DESIGN TILE

In what was otherwise a disastrous kitchen renovation project, my experience with Design Tile was superb. I'm stingy in doling out exceptional reviews, but Design Tile earned mine every step of the way. I visited no fewer than EIGHT different tile shops in the DC area trying to find the "right" tile for my kitchen backsplash. The store is off the beaten path, and the showroom can feel a bit overwhelming...but that's actually a good thing because it means more options. Design Tile--and specifically Susan--did a few things that were great. First, they offered great advice with respect to my color palette and needs. Many tile shops used the hard sales approach and seemed intent on trying to sell me something, even if it wasn't a great choice, but Design Tile found me multiple options that really worked. Of my four tile finalists, three of them came from Design Tile! Susan's trained eye clearly made the difference and meant that unlike other places, my time wasn't being wasted with bad options. Also, they were more than happy to let me take samples boards home. Some places are prickly about this, but Design Tile wasn't. And, after placing my order, they were responsive both via email and phone with both order status and advice. Susan even was helpful when I called her afterward for some advice on grout line sizing. There are a couple things to know so you aren't surprised by anything: * You may pay a shipping fee, and since tile is heavy, that isn't cheap. You can save a little on this by a) offering to pick tile up at the store rather than having it shipped directly, and b) waiting (if you can) for them to bundle your order with another from the same manufacturer. * It's cash and check only. They have a system where you can do an electronic transfer from your savings or checking account too. But no credit cards. Design Tile is a boutique tile shop, so if you're looking for super cheap stuff ASAP, it might not be the place for you. However, if you want a great experience and to end up with tile that you're love, make them your first stop.

Design Tile was a disaster! Design Tile told us that there was plenty of stock available for a tile we selected. However, when it was shipped to them, only about half of the tile was what we actually selected. The remainder was another color, which they tried to pass off as the same. They did not check the shipment prior to our inspecting it -- the day before our contractor was supposed to receive the tiles. There was no sense of urgency associated with the correction problem and not a lot of interest in helping us. Still unresolved.

Avoid this shop! There are plenty of reputable tile stores in Northern Virginia, but this isn't one of them. Another reviewer mentioned the showroom is "tired" inside. Let me add poorly lit and poorly organized. To see the tile in decent light, you'll have to take it outside. Worse, Design Tile's prices are nearly double that quoted by a competitor, Mosaic Tile, which has a MUCH nicer showroom. Design Tile's price for our tile order: $2,400. Mosaic Tile's price for the same order: $1,321. Design Tile wanted to charge $22.50 for a sealer product that cost $11.95 at Mosaic Tile. When we asked Design Tile to match the prices of their competitors, Letitia Marks refused. Even worse, though, was that Design Tile has old samples in their showroom. They lose track of how old the samples are, so when you place an order, the product you receive may not be the same as the sample. When our tile arrived, it was a completely different color than the sample. The whole order had to be returned, which is a MAJOR hassle when your bathroom has been torn out and contractors are trying to finish the job. When we looked into the matter, we saw a sticker that said "4/11" on the sample. Our order was placed in 5/13, so the sample was over two years old, and the manufacturer had changed color lots in the meantime. One more thing--Design Tile hides the names of the tile suppliers, to make it harder for you to comparison shop. Reputable companies do not do this. Go elsewhere for your tile needs!

I signed out some tile samples at Design Tile. At their request, I gave them a $20 check to hold until the samples were returned. When I returned the samples a week later, a designer suggested a tile but needed to order the sample. I left the check ?on hold? with Design Tile to apply towards the new sample. After 2 weeks, I received a call from the store that the sample was in. I planned to pick it up the next time I was in Vienna. Since I live at the other end of the Beltway, trekking to Vienna is time consuming. I wait to make the trip until I have several errands in that vicinity. After a while, I forgot about the sample until 5 months later. I realize 5 months is a long time--but ?hold? means hold. I?ve never had such horrible customer service, ever--until that day. And I mean, HORRIBLE. A summation of the conversation: I spoke with Letitia Marks, "President," of Design Tile Inc. She could not locate the check and in her words, "If we have been holding it and it's been 5 months, we probably threw it away." She said she didn't see what the issue was. I told her that the check contained my personal information as well as my bank account information. I also told her that ?hold? means hold. I was getting upset that she was clueless about checks and dismissing my concern. At some point in the conversation, she became very belligerent and nasty. A heated argument ensued, leading to Letitia exclaiming, "You are not the only customer!" So shocked, I said, "Oh my God!" She responded, "That's right--oh my God!"--mimicking me. Eventually she simmered down and asked what would I like her to do. I replied, ?Look harder!?

This is a really great tile shop. It doesn't look like much from the outside and seems a bit "tired" on the inside BUT they have a great selection of tile at very reasonable prices and the staff are very helpful. I spent months looking for tile and went to many different tile shops but ended up back at Design Tile because they had what I wanted and patiently worked with me to make the right tile choices.

They were just easy going and easy to work with. Their quality was great.

This place is a little gem! Ask for "Mary", she knows her stuff. Place is a bit quirky, but once you get the hang if it you're very glad you discovered them. Cash (check) only, no credit cards and they require a deposit on the tile orders. If you can get past all that, they have very high quality tiles, excellent relationships with the tile distributors, and are willing to take the time and discuss your project with you in detail. This is an amazing place well worth your time to discover. They carry or have access to many of the high quality tiles not found in most of the big box stores or carpet shops. Well Done!

I needed to replace a small number of tiles in my shower. They provided excellent help with matching very difficult to match tile. Very knowledgable. Would definitely use them again. Small busy store.

They were extremely knowledgeable and helpful in designing. They also gave me three references for tile installation. I have used one of them repeatedly. They were very efficient in getting materials as quickly as possible and they took back the materials that were not required. There was no problem and I would highly recommend them. We are planning to use them again.

Outstanding advise, assistance and service. They identified the type of tile I needed to find, and referred me to another shop because Design Tile did not carry that particular brand. Once I confirmed that I could not find an exact match from the original manufacturer, the Design Tile Manager identified a number of alternative solutions so that I would not have to tear out/replace the entire shower. Great service, with lots of expertise in ceramic tile. I would definitely go to this shop for any ceramic tile related purchases. This is a busy shop, but definitely worth the wait.

I was very pleased with the service and advice I received from Design Tile. Their showroom is organized by color, which really helped narrow down the choices. Initially I thought I wanted matte tile, and they worked with the supplier to see if they could do the tile in a particular color. That didn't work out and I wound up going with glossy tile, and I'm extremely pleased with the result. It was a pleasure working with them.

The designer completely understood from our phone conversation what we wanted. When we went to meet with her, she had selected several options within the budget. We loved what she proposed and it made what could have been a difficult choice for us extremely easy. They have a wide selection of designer and exclusive European tiles and stones, and just as important, people who are willing to help and advise. Afterwards I called to find out how to clean the tiles and was told to use Ivory dishwashing liquid!

THE STAFF AT DESIGN TILE WERE VERY HELPFUL. THEY HAVE A LARGE SELECTION OF TILES IN ALL PRICE RANGES AND LOTS OF SAMPLE BOARDS. DESIGN TILE ALSO CARRIES SLATE TILES.