Groglass

What Groglass does

Groglass is a Latvia-based developer and manufacturer of anti-reflective and other high-performance nano-coatings for glass and acrylic substrates, founded in 2004 and headquartered in Riga. Its core technology is vacuum-deposited, double-sided nano-coating applied with custom-built equipment that the company states is the only such installation in the world capable of producing double-sided high-performance anti-reflective coatings at scale, supporting global quality and cost leadership. The product platform is split between the Artglass sub-brand (premium anti-reflective and UV-protective glazing for picture framers, museums and cultural heritage institutions) and the Sapphire sub-brand (high-performance anti-reflective glass for architecture, electronic displays, cold storage and lighting), with a development pipeline that includes HiPIMS, PECVD, NIR-Block, anti-fog and smart chromogenic coatings for Smart Windows. The company employs approximately 150-160 people across two automated manufacturing facilities in Riga and exports to more than 45 countries, with end customers including the Louvre, Rijksmuseum, Korean National Museum, Latvian National Museum of Art, framing studios, and electronics display manufacturers.

The company sells through a hybrid go-to-market model: direct enterprise field sales backed by dedicated Account Management and Customer Service teams handling museums, electronic display OEMs and large architecture projects, combined with a regional distributor network for the SMB framing channel, supported by the proprietary Artglass Framers Map and the Framing Academy online training platform. Pricing is not publicly disclosed, with customers routed to [email protected] or local distributors. Following a January 2019 management buyout led by Founder and CEO Alexander Sasha Kelberg, with Kartesia providing over €50 million in financing (acquired from NCH Capital), the company embarked on a five-year plan to double production capacity, investing €2.3 million in capacity in 2018 and reporting €16.4 million in turnover that year. Groglass holds multiple ISO certifications (9001, 14001, 45001, 50001) and CE marking.

Name

Groglass

Legal name

Sabiedrība ar ierobežotu atbildību "GroGlass"

Website

https://groglass.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Groglass is a Riga, Latvia-based developer and manufacturer of anti-reflective and UV-protective nano-coatings for glass and acrylic, operating two facilities and exporting to 45+ countries to serve picture framers, museums, electronics display manufacturers, architects and cold storage operators.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Anti-reflective glass and coatings

NAICS

Glass Product Manufacturing Made of Purchased Glass (327215)

SIC

Glass Products, Made Of Purchased Glass (3231)

akta.pro primary industry

Low‑E, Solar Control & Energy-Efficient Coated Glass (IMADAHAF)

Keywords

• Anti-reflective glass
• UV-protective glazing
• Nano-coating manufacturing
• Picture framing glass
• Museum display glass

Headquarters

HQ city

Riga

HQ country

Latvia

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Anti-reflective glass and acrylic product sales: Groglass manufactures and sells premium anti-reflective glass and acrylic products under the Artglass and Sapphire brands. Products are sold directly to picture framers, museums, electronics manufacturers, cold storage operators, and architecture firms. The company concluded 2018 with a turnover of €16.4 million euro, with significant investments in capacity expansion and strategic growth.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Groglass manufactures and sells anti-reflective and UV-protective nano-coated glass and acrylic products under the Artglass and Sapphire sub-brands. The products serve picture framing, museum showcases, electronic displays, architecture, cold storage, and lighting applications, and reflect 13–15x less light than standard glass while blocking up to 99% of UV radiation.

Product overview

Groglass is a leading developer and manufacturer of anti-reflective and other high-performance nano coatings for glass and acrylic, serving industries including picture framing, museum showcases, electronic displays, architecture, and specialized applications. The company operates two manufacturing facilities in Riga, Latvia and exports to over 45 countries. The product portfolio is organized into two main sub-brands: Artglass (for picture framing, art display, and museum applications) and Sapphire (for architecture, electronics, cold storage, and lighting). Both sub-brands share the core anti-reflective and UV-protective coating technology platform, differentiated by application-specific formulations and performance characteristics. Additional product variants include acrylic alternatives and specialized products like NIR-Block coatings.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Artglass: Premium anti-reflective glass for picture framing, museum showcases, and art display applications. Includes products such as ARTGLASS LIFETIME ACRYLIC and ARTGLASS AR 99 WATER WHITE.
• Sapphire

