UMI Stone Hosts Artisan Group Showcase
ATLANTA – This year’s Artisan Showcase offered members of the Artisan Group a new format for exploring new tools, technologies and industry best practices.
Hosted by UMI Stone, the May 13-15 event aimed to inspire collaboration, spark innovation, and celebrate craftsmanship among member of the Artisan Group, an elite network of independent stone fabrication professionals from across North America.
By bringing together industry leaders, top-tier fabricators and select vendors under one roof and on one track, it offered group members the opportunity to explore new tools and technologies, as well as see industry best practices.
UMI’s Atlanta West showroom played host to the event, which included a keynote by Chris Beard of John Burns Consulting, a vendor mixer with leading industry partners, and interactive product knowledge sessions.
Attendees also received an update on silica regulations from the Natural Stone Institute and a report on advocacy for fabricators from Marissa Bankert, CEO of the International Surface Fabricators Association (ISFA).
The “one track” part of the program took place at the Porche Experience Center Atlanta, where guests enjoyed cocktails, dinner, and high-performance demonstration laps.
The event concluded with a presentation by Dan Chuparkoff, a noted speaker on AI, innovation and the future of work.
UMI’s Matt DiNorcia called Artisan Group members some of the best in the business, and working with them and the other event sponsors made this a great experience for his company.
“We were proud to host this year’s event and showcase our material and our growing presence on the national stage,” DiNorcia said.
Jon Lancto, executive director of the Artisan Group, said he sees a valuable partnership with UMI with its deep inventory, extensive selection of surfacing options including natural stone, quartz, porcelain and specialty materials, and willingness to offer special programs to the organization’s members.
“We are thrilled to have UMI as our material partner to the group,” Lancto said. “All our vendor-partners are instrumental in making our new sponsorship program successful.”
Other Artisan Group sponsors include BB Industries, BACA Systems, Bronwick, Flexijet, FreePower, Gran Quartz, Laser Products, Kohler, Moksh Tech, More Surface Care, Park Industries, QXM, Schechner Lifson Corp., and Water Treatment Solutions.
For more information on the Artisan Group, go to www.artisan-counters.com.