The company

Since 1984, the year when the company was established, Abdennadher Group has been thriving backed by the ambitious vision, impassioned enthusiasm and resolute will of its founder and CEO, Lotfi Abdennadher. Over a few decades, Mr. Abdennadher has earned a strong reputation in the world of industry. Thus, his Group grew into a major player in many sectors, including in ceramics sanitaryware.

 

SOMOCER, the SociétéModerne de Céramique was established in 1984 and purchased by Abdennadher Group four years later. SOMOCER manufactures and sells ceramic tiles, porcelain stoneware, earthenware andsanitaryware: cast-iron and acrylic bathtubs.

 

Extending over a surface area of 22 Ha in Menzel Hayet, Monastir, SOMOCER has more than 700 employees with a 20% integration rate, free board at the workplace and free ransportation.

 

To diversify its product offering, SOMOCER built a new plant to produce and sell stoneware ceramic tiles for floor and wall covering, including formats that range between 15*15 cm up to 1m*50 cm and 80*80. In 2004, SOTEMAIL was thus born as one of our subsidiaries.

 

SOTEMAIL, located in Souassi, Mahdia, and the first of its kind in Africa thanks to its automated production lines, has constantly kept its workers and technicians abreast of the latest trends in technology, thus becoming a key player on the local market. Based on its vigorous ceramics cluster, the Group has started to extend its international reach. Already very popular in Tunisia, the top-quality, innovative products of SOMOCER and SOTEMAIL have everything it takes to please customers abroad.

 

SOMOCER and SOTEMAIL, its subsidiary, have been listed since 2002 and 2004, respectively and are ISO 9001-2008 certified. The parent company has thus created :

  • ABC : Abdennadher Bricolage Center, established in 1996, is the largest network for the distribution and marketing of high-end, well-renowned local and imported products, such as ceramic tiles, sanitaryware and other equipment.

  • SOMOSAN: a subsidiary of SOMOCER established in 2012 to offer fine porcelain sanitaryware for bathrooms and kitchens to complete the range of SOMOCER products.

 

To amortize the cost of production and enhance competitiveness both locally and worldwide, SOMOCER Group considered building its own factory of cardboard boxes and wooden pallets. This was done in 2017 through the establishment of the SociétéModerne de Conditionnement (SMC), a new subsidiary, which, together with SOMOCER, SOTEMAIL, SOMOSAN and ABC, the distribution chain, have given rise to SOMOCER Group.

 

To help curb unemployment, the companies operating under the SOMOCER Group employ more than 1000 workers and staff members in their many outlets throughout the country, particularly in the least developed regions, and strive to continually improve the working conditions. Thus, the Group has invested 170.000.000 TND for the purposes of corporate development and job creation.

 

Because the SOMOCER Group subsidiaries operate in fields that require an increasingly high level of technical skills and know-how, proper training is key to keeping pace with the latest trends in technology. For the Group’s management, this has always been a major area of focus as proper mastery of the production tools enhances performance and creates the conditions conducive to the production of articles that are a cut above the rest for the sake of the consumer.

 

Through its subsidiaries, SOMOCER Group intends to go a step further and to expand its reach. In 2016, this has translated into a partnership with Leroy Merlin, a French mass retail brand in the field of construction, DIY and gardening. Thanks to its 100% Tunisian expertise, SOMOCER is one of the attractions of CERSAIE, the large international fair of the sector, recently held in Italy.

 

Today, our reputation has become also international as we conquer new markets in Africa, latin America, Germany, Great Britain and Russia. With this new international dimension, SOMOCER Group’s sales abroad have grown tremendously, thus contributing to the country’s foreign reserves. Our motto henceforth is “Our ambitions know no limits”.

  1. 1985

  2. 1989

  3. 1993

  4. 1995

  5. 1997

  6. 2001

  7. 2002

  8. 2007

  9. 2009

  10. 2012

  11. 2013

  12. 2015

  13. 2017

  1. The inception of SOMOCER group

    In 1985, SOMOCER GROUP, an industrial company that specialise in the production and marketing of ceramic tiles for flour and wall covering (Porcelain stones are and earthware)
    And also sanitary ware (cast Iron bathtub and Arcylic bathtub) was created.

  2. Abdennadher group buys SOMOCER

    4 Years later, the group Abdennadher buys SOMOCER whose annual capacity is 360000m.

  3. Creation of the bathtub company

    1993 is the date of development of the bathtub by the ABDENNADHER group whose investment cost is 1.4 MTD.

  4. Creation of a biscuit unit

    2 years later, in 1995 a biscuit unit and a extension of the glazing unit was created with a capacity of 3,000,000 m2.
    The same year was also distinguished by the creation of ABC, one of the major distributors of all types of ceramic, sanitary and tooling products.

