Stone People: Making More by Marketing Less

By K. Schipper

BRIGHTON, Colo. – Mike Martinez’ crystal ball led him to change careers once, but today’s economy has left him with a somewhat cloudy vision of what should come next.

Martinez spent the first part of his working life in high tech. Sensing a coming downturn in that industry in Colorado –  and intrigued by what his oldest son, Anthony, was telling him about the stone industry –  he opted to purchase an existing stone shop in 2002.

Developing a strong presence in both the residential and commercial markets, Stone Concepts Inc., expanded to the point where in 2007 it moved into a new building, just about the time the market began to weaken.

Today, with fewer employees and an emphasis mainly on residential work, Martinez is still focused on turning out a quality product, but he’d like to see more stability in the market before deciding what to do next.

MAKING A MOVE

Not only was Martinez prescient when he recognized the need to change careers shortly after the turn of the century, but his skills segued nicely into his new life.

“My background is in engineering, particularly product reliability and process control,” he explains. “I was in the high-tech industry for 28 years, working mainly in Louisville (Colo.). I also knew that one day I was going to be laid off when high tech started coming apart here in Colorado.”

While Martinez was pondering his own future, he kept hearing stories from son Anthony, who had gone into the stone trade. At one time, his son worked for one of the Denver area’s largest stone fabricators.

“He kept telling me about the shops he worked at and how they ran,” says the father. “I kept thinking that we could do it better. Now, here we are.”

In May of 2002, Martinez made his move, purchasing a small stone operation only a few months old. The purchase included the building in Brighton, a community of slightly more than 30,000 people some 25 miles northeast of downtown Denver.

“Basically, we bought the saw,” says Martinez of the purchase, which included an FP 500 bridge saw from Simec S.p.A.

The senior Martinez didn’t even work at the business full time for two more years, instead spending his spare time from his other job learning the trade and, he says, reading everything he could about the business.

“Real quickly I tried to learn more than my employees, and I needed that,” he says, explaining that it’s his job to keep his eye on the big picture and not just particular aspects of the operation.

However, some of his decisions have proven to be mixed blessings. A big one was his decision to not sell directly to the public.

“I don’t sell to the public, generally,” he explains. “I don’t advertise to them. I sell through contractors and kitchen-and-bath dealers. I will sell direct if somebody has heard about us, but I don’t go after those people. I’ve always felt it was important to stay loyal to my customers. If I was selling direct, I’d be taking away from them.”  

There are certain advantages to that approach. One is that it effectively eliminates the need for a large showroom, and Martinez says Stone Concepts’ best advertisement for anyone who walks in the door is its array of granite-topped desks in the 700 ft² office.

In fact, the desktops have become something of a company specialty – one that’s featured on the business’ website. Martinez explains that one of his kitchen-and-bath dealers sells a lot of them to offices in downtown Denver.