Our MORTEX® Expertise

Fifteen years dedicated to one material, one obsession: quality.

An expertise that preceded the trend

When béton ciré and micro-cement became fashionable, I had already been working with MORTEX® for more than ten years. Before the current noise, before the online comparison tools, before the explosion of brands copying the aesthetic codes of the material without mastering its application, I was already in the workshop, learning this material in every detail.

My name is Jonathan Macarez. I completed my first training at Beal International in 2010, in Fernelmont, Belgium, with the manufacturer of MORTEX® itself. Since then, I have never stopped working with this material. Fifteen years later, I am one of the few European workshops to have built its entire activity exclusively around MORTEX® and its terrazzo variant, BEALSTONE®.

The Concrete Table Co., the workshop you are discovering on this site, was founded in 2023. It is the culmination of a fifteen-year journey, structured to offer one precise thing: handmade MORTEX® tables, by a single craftsman, in a 350 m² workshop located in Steenokkerzeel, near Brussels.

To date, nearly 400 tables have left the workshop to join interiors in Belgium, France, Switzerland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Spain, Portugal, Andorra, Monaco and as far as the United States.

The journey that brought me here

I started in 2007 in the family business, in the construction sector, focused on finishing and decoration. It was in that context that I discovered the need to go further than what classical techniques offered. In 2010, I became self-employed. That same year, I encountered MORTEX® for the first time.

That encounter changed everything. I immediately knew I was dealing with a different material — technically more demanding than conventional decorative renders, but also infinitely more expressive. I trained at Beal International, which develops and manufactures MORTEX® from Fernelmont. And I have never stopped learning: decorative techniques, specific applications, complex finishes, the behaviour of the material on difficult substrates. In this craft, you never finish learning.

Over several years, the business grew. I built a team, reaching up to twenty people at its peak, on large-scale projects lasting six months to a year. But as the company grew, I was moving further from what had made me choose this profession: creation, material, gesture.

I made a rare decision in the entrepreneurial world: stop everything and return to the workshop. Not out of failure, but out of coherence. I wanted to rediscover direct contact with the material, to create every day, to speak with every client, to make every piece with my own hands. That choice gave birth to The Concrete Table Co. in 2023, then to Artelior in 2024, my registered trademark for the most expressive and artistic pieces.

Why I specialised exclusively in tables

Many MORTEX® applicators work on a bit of everything: floors, walls, bathrooms, showers, staircases, worktops, sometimes a few tables. I went through all of that. For years, I applied MORTEX® on every possible substrate, and it is precisely that earlier versatility that allows me, today, to be relevant when it comes to tables.

Because knowing a material is not knowing how to apply it in favourable conditions. It is knowing how it behaves in a shower subject to permanent humidity. How it reacts on a ceiling, where gravity works against you. How it lives on a floor, subject to foot traffic, shocks, falling objects. How it takes shape on curves, rounded edges, complex structures.

That knowledge accumulated over fifteen years allows me today to make precise decisions about every table. I know what will hold over time and what will disappoint. I know which creative choices are possible and which ones open the door to problems two years down the line.

The decision to focus exclusively on tables came from a simple conviction: it is the piece of furniture that demands the most technical precision. A table is handled, dirtied, rubbed, moved, exposed to light, stains and daily impacts. There is no room for approximation. And that is exactly the territory that fascinates me.

An expertise proven across all uses of the material

Fifteen years working MORTEX® in all its applications is not a marketing argument. It is a precise technical asset. I have seen the material succeed, I have seen the material fail. I have lived through the setbacks that few recent applicators have had time to encounter: unexpected reactions on certain substrates, drying problems in overly humid weather, colour variations to correct mid-application, unforeseen site issues that had to be resolved on the spot.

That cumulative experience teaches me one essential thing: MORTEX® can do anything, but not everywhere.

On a wall, in a decorative zone without repeated contact, you can allow yourself marked textures, reliefs, very expressive effects. That is even part of the magic of the material: it can be raw, sculptural, alive.

On a table, it is the opposite. The contact of hands, plates, glasses, the passage of cleaning cloths, daily use — all of this demands a much stricter application discipline. A too-open or too-rough texture traps dirt and stains prematurely. It is technically achievable, it can even look very attractive in a photograph. But six months later, the client regrets it.