  5. ISO 9002 certification

    From the perspective of the quality SOMOCER group offers and thanks to its dexterity and know-how, the company acquired ISO 9002, 2000 version certification in 1997.

  6. The merger with the company LA BAIGNOIRE

    The year of the merger with the company LA BAIGNOIRE.

  7. stock market introduction

    This year is marked by the listing of the company and the creation of SOTEMAIL, a subsidiary of SOMOCER group whose investment cost is 27 MTD

  8. Creation of SOMOCER Négoce

    In order to position itself higher and require new markets, SOMOCER Nègoce was created.

  9. ISO9001 certification

    This year witnessed the optimal quality of the products to the high standards by obtaining the ISO9001, 2008 VERSION certification.
    In the same year, SOMOSAN was founded in Sfax, specializing in faucets, sanitary fitting and buildings. With an investment of 22 MTD, SOMOSAN settled in Metlaoui creating 350 jobs.

  10. The new INKJET digital printing technology

    For better quality, the new INKJET digital printing technology has been introduced to produce earthware.

  11. The extension of the powder production

    This year witnessed the extension of the powder production with an annual capacity of 8000m
    Also, another KERAJET digital printing machine was installed for the realization of the earthenware with a grinder to the polishing unit.

  12. Establishment of a production unit

    In order to generate electricity and heat, a project to set up a productions unit saw the light in 2015.

  13. Creation of SMC

    This year marks the climax of SOMOCER group’s success in the creation of SMC and the signing of a contract with Leroy Merlin, a French retailer specializing in construction, DIY and gardening.

  1. 2002

  2. 2003

  3. 2006

  4. 2008

  5. 2010

  6. 2011

  7. 2012

  8. 2013

  9. 2014

  10. 2015

  1. Creation of SOTEMAIL

    The year was marked by the creation of SOMOTEMAIL, whose initial capital is around 2,010 million dinars and the investment cost has reached four million dinars.

  2. Investment of 27 million dinars

    A year later, an investment of 17 million dinars, to be carried out in three steps, was created by the company in: production and marketing of ceramic tiles on porcelain stoneware for the coating of floors and walls.

  3. First step of the project

    In this year, the first step of the project was initiated with an annual production capacity of 700,000 m of sandstone (size 15×15cm and 20×20cm)

  4. Completion of the second phase of the project

    The legal form of the project has changed from an LLC to a SA. Completion of the second phase of the project was launched and production capacity increased to 1,600,000 m2.
    In this same year, new formats of sandstone appeared: 30×30 cm, 15×45 cm, 25×40 cm, 25×60 cm, and a new range of products with digital printing are now marketed, using Inkjet technology.
    The investment cost at the end of these two phases reached 17 million dinars.

  5. ISO 9001 version 2008 certification

    In line with the quality of SOTEMAIL products, the company obtained the ISO 9001 version 2008 Certi fi cation.
    This is a guarantee of trust for customers who now benefit from high-end products.

  6. The reframing of the third and final phase of the investment

    The year was marked by the reframing of the third and final phase of the investment which cost in total 39 million dinars.

  7. Membership of the 1st Upgrade Program

    SOTEMAIL has joined the 1st Program of Upgrade for the realization of the investment with a total amount allocated of the premium of the order of 3.5 million dinars.
    A ceremony was held at the headquarters of the Tunis Stock Exchange, in the presence of the Chairman of the Conseil du Marché Financier, the heads of the Tunis Stock Exchange, the central depositary and the brokerage companies, as well as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the company.

  8. stock market introduction

    En 2013, SOTEMAIL a été introduite sur le marché alternatif de la Cote de la Bourse devenant ainsi la 71 e société Tunisienne à rejoindre la bourse.

    A cette occasion, une cérémonie a été organisée au siège de la Bourse de Tunis, en présence du Président du Conseil du Marché Financier, des dirigeants de la Bourse de Tunis, du
    dépositaire central et des sociétés d’intermédiation en bourse, ainsi que le Président du Conseil d’Administration de la société

  9. The third phase of the extension project was completed

    The third phase of the extension project was completed and two new production lines were integrated and brought into production, bringing production capacity to 4.5 million m2.
    New ranges of porcelain stoneware in the mass with different formats and finishes have been added to the range of SOTEMAIL products.

  10. Opening of a subsidiary in Russia

    In order to position itself in new markets with high potential, SOTEMAIL has opened a subsidiary in Russia.
    At the end of the same year, a 20% increase in turnover was recorded, 89% of which came from the local market.
    In addition, investments made in 2015 decreased by 31% compared to the previous year.

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