We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Marie Pantelic. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Marie below.
Hi Marie, thanks for joining us today. Let’s start with a story that highlights an important way in which your brand diverges from the industry standard.
We have absolutely revolutionized the experience of the home owner in the stone industry! Most stone suppliers only sell directly to fabricators, or contractors. We eliminate the middle man and sell directly to the home owner. In addition to saving them every dollar possible, we help them with their design! We encourage our customers to bring in samples of their flooring, cabinetry, and backsplash. We go above and beyond for each person that we have the opportunity to work with, knowing that our help will make their lives easier. Kitchen remodels can be stressful, and we’re so proud that we make the process and the overall project easier. We’re so proud when we read our google reviews and the people express all of this!
Marie, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
My husband Dan and I (co-owners of The Yard), won an $800 auction bid for a large wooden A-frame. Little did we know that we had also won an entire yard of stone – 1500 full slabs!! Not only were we not in the stone business, but we also had no place to store all of it. Dan’s dad let us store it all in his backyard. After posting an ad on Craigslist announcing stone for five dollars a square foot, people were lined up at the door to buy it. This is how The Yard was born! As we grew, a second business venture grabbed our attention, unfortunately leaving us with over $1Million in personal and business debt. When we heard about EntreLeadership (an event sponsored by Dave Ramsey) we finally had hope that we could turn this all around. In four months, we refocused our attention on The Yard and began building up our business again, all while paying down our huge debt. Flash forward to 2021…. in 2021 we did $9.2 Million in sales, up from $1.3 Million in 2017, plus we have paid off 985,791.31 of our debt in four years! The finish line is so close to being debt free! We continue growing our business, our relationships with customers and fabricators, and our incredible company culture. Because we have been so blessed with business, all of 2021 we gave 10% of all proceeds the first Saturday of the month to a team members charity of choice. This is a tradition that we are continuing in 2022 and hope to continue throughout the life of the business. Our mission is to provide a WORLD CLASS experience that BUILDS homes, memories, and relationships with EXCELLENCE every day!! We welcome all customers to walk in, and experience our amazing customer service! They will be greeted at the door by a friendly associate who will help them throughout the process of the design, and the perfect countertop that they’re looking for!
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
Always do the right thing. Treat people as if they matter, because they do!! Connect with the people you’re working with. Ask them questions about what you’re doing. Does it work? What needs to change? What would make this process better for you? How can we make your life easier? Diving in to what your direct consumers need will help you understand how to improve and grow. Be willing to take advice…from anyone! Don’t be too proud to change.
What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?
Word of mouth. When you take care of customers like they’re your own family they will tell EVERYONE. Do the right thing – over and over and over and over again. The people will flood in.
Contact Info:
- Website: theyardaz.com
- Instagram: @theyardazstone