An applicator who has only ever worked on tables does not always know why this rule exists. An applicator who has spent fifteen years seeing the material in every configuration knows it in their gestures.

The workshop: 350 m² entirely dedicated to manufacturing

The workshop is located in Steenokkerzeel, approximately 15 kilometres north-east of Brussels, near the airport. It covers approximately 350 m² and is exclusively dedicated to the manufacture of tables and detachable furniture elements: benches, consoles, tops, sculptural pieces. No external site work. No dispersion. Everything that leaves this workshop goes through the same process, in the same conditions of temperature, controlled humidity, cleanliness and care.

All MORTEX® applications are carried out by myself. No subcontracting, no intermediate applicator. When you order a table from The Concrete Table Co., it is my hand that applies each layer, that sands, that checks, that varnishes. This continuity of the artisan gesture is not a detail: it is the guarantee that no piece leaves the workshop without having been judged against my own standards.

The workshop is also my showroom. I do not have a separate, pristine presentation space with pieces staged on a podium. What you see when visiting the workshop are the real pieces being manufactured: some at the structural stage, others mid-application of MORTEX®, others still drying after varnishing. For clients who visit, it is a more authentic experience than a commercial showroom. You see the material, you touch the surfaces, you understand what you are ordering. Visits are by appointment.

Official applicator trained by Beal International

MORTEX® is a patented material, developed and manufactured by Beal International from Fernelmont, in Belgium. It is one of the very few decorative mineral materials whose application requires genuine technical training with the manufacturer. Beal does not train just anyone, and does not recognise just anyone as an applicator capable of representing the quality of the material.

I completed my first training at Beal in 2010, and have never stopped training since. All the official certifications that Beal issues, I have obtained. Today, I am listed in Beal International's official applicator directory. More concretely still, when Beal receives a client request that matches my target audience and region, that request is redirected to me.

This direct relationship with the manufacturer has two practical consequences. First, I always work with original MORTEX®, never with compatible or equivalent products whose long-term quality cannot be guaranteed. Second, when a precise technical question arises, I can communicate directly with Beal's engineers, one hour's drive from my workshop. That geographical proximity to the creator of the material is an advantage that few European workshops can claim.

The dual signature: MORTEX® and BEALSTONE®

Beal International does not only develop MORTEX®. The company also manufactures BEALSTONE®, a next-generation mineral terrazzo and granito coating that makes it possible to achieve continuous, joint-free surfaces from 2 mm thickness, with a virtually infinite variety of incorporated aggregates.

I began working with BEALSTONE® in 2015, during a large project where we cast a U-shaped worktop in a single piece, with no visible joint. The stonemason who was working on the project at the time was struck by the result: the material was perfectly homogeneous, the skirting was cast in the same shade with the same aggregates, and the visual result gave the impression of a sculptural monolith.

Ten years later, I am one of the very few workshops in Europe that masters both MORTEX® and BEALSTONE® simultaneously. These two materials respond to two opposing aesthetic intentions. MORTEX® is a mineral béton ciré — smooth, matte or velvety, with a contemporary purity. BEALSTONE® is an expressive terrazzo, with visible aggregates, material contrasts, a bold character. One seeks restraint, the other claims presence.

Working with both Beal ranges allows me to offer the same client the possibility of combining these worlds within their project. A dining table in MORTEX® with a side table in BEALSTONE®, for example, in a consistency of workshop and finish that few manufacturers can guarantee.

How I make a table

Every table begins with a conversation. Before the slightest technical gesture, I take the time to discuss with the client: about their room, its dimensions, circulation constraints, the interior, the light, everyday uses. If the client has a visual reference, we talk about it. If something already exists in the collection but needs adjusting, we adjust it. If the request goes off the beaten track, we look together for the most appropriate solution.

I then draw proposals with precise dimensions and form choices that take into account what the room genuinely allows. On colours, the same applies: I guide the client towards what will work well with their interior, whether they are looking for a piece that blends into a harmony or, on the contrary, an object that marks the space.

The manufacturing itself follows a rigorous process. I first build the technical structure of the top and the base. The substrate is prepared according to the strict application rules of MORTEX®. I then apply the material in successive layers, respecting the drying times and technical protocols that Beal has refined over decades.

