Interceramic and its subsidiaries are one of today’s largest manufac- turers and distributors of ceramic tile, stone and installation materi- als in Mexico, the U.S.A. Central America and China. Almeida joined Interceramic in 1979 when he was 20 years old, and became president and CEO only three years later in 1982. Almeida grew Interceramic from one factory in Chihuahua, Mexico, to 12 factories throughout Mexico and the U.S. During this period, he also established 256 retail stores in Mexico and Central America, 61 distribution centers in Mexico, 13 company-owned showrooms and three distributions centers in the U.S.A., and over 50 independent distributors in U.S. and Canada. Interceramic today also has 100 franchise stores in China. Almeida has been a strong sup- porter of the TCNA in Mexico and the U.S., serving as president of TCNA from 2006-2008 and again from 2014-2016. He provided the visionary leadership that resulted in the transition to Tile Council of North America (TCNA) from the Tile Council of America (TCA), and extended that leadership to TCNA’s environmental efforts. His vision also led to the development of TCNA training centers in Mexico – the first established in 2007, with four in existence today – and to the development of porcelain enforce- ment and customs training work in Mexico. His personal and professional accomplishments are too numerous to list here, but include board mem- bership and leadership of organiza- tions, corporations and groups both in the tile industry in the U.S. and Mexico as well as local service for the arts, education business, St. Jude and Big Brothers Big Sisters. Astrachan presented Almeida with a framed tile mural hand- crafted by Marc Holm of AD Studios in Elgin, Texas. The French Renaissance “Revival Knight on Horse” mural from AD Studios’ Historic Tile Series was originally carved by a Parisian master wood- carver, circa 1875-1885. Young Victor Almeida quickly became president and CEO of Interceramic in only three years. The “Revival Knight on Horse” mural from Marc Holm of AD Studios was pre- sented to Almeida by TCNA’s execu- tive director Eric Astrachan. TCNA AT COVERINGS ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 90 TileLetter | June 2017