Industry support for Natural Stone Council is rapidly growing
Concerned over the aggressive marketing of imitation “stone†products and persistent consumer misperceptions about the value of real stone, natural stone businesses and organizations large and small, from across the entire stone industry, are coming forward to lend their support to the new Natural Stone Council (NSC). The NSC was formed last year under the leadership of Mark Fernandes of Luck Stone Corporation to unite diverse industry groups into one powerful promotional voice for the entire industry.
In just a few short months, the NSC has already raised nearly $300,000, with the largest single donation so far being a generous grant of $100,000 from the StonExpo Foundation, derived from the revenues generated by the StonExpo trade show. Additional funding has come from members of the Marble Institute of America, Allied Stone Industries, Indiana Limestone Institute, National Building Granite Quarries Association, Building Stone Institute, Elberton Granite Association, and American Monument Association. Our initial fundraising success points to the growing recognition among natural stone professionals in all parts of the industry is that the time has come to join forces and work together.