▼ There's More! ▼
Artistic Granite and Marble Goes Bigger and Better
Carrie, Ron, and Chris Brown in the spacious, two-story Artistic Granite and Marble showroom, in Nicholasville, Ky. (Photo by Larry Hood)
By Peter Marcucci
When Ron Brown opened the doors of Artistic Granite and Marble in Nicholasville, Ky., in 2002, he did so with one simple idea: combine new-world technology and old-world craftsmanship with great service. Ron had been a long-time local contractor known for quality and had the credentials and résumé to prove it, with experience in several associated fields.
Ron’s son, Chris Brown, is now General Manager of the new shop, and shared an interesting backstory. “Dad was a home builder for fifteen years before transitioning into countertops. The company that installed granite in one of the houses he was building did such a terrible job, that dad purchased the slabs for the next house and fabricated them in the garage. That was the start of Artistic Granite and Marble.” The Big Move As the years passed, it was with an unwavering, laser-like focus on his quality and customers, that Ron’s company grew exponentially. As the saying “Success Breeds Success” goes, it couldn’t be any truer than what was to come next for the company. A move to a larger facility was in the works in the minds of Ron and Chris, both mechanical engineers. The father/son team would soon purchase a 10,000 ft² facility in October 2020, transfer all the existing equipment, and then get the whole shebang up and running by March 2021 – but not without a few bumps in the road, explained Chris. “The week we were supposed to tear down, move and reinstall our BACA sawjet, an ice storm hit. BACA was scheduled months out at the time, so we had to get it moved that day or else we would be out of a saw for months! That resulted in me driving it on the front of a forklift – in the snow – about a mile down the highway.
MSI Calacatta Classique quartz kitchen for a 2017 St. Jude Dream Home construction project, materials, fabrication, and installation donated by Artistic Granite and Marble. (Photo courtesy Artistic Granite and Marble.)
"We love our BACA sawjet. It has always been the focal point of the fab shop with everything else built off of that.”
Read more in the November issue of the Slippery Rock Gazette.
▼ There's More! ▼
Non-Traditional Ways to Grow Your Countertop Shop in 2023
By Steven Alberts Countertop Marketing cOMPANY
The more we work with more fabricators, we more we discover what brings about a revenue increase in retail countertop shops. I wanted to break down a plan that you should follow for your shop in 2023 that’s a little different than the normal marketing plan. 2022 was a good year, and most likely you were pretty busy with plenty of jobs. Being busy and growing your business is great. The problem is that sometimes you and your team are so busy, you’re not planning for the future when things may slow down. Plan for the worst. I don’t like being negative, but planning for a decrease in business is a realistic way to run your countertop shop. You need backup plans and strategy for when the jobs aren’t rolling in as much as they are at the current time. With our clients, towards the end of the year business was slowing down for many pockets of the U.S. Here are a few tips covering what you should focus on in 2023 and some non-traditional ways to tackle some of your marketing. Your website needs to be top-notch. I mentioned in my last article (www.slipperyrockgazette.net/archives/Nov2022) that we see a lot of outdated countertop shop websites. The industry is a little behind other industries with online marketing, but we see it slowly catching up. This means your competitors are starting to put money into their online presence, and this all starts with a website. More than 50% of your website traffic is on mobile devices and this is only going to increase. Your website needs to be super mobile-friendly and fast.
Two things to also think about in 2023 are voice search (people talking into devices to search for countertops) and also compliancy for people with disabilities. There is a new type of lawsuit out there that lawyers are cashing in on: going after websites that aren’t ADA-compliant. Make sure your new site is ready for these two factors in the new year.
Read more in the December issue of the Slippery Rock Gazette.
▼ There's More! ▼
Planning for Success
By Ed Young Fabricator's Coach
So, you’ve taken all the advice in these articles for the past year, your business is running more smoothly, and now you are wondering what to do next. The answer: Craft your 2023 plan for the business now. As you consider what 2023 may have in store, you may have questions like: I think I need to add an install crew – will I have the sales to sustain them? I want to start a marketing campaign – can I afford it? If I add a salesperson, when will I need to add that new templator? As we grow, I know we need more shop employees – but it will increase my costs – can I afford them? A great aid in answering these questions is to put together a month-to-month plan that not only forecasts your sales but also helps you think through what staff changes you need to make as your sales change. For this article we’ll assume increasing sales during 2023. If you are expecting the opposite, the same logic applies – but in reverse. Step 1 Head to www.FabricatorsCoach.com/free-helpful-tools to download the spreadsheet. Step 2 Forecast your sales changes for 2023. Hopefully you are continuously talking to local economic development people, local home builders’ association, chamber of commerce, and your customers to keep your finger on the pulse of your local economy. Use this data plus your experience to forecast sales levels for each month. Remember to include the impact of your normal seasonal patterns.
In the spreadsheet, you can enter the sales volume you anticipate for each month, or you can estimate the additional jobs you expect to add for each month. To use this feature, you will also need to have some data on the average sales price of your jobs. The spreadsheet will calculate the monthly impact of those added jobs. Keep in mind that this is your best guess based on the information you have today. It won’t be perfect, but it is essential for planning out next year. As the year progresses and as you have new information, go back and adjust your forecast accordingly…
Continued in the December 2022 issue of the Slippery Rock Gazette.
Also coming in the December 2022 issue of the Slippery Rock Gazette
The Power of Expression in Stone: Julie Warren Conn
Cochise Marble: A Surprise in the Arizona Desert
▼ There's More! ▼
Publisher’s Corner
By Rick Stimac, BB Industries President/CEO
BB Industries is expanding operations and product offerings for 2023. We’re hard at work completing our 2023 Catalog, available in January 2023 - just call and ask for one.
Our New Salt Lake City Fulfillment Center expansion officially opened in mid-November. We have essentially doubled our Utah (and points west) distribution capabilities. We’ve tooled up to supply the high demand for essential fabrication products. As always, BBI is committed to our money-back guarantee and providing first-class service for all of our products, including our fabricator-favorite Envy sinks.
We’ve been working with a top manufacturer to add more of the popular sizes of stainless-steel sinks to our Envy line. We’ve invested significant resources to make sure we can offer a complete stainless line – for you and your customers.
Our goal is to provide unparalleled service levels as our multiple, well-stocked facilities can ship Envy sinks and many other products quickly across the entire country. If you want sinks, we have them in stock, with a same-day shipping commitment to the entire U.S. .
BBI is sincerely dedicated to being Right There With You in all aspects of stone fabrication. Partner with us for a better bottom line in 2023.
4100 Appalachian Way Knoxville, TN 37918
Hours of Operation: Monday - Friday 7:30AM - 6:00PM (Eastern Time)