Polishing is a mandatory step. I want to state this clearly, because it is one of the points by which you can recognise sloppy work: a raw MORTEX®, left with its visible imperfections, is not an aesthetic choice — it is a poorly finished job. On a table, which is handled daily, polishing is not optional.

Varnishing follows — an essential step for long-term durability. I select the protective finishes best suited to the intended use of each table, systematically prioritising long-term durability.

After varnishing comes full drying. One week is required for the piece to be truly stable. Once that period has elapsed, the table is cleaned, inspected from every angle, carefully packaged and dispatched by private carrier.

The lead time between order and dispatch from the workshop is 4 to 6 weeks on average. This time allows every stage of manufacturing, drying and quality control to be respected, without compromise.

Mastering colours: from the colour chart to full bespoke

MORTEX® is delivered by Beal in white. The colour is obtained by adding pigments during the preparation of the mix. This means two things. First, there is no major technical complexity in moving from one shade to another: the official Beal colour chart, which offers more than 80 colours, is fully available to my clients. Second, and this is rarer, I can create entirely personalised shades through my own pigment blends.

This bespoke colourimetry is a service that few workshops genuinely offer. It involves starting from a reference provided by the client, or by their interior architect, and reproducing it in the material by testing blends, adjusting dosages, and producing samples for validation before the table goes into production.

It is patient work, sometimes iterative, that demands real knowledge of pigment behaviour. But the result is unique: a table that fits exactly into the palette of a project, down to the most precise nuances.

Finishes can also be adjusted: matte, satin, waxed, through to ultra-gloss. All variants are possible, provided they have been considered in advance alongside the chosen shade, because the visual effect of a MORTEX® depends as much on the pigment as on the finish.

Indoor and outdoor tables: the true sign of expertise

If you are comparing several MORTEX® workshops before ordering, look at what they offer for outdoor use. Many applicators present a catalogue of indoor tables but do not offer outdoor tables. For me, that is a clear signal.

A MORTEX® table destined for outdoor use is not more difficult to make in terms of gesture, but it requires a perfect understanding of the material, the protective treatments and their long-term behaviour. You need to know how to manage humidity variations, thermal shocks, UV exposure, driving rain. You need to select the right protective treatments, the right application protocol, and anticipate what will happen in two, five, ten years.

An applicator who does not offer outdoor tables generally does not have the certainty that their work will hold in those conditions. It is a form of technical admission. The fact that I regularly manufacture outdoor MORTEX® tables is the direct consequence of fifteen years spent understanding this material in every configuration.

Proof through personal experience: my own floor for fifteen years

When a client hesitates to invest in a MORTEX® table, I sometimes tell them about my own floor.

At home, in my house, the floor is in MORTEX®. I laid it fifteen years ago, at the time when I was discovering the material. I have never reapplied any protective treatment since. The floor is used every day — it endures the passage of shoes, falling objects, the wear of a constantly moving household. And it has barely changed.

If a floor can hold up for fifteen years in those conditions without any touch-up, a table — which you do not walk on and which you maintain occasionally — should be able to last at least as long. On that basis, I estimate the lifespan of a workshop-made table at 10 to 15 years under normal conditions of use, and probably longer with regular maintenance.

I do not offer my clients a material I would not use in my own home. That is perhaps the most honest guarantee I can offer.

How to recognise an experienced MORTEX® workshop

The recent success of béton ciré and micro-cement has opened the market to many companies. That is positive for the visibility of the material, but it complicates the picture for a client trying to understand where genuine expertise lies. Here are some factual reference points that can help you compare with full knowledge.

A workshop that actually manufactures the table. Several companies position themselves as béton ciré table specialists, but in practice they only apply the coating on structures manufactured elsewhere. A genuine MORTEX® table workshop masters both dimensions: the design and construction of the piece, then the application of the material on top. This dual mastery allows technical constraints to be anticipated from the design phase and guarantees the coherence of the final result.

The presence of outdoor tables in the catalogue. A MORTEX® table destined for outdoor use requires a thorough understanding of the material's behaviour in UV, humidity and thermal variations. A workshop that offers both indoor and outdoor tables demonstrates extended expertise with the material across all its configurations.

