, so we went to Italy and had them digitally imprint the original onto porcelain tile,” Rhangos said. “So, it looks amazing, but it can be mass produced, and it has no absorption, so it’s low-maintenance and very easy to clean.”
The skeptical among you might be thinking that a photograph digitally imprinted onto tile can’t possibly look and feel like the real thing. Which makes it unfortunate that you can’t physically put your hands on one of these Old World Tabby tiles through a magazine. Because in person, the effect is astonishing.
Get as close as you like, run your fingers across its surface. On some intellectual level you’ll know that it’s actually a tile, but your fingertips and your eyes will argue vehemently that what you’re touching is the same classic tabby used in countless Lowcountry homes throughout history. Every tactile nuance of tabby is there, the grit and the luster. It’s just more cost effective.
“As you go into making this as a mass-produced product, it’s much easier to install, plus it’s very durable and has a very good price point,” Rhangos said. “So, people who wanted the product, but didn’t have the budget for it now had a vehicle to use tabby.”
These new tiles have already turned up in scores of different projects, ideally suited for pool decks, lanais, accent walls, and even driveways.
As with the first time they poured tabby into paver molds, Savannah Surfaces knew they were onto something much bigger. Setting up a wholesale company for this ingenious new product, they began exporting the look and feel of Lowcountry tabby across the country. Hundreds of distributors now sell tabby in more than 20 states as well as a few Caribbean islands.
“The goal is to go nationwide in the next two years,” Rhangos said.
But beyond simply selling a product, with Old World Tabby, Savannah Surfaces is introducing the world to the unique beauty found in Lowcountry homes. “We wanted to create a product that was indigenous to the area,” Rhangos said. “We have a lot of sand here, but not a lot of rock quarries. So, we wanted something that felt like part of the area and told the story. Because it does. Tabby has a real history in the Southeast … and people are always interested in Southern stories.”
Visit savannahsurfaces.com or savannahsurfaceswholesale.com to view the full range of Old World Tabby.
