Paramount Granite Blog

The Natural Beauty of Granite…

There are literally hundreds and hundreds of granite colors available for countertops. Since some granites can be very consistent looking, and others having great variation in flow, and color, we encourage our customers to come to our showroom to narrow their choices down. Customers can make their selections from both our samples, and stock slabs, or we can direct them to a local supplier to select their slabs.

Some customers are also interested in laying out their material prior to fabrication. To accomodate them, we usually encourage them to make an appointment, after the field measure has been completed. We will do the best to accommodate a customer’s requests, however due to those natural variations, it may be difficult to get exactly what they want out of each slab.

Our fabricators take a lot of pride in making sure the seam matches and flow come together. Keep in mind, the more variance in the slab, the more obvious the seams will be. Fortunately, the beauty of granite is that it does have those natural variations, which make it unique and beautiful.

Granite is a natural product of nature, how much more beautiful can you get?!

Feel free to share…

Angie

Posted in Granite, Company, Business on July 15th, 2008 by Angie | | 5 Comments

2008 NARI Golf Outing—A Bit Rainy, But A Success

This years NARI Golf Outing, started out a bit slow with some rain showers delaying the start, but in the end it was a fun and successful event. The outing was held Thursday, July 10th, at the Prestwick Golf Club in Woodbury, MN.

The event included a day of golf, dinner, and a silent auction. PGC once again, sponsored the beer cart, which was driven by Brad Lein, PGC Sales Rep.

Following are some photos from the event:

Thanks fro reading!

Barb

Thanks for reading!

Barb

Posted in Company on July 14th, 2008 by Barb | | 0 Comments

Open Your Eyes To Natural Stone!

The other day I wrote a blog about a walking program we started at work, and also mentioned that I belong to a health club (Life Time Fitness). I don’t know how many of you out there belong to Life Time, but for those of you that do, you probably have noticed all of the remodeling going on at the clubs. Over the past several months, members have been able to see some of the changes being made including the addition of lots of natural stone! While another fabricator did the work, I was happy to see so much stone going in, as it is beautiful and promotes the industry.

Last weekend, was the grand re-opening of their Moore Lake location. I wasn’t able to attend the re-opening, but was anxious to see it this week. When I went to work out on Monday, I made sure to tour the new club, to see all of the changes, especially the stone.

Some of the changes include:

St. Cecilia Classic Granite Countertops Throughout The Facility
Verde Butterfly Granite Vanities
Multi-Colored Slate Waines Coating And Wall Coverings
Jura Beige Limestone Flooring Along With Various Granite flooring
Etc.

The clubs look great, and I’m not surprised they incorporated so much stone into their new design. Afterall, granite and other natural stones have been used throughout the ages for building because of their durability, and beauty. In fact, many commercial buildings including banks, government centers, etc., built today use granite, and other natural stones for this very reason. Just look around, and you’ll begin to notice all of the stone! Who knows, you may get some ideas for an upcoming remodeling, or building project.

Thanks for reading!

Barb

Posted in Granite, Company, Industry News on June 26th, 2008 by Barb | | 0 Comments

Walk This Way!

I don’t know about you, but I am avid walker. I enjoy walking outside, no matter what the season, and also enjoy walking inside on a treadmill. While I walk to get some exercise, it also is a form of meditation for me. It allows me to clear my mind, relieve the stresses of the day, and gives me some time alone to think about things. While I also have the privilege of belonging to a health club to exercise, I know that not everyone does. That is why walking is so great. It requires no equipment, no membership fee, and can be done in many places.

Last week, we kicked off our “Walk For Wellness At Work” program. We purchased pedometers for all of our team members to track their daily steps. The idea behind the program was to encourage everyone to get out and walk—both on breaks and lunches, as well as on their own. The goal is to reach 504,000 steps before anyone else, and the one who does is able to claim a grand prize.

The program and pedometers already have everyone comparing steps, various activities, and is getting our team members interested in their health.

Have you considered purchasing a pedometer? It’s a great way to get on track to health.

Thanks for reading!

Barb

Posted in Uncategorized, Company on June 25th, 2008 by Barb | | 0 Comments

Building a Successful Team

I was paging though the May 2008 issue of Kitchen & Bath Design News and came across an article titled, Suggestions for Inspiring Motivated Teamwork. I found it very interesting and a good reminder. Whether you are in a corporate, non-profit, small business, or service environment, teamwork is essential to the success of the organization.

In the article, Hank Darlington, points out the many advantages to building a successful team within your organization:

Employees working together are generally more successful at solving problems.
Being a member of a team helps people to feel more energized.
Teams can make constructive use of differences in expertise, experience and personalities.
Team members can work together to improve processes and reduce mistakes, waste and costs.
Teams give employees a sense of belonging and security.
Since most work requires the cooperation of employees, teams simply make good sense.

