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Our shop does a huge volume of solid surface. We have been subbing out all of our granite and quartz work for quite some time. For the last year, we have been doing all the templating and installations for all quartz and granite tops. the reason is to keep other granite and quartz fabricators away from our customer base and also we like the money we make. Recently, we have taken a huge step and have invested in stone equipment. We have thought long and hard about this. It has no effect on our solid surface, but it will have and effect on our company’s ability to perform as a full service shop. It keeps all of the competition away from our builders, retailers, etc. The production side of the business is solid surface. The quartz and granite will be secondary, but as a business owner I felt we needed to make this move. I do see granite dying down. It will never go away, but good grief the margins on quartz I like very much and lets face it it is here to stay. It doesn’t mean you have to be doing it. I have made it my choice to start fabricating it and investing in the equipment.
Mory
I agree with Mory, we made the decision some time back to start servicing Granite along with what we are already doing with Quartz. These products are here to stay and so are we if the rest of you will have us.
I’m with Karl on this. We LOVE Granite!! It fails quicker, requires more maintenance, is more expensive to fix and has no warranty whatsoever. From a R&R company’s viewpoint, it is the perfect surface.
It is just a shame that customers generally have no idea what they are in for when it is sold to them.
Gordon, you are probally getting sick of this question, but can I quote you on that? I can just use first name and “a counter top repair business” if it will lead to lost business.
Mory I think it is a very smart business move. Your in the countertop business to make money. You educate your customers as to all the pros and cons and then allow them to purchase what they want. You can personally like one material or another but lets face it, there is no “one right top for everyone”. Every product has its place in the marketplace. Just because I like blue doesn’t meant I don’t sell green, I sell what my customers want. May I ask why you have decided not to do granite also? Warranty?
The only reason that decision was hard for me to call, Wags, is it meant that I no longer sold tops that only I made. It sounds silly, I suppose, at least in the rearview, but it meant a lot at the time.
I look at one of our fabricators of hard surface product and I see a shop that I could never become. There are true craftsmen there and I wish they could fabricate all of our hard surface material. I know laminate, and I know solid surface. That’s enough for me, but I’m not going to pretend that these guys don’t make a product worthy to sell.
Tom
Tom I fully understand.. I use to make all my own cabinet doors… till I realised I was in this to make money, and my customers could care less who made them. I started purchasing my doors and doubled my capacity. Think thats called “experience”. Its why some of my largest customers are Stone shops that I help get into Solid Surface. And I was forced into it when I could not get a Solid Surface shop to want to do shower walls. I approached stone shops doing builder business, asked how many baths they did and explained how I could get them into that business. One large shop saw “the wisdom” of ME :).. Within two weeks they were installing Solid Surface Vanities and Shower surrounds.
Al, quote away. I would prefer for my phone not to ring on this, so anonymity would be good.
Wags, Tom, you are certainly not alone. Most of the multi-surface shops out here that we work with have thier wet work done elsewhere. It appears to be the only way to stay completely competitive and diversified at the same time.
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