Clearly executed polishing. On a table, polishing is a mandatory technical step. It closes the material, smooths the surface and ensures the piece will withstand daily use. When some workshops offer raw tables at a reduced price, these are in fact pieces that are technically unfinished. A MORTEX® table worthy of the name is always polished.

Client reviews on verifiable platforms. Trustpilot, Google Business, Houzz: these platforms allow any client to testify freely, without the workshop's involvement. A site that only presents testimonials written directly on its own pages, without verifiable external references, deserves a closer look.

A clear history with the material. MORTEX® is a material that has long been used on floors, walls and showers. A workshop with prior experience in these applications has accumulated a technical knowledge of the material that a newcomer — who has only been making tables for a few months — cannot have.

The purpose of these reference points is not to criticise anyone. It is simply to help clients ask the right questions and recognise what separates a fully realised piece of work from a rushed one.

My values: honesty, exigence, refusal of compromise

What guides me every day in the workshop comes down to a few principles.

Commercial honesty. My prices are calibrated in line with the work actually carried out: the time spent on each piece, the quality of materials, the technical standards of application and finishing. I prefer a fair price that reflects the reality of artisan manufacturing over an inflated positioning without genuine technical substance.

My guarantee is the legal guarantee of two years. Not out of fear of committing to longer, but out of coherence: I do not want to promise what depends on how the client uses it. The actual lifespan of a workshop-made table far exceeds this guarantee, as illustrated by my own MORTEX® floor laid fifteen years ago.

Exigence on every piece. Regardless of accumulated experience, I doubt myself on every table. I walk around it, look at it from every angle, pass by it ten or fifteen times before validating it. I have restarted tables solely because I was not happy with the final result, even though the client would never have noticed the difference. I know that. But my own exigence demanded it of me.

Respect for the material. MORTEX® is not paint. It has a life of its own — nuances, micro-variations that are part of its identity. Some small imperfections are not mistakes: they are proof that a human hand made the piece. It is that tension between technical exigence and acceptance of the material's singularity that creates the magic of a true MORTEX® table.

Direct contact, from brief to delivery. When you order a table from The Concrete Table Co., you are communicating with the person who will make it. I am the one who draws, who builds the structure, who applies the MORTEX®, who polishes, who varnishes, who checks. This continuity of gesture, from the first conversation through to dispatch, is part of what distinguishes a workshop where every piece is carried by a craftsman from an operation where design, manufacturing and finishing are entrusted to different people.

A demanding clientele, in Belgium and Europe

The workshop today serves a clientele that combines demanding private clients and interior design professionals.

Private clients represent a significant part of the activity. These are people looking for quality furniture made by a genuine craftsman, who refuse the illusion of authenticity sold by certain industrialised brands.

Interior architects and decorators form another essential part of the clientele, in Belgium and particularly in France — in Paris and the south. These professionals integrate the workshop's tables into their client projects because they know they can rely on the coherence between the brief, the execution and the final result.

Some projects are also developed for galleries and for pieces with strong artistic character, through the Artelior brand, created in 2024 to carry the most expressive creations from the workshop.

Reviews published on Trustpilot show a score of 4.7 out of 5, almost exclusively made up of five-star feedback. It is an independent, verifiable platform on which any client can testify freely.

The partnership with Barbara Cox, a Belgian artist recognised for her singular chromatic universe, gave rise to a widely noticed creative collaboration. We developed together several pieces derived from my models: a console and a table whose top was detached to become a genuine painting, painted by Barbara. These pieces were featured in the press, notably in Elle Décoration and the Belgian magazine Pollen.

Let us discuss your project

If you have read this far, the workshop's approach resonates with you. Here are the three entry points to go further.

Discover the collection. The models currently available in the workshop cover the essential forms and dimensions: round, oval, rectangular and organic dining tables, coffee tables, side tables, tops and accessories. Every model is customisable in colour, finish and dimensions. View the MORTEX® dining table collection.

Request a bespoke project. If no model corresponds exactly to your project, or if your space has specific constraints, let us start from a blank page. Discover how a bespoke order works.

Visit the workshop. You can come and see the material in person, touch pieces in the process of being made, and speak directly with me about your project. Visits take place in Steenokkerzeel, by appointment. Get in touch to arrange a visit.