Products and services

• Artglass

Quantifiable outcome

• Artglass reflects 13 times less light than regular glass, making the glass virtually invisible
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• LETERA (Latvian Electronics and Engineering Industry Cluster)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 26 March 2025GroGlass participates in the Recovery Fund project for the Latvian Electronics and Engineering Industry Cluster, aimed at supporting cluster members' internationalization and increasing private R&D investments. Project implementation period until June 30, 2026.
• SIA VMKC (Vides, bioenerģētikas un biotehnoloģijas kompetences centrs)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2023GroGlass partners with SIA VMKC as a cooperation partner in multiple competence center research projects. These include projects on magnetron sputtering technology alternatives (PECVD, ion implantation), high-power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS) for large-format glass, unified production process management system (MES), silicon nitride deposition technology, and alternative silicon aluminum targets for energy efficiency.
• Latvijas Universitātes Cietvielu fizikas institūts (LU CFI) - Latvian University Solid State Physics InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 February 2021GroGlass collaborated with LU CFI on developing an anti-fog coating using doped nanocrystalline titanium dioxide thin layers (completed 2022, reaching TRL3). Also collaborating on smart chromogenic coatings for advanced Smart Windows as part of the Recovery Fund project, with total project costs of €645,188.71 (47.1% GroGlass contribution).
• University of Latvia FoundationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGroGlass presents scholarships to physics students at the Latvian Institute for Solid State Physics in cooperation with the University of Latvia Foundation, to motivate bright young minds to study physics.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Guardian Glass: Guardian Glass is a major float and coated-glass producer offering low-E and value-added coated products; it serves overlapping architectural glazing customers but does not focus on specialty AR for framing, museum, or display applications like Groglass.
• Schott: Schott is a large German specialty glass manufacturer with broad AR and coated-glass product lines used in architecture, displays, and optics; it operates at far greater scale than Groglass and overlaps on high-end coated glass substrates and optical applications.
• Corning: Corning is a global specialty glass and ceramics leader (Gorilla Glass, Iris Glass) with strong AR-coating capabilities for consumer electronics displays; it serves overlapping large-display customers but at vastly broader portfolio and scale than Groglass.
• Saint-Gobain: Saint-Gobain is a major global glass manufacturer with low-E, coated, and AR products across architectural and specialty segments; it competes with Groglass's Sapphire storefront and architectural products while also offering SageGlass electrochromic smart windows that intersect with Groglass's smart-window R&D roadmap.
• AGC (Asahi Glass Company): AGC is one of the world's largest flat-glass producers with anti-reflective and coated-glass offerings for architecture, automotive, and electronics; it competes with Groglass in display and architectural AR glass categories at much higher volume.
• Pilkington (NSG Group): Pilkington is a major global flat-glass manufacturer offering anti-reflective and self-cleaning coated products for architectural and solar applications; it competes broadly with Groglass on coated architectural glazing but at much larger scale.

Direct peers

• Tru Vue: Tru Vue is the most direct US-headquartered competitor in anti-reflective picture-framing and museum-display glass (e.g., Museum Glass, UltraVue), serving the same premium framing and gallery customers as Groglass's Artglass line with a comparable product offering.
• Abrisa Technologies: Abrisa Technologies (a HEF Photonics company) manufactures custom anti-reflective, optical, and coated glass for display, defense, and industrial markets; it is a direct competitor in custom AR coatings on flat and curved substrates.

Emerging players

• View, Inc. View is a smart-window specialist producing electrochromic dynamic glass for commercial buildings; it intersects with Groglass's smart chromogenic coatings R&D roadmap and shares a common architectural energy-efficiency value proposition.

Regional players

• Jinjing Group: Jinjing is a leading Chinese flat-glass and coated-glass manufacturer with growing AR/low-E capability; it is a relevant Asia-based peer that increasingly competes in the same architectural and display coated-glass categories as Groglass, but from a regional production base.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/groglass
• Xx.com/GroGlass

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Groglass