Successful managers set the tone for the success of a team through their actions and attitudes. Following are 10 ways to prepare your team for success:

Give them a clearly defined set of goals and purposes.
Let the team make its own rules.
Encourage fun and a sense of humor on the job.
Give employees the authority to make decisions and act on them.
Be supportive. Do what you say you’ll do!
Let the team find solutions to its problems without intervening.
Allow team members to make financial decisions and create their own budgets.
Expect ups and downs. Some projects will run more smoothly than others.
Let the team set up a rewards and recognition system.
Create and nourish team spirit and pride.

Building a successful team will take time and open communication. The longer teams work together, the more effective and comfortable they will become. Print off the lists above and use them as daily reminders of the importance of, and the goals to promoting a healthy team in your workplace.

Feel free to share…

Angie

Posted in Company, Business on June 24th, 2008 by Angie | | 4 Comments

The two Seasons….of Minnesota!

detour Anyone who is from Minnesota and is reading this has heard the expression that there are two seasons in Minnesota, one being Winter and the other being Road Construction. Well, at PGC ,we have been feeling the effects of the latter quite a bit the past couple of months!

Today the tides are changing. Not only are the skies a clear, sunny, beautiful blue color, but Barb left the office and a few minutes later called to inform us that the County Rd 36 ramp to Hwy 101 South is FINALLY OPEN! Can you sense my excitement?

Thankfully, we will not longer have to detour our customers around the road construction and mess that comes with it. Now it will be much easier and convenient for them to visit our showroom Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday from 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. and Thursdays from 8:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m. Smiley

Now lets just hope the other dreaded season doesn’t come too soon!

Feel free to share…

Angie

Posted in Company, Business on June 13th, 2008 by Angie | | 0 Comments

Radon—Just Another Scare Tactic To Counter Genuine Granite Countertop Sales!

It’s a free country! Free enterprise and competition are the norm among businesses in America. However, while there is nothing wrong with having a competing product, there is something wrong when the competition has to stoop so low, as to make up lies to gain market recognition. Unfortunately, this is not the first time. Over the years, there have been various rumors in regards to radon and genuine granite countertops.

Recent false claims of radon emissions from granite countertops have come from BuildClean™, a Houston-based “pending not-for-profit organization,” which is funded by two engineered stone companies, Silestone and Cambria. While it is true that granite contains miniscule amounts of radon, it is false to say that granite is unsafe, and sad that the accusations create a scare for the general public.

Granite has been used throughout the ages as a building material. Its strength, durability, and beauty have made it the natural choice, not only for buildings, but for countertops. If radon really was a problem, we would have had to deal with it years, and years ago.

The MIA, Marble Institute of America, along with others, have conducted various studies to prove the safety of granite and prove the dangerous radon emission claims false. For more information on the topic, please review the following links:

Thanks for reading!

Barb

Posted in Granite, Company, Industry News on May 19th, 2008 by Barb | | 4 Comments

New Season, New Colors…

Spring flowers Well, I think it is officially Spring…or that is what the calender says anyway. With the changing seasons, we thought it would be a great time to bring in some new exclusive colors to display in our slab yard.

Five of the six new colors offer a lot of flow, movement, and natural veining. These colors include Creme De Oro, Hurricane, Mascarello, Sanguine, and Sucuri. The sixth color, Cafe Brown, is a more consistent looking color with a satin finish. Please feel free to come and visit our showroom to view the new colors along with our Top-13 stock colors. You are bound to find something that suites your tastes.

Feel free to share…

Angie

For a sneak peek, see the photos below:

Creme De Ouro

Hurricane

Mascarello

Sanguine

Sucuri

Cafe Brown (Satin Finish)

Posted in Granite, Company, Business on May 13th, 2008 by Angie | | 2 Comments

2008 Builders Product And Service Show—A Success!

The 2008 Builders Product & Service show sponsored through BATC, Builders Association of the Twin Cities, proved to be another successful event. Paramount Granite Company participated in the show again this year, which was staffed by several of our sales and customer service team members. This year, we not only brought in several granite countertop displays and samples, but also brought in a full slab of granite, which proved to be a good draw for our booth.

The show was held Wedenesday, April 23, 2008 at the Minneapolis Convention Center and was open to builders and remodelers throughout the area.

Thanks for reading!

Barb

Following are some photos from the show:

Posted in Granite, Company, Industry News on April 24th, 2008 by Barb | | 0 Comments

Granite Countertops—Top 10 Program A Success!

Some of you may be familiar with our Top-10 program promoting our most popular granite colors. The program, which we started several years ago, has been very successful. We offer our Top-10 colors at a reduced price in comparison to our standard colors. Since we buy them in volume, we are able to pass the savings on to you.

The slabs are hand-selected by us for beauty and quality, and are stocked and on display at our fabrication facility. For a limited time, we have an additional 3 bonus colors that we are also selling at the Top-10 pricing. If you, or your customer are interested in viewing our stock, please stop by our showroom. We’d be happy to assist you in your granite countertop selections.

Thanks for reading!

Barb

Following are our Top 10: