In 2014, siblings Mory and Lyssia Katan decided, “The world wasn’t colorful enough.” Inspired by the traditional cement tiles found in Europe, they embarked on a journey to bring exquisitely designed, handcrafted tiles to the American market.
“This is our way to give people the option to create homes that really reflect them, rather than a home that you’re designing to sell,” says Lyssia Katan, LiLi’s creative director. “With cement tiles, we can create custom colors and designs for very small minimum quantities because each tile is made individually. It’s not a production run like a porcelain would be.” Additionally, unlike porcelain which requires extremely high heat to manufacture—and thus energy expenditure—cement tiles are simply molded and pressed.
But aesthetics is only one part of LiLi’s mission. Mory and Lyssia are also laser-focused on protecting the environment, a commitment that prompted them to partner with Carbon Limit, a Florida-based climate tech company. The firm makes a powder additive that captures CO2 from the air and permanently stores it in concrete. Carbon Limit works with the Department of Transportation, among others, but LiLi is the first time the additive has been used in tile.
While the tiles continue to capture CO2 for a full year, most of the absorption happens during the time they are manufactured and transported to the customer.
“It’s basically a sponge at that point,” says Mory Katan, LiLi’s chief technology officer.
And there’s an added benefit as well. Testing from the University of Miami showed that not only do the tiles capture carbon dioxide, the mineralization process that occurs actually makes them up to 20% harder. “So it increases the toughness of the tile while being green at the same time,” Lyssia says.