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Marble has both a scientific and commercial definition. Scientific marble was once limestone that achieved metamorphosis from intense pressures and high temperatures within the earth. This altered its crystalline structure and introduced other minerals that produced the valuable colors and veining. Commercially, any stone capable of taking a polish (with the exception of granite) is known as marble. This includes travertine, onyx, serpentine and limestone. Marble is found in the mountainous regions of Canada, Italy, Germany, Spain, the U.S., Greece and other countries worldwide.

Most common uses of marble:

Marble adds a sophisticated element to your home, and its wonderful appearance, superior engineering characteristics, and ease of maintenance makes it a natural choice for floors, wall coverings, fireplace facing and hearth, table tops, and bathroom walls, floors, vanity tops, tub decks, and showers. Polished marble will serve well as flooring in areas where little sand is tracked onto these floors. Honed (flat finished) marble, limestone, or travertine will do very well in high traffic areas.

Care and precautions:

Marble should be cared for as you would a fine wood finish. Using coasters on tabletops and cleaning up spills immediately will preserve marble's natural beauty. Polished marble on a bathroom countertop requires you not to leave any thing that will cause rust, chemical, or food stains on the countertop, and the countertop will need to be sealed occasionally. Lemon juice or other food acids can etch polished marble and cause flat spots, and marble is more easily stained by oils, juices and metals. Stains on marble are more complicated to remove. A honed marble on a kitchen countertop is a better choice than polished. Never use bleach, Comet or acidic cleaners on polished marble. These will etch the surface and remove the shine.

Check out Marble and Granite Inc.'s wide selection of over 100 different types of Marbles.

After reading an article about countertop pricing, which begins on p. 74, in the January 2011 issue of Stone World, we want to offer this advice to countertop fabricators:

Taking the time to relay important details to your customer is a key factor in selling your service.  The Home Depots and Lowes of the industry sell their countertops as a SKU, so competing on price is not a competition at all.  Also, break down an ad that lists multiple offers because the listed items are not always relevant (they might already be included in the service and are not really a deal.)

There is a need to determine fixed costs (business costs that do not change) and variable costs (business costs that change with level of production.)  Direct costs such as freight, materials, power, tools, commissions, labor, etc., do not change.  “Indirect costs” are things such as administrative staff, insurance, marketing, and safety programs.

There are various pricing strategies in the market:

• Square-foot pricing: not very effective when differentiating businesses


• Good/Better/Best pricing: varied pricing for different market segments (retail, k&b, designer, contractor, etc.


• Bundle pricing: encourages the use of a product in quantity by offering a discount   for volume, allows for profit maximization


• De-bundled pricing: encourages customer to upgrade and choose


• Premium pricing: geared towards unique and high quality, maximizes profit


• Penetration pricing: for use in new and different markets

Tools such as software, time sheets, and job cost sheets help determine the level of cost in a fabrication business.  Detailed pricing sheets that list cut-outs, edgework, radius corners, bump outs, lamination, seams, etc., are itemized so you are able to break down every detail of the customer's particular job. This is where you can possibly negotiate details with the customer if they do not like the price.

In a competitive market where price is always the first topic of conversation, it is important to outline the details and importance of your service. Check out our post about the factors affecting the price of granite.