Artisan Group members are making news for repurposing granite scraps. Top Master Inc., an Artisan Group member and the Midwest's largest commercial and residential countertop fabricator and installer, has been recognized by Habitat Restore of Kansas City as one its largest contributors.
Kansas City Habitat ReStore founded in June 2000, accepts donations of new and used building materials from individuals, contractors and retailers. The materials are then made available to the public at a deeply discounted price.
ReStore operates on a Triple Bottom Line philosophy: "People, Planet and Profit." People seeking building supplies can find what they need at ReStore. ReStore seeks to be a good steward of natural resources and energy provided by Planet Earth. Thousands of tons of useable building materials are diverted from landfills each year by ReStore. Finally, ReStore profits are transferred to the Habitat for Humanity Kansas City affiliate to further its mission. Through this Triple Bottom Line philosophy, the Kansas City Habitat ReStore has experienced phenomenal success and serves as a model of sustainability to the surrounding Kansas City metropolitan area.
Since 2008 Top Master has partnered with Habitat ReStore to coordinate picking up its leftover granite pieces and select remnants. Customers can then purchases the pieces that are perfect for vanity tops, small bar tops or table tops. To date these donations have kept in excess of 91, 000 tons of scrap material out of the landfill and generated more than $50,000 for Habitat ReStore.
Top Master was founded in 1984 as a Corian fabricator with a shop in Merriam, Kansas. It has since moved to Kansas City and also opened an operation in Wichita, Kansas. Top Master has expanded its product line to include natural stone, engineered stone, wood and all major brands of solid surface countertops. They provide countertops to a range of customers from the individual home owner to large commercial construction companies and national home supply retailers.
With 35 members and growing, Artisan Group covers most major markets in the U.S. and Canada, and it can handle a variety of fabrication needs from a local to national scale. Its members average more than 20 years of fabrication experience in the countertop industry, and all Artisan Group members have achieved, or have begun the process to achieve, full accreditation with the Marble Institute of America.
The group is among the first granite fabricators in the world to be working towards this distinction. Collectively, Artisan Group surpassed $350 million in sales in 2009. Brands of the Artisan Stone Collection include Exotic & Classic Granite, Modesto Granite (starting at $35/square foot) and Saratoga Soapstone.
It also offers a marble collection as well as Heritage Wood surfacing products. Apart from countertops, the Artisan Group supplies the Firstline collection of granite care products as well as Kohler sinks and faucets through an exclusive specialty dealer program with the Kohler Company. For more information, visit www.artisan-counters.com .
Kansas City Habitat ReStore, founded in June 2000, accepts donations of new and used building materials from individuals, contractors and retailers. The materials are then made available to the public at a deeply discounted price.
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