(CNN) -- One of Holland's most prestigious pottery makers, the Royal Delft Group, is promoting its heritage to combat the rise of copycat producers selling cheaper versions of traditional blue and white earthenware. Royal Delft Group, now 360-years old, is the only Delft Blue potter with a seal of approval from the Dutch royal family. The company hosts more than 120,000 visitors a year to its Rotterdamseweg base, to showcase how the pottery is made. Watch more: DSM: Europe needs innovation But the traditional producer is facing challenges from imitators keen to grab a share of the market. Royal Delft Group CEO Henk Schouten, speaking to CNN, said the style was now being copied "everywhere in the world." He added: "It's not a solution for us to get rid of that."Royal Delft influenced by Chinese pottery, after Dutch tradesman brought back porcelain from the Far East in the 1600sRoyal Delft is the sole remaining plant of 32 earthenware factories established around the industryThe company hosts more than 120,000 visitors a year to showcase how the pottery is made
It proved popular with the _, and potters began developing a similar style with local clay.