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The forever male-dominated natural stone industry, has a new leader. Her name is
Karen Pearse and her first order of business has been to bring unprecedented innovations
to natural stone products such as granite countertops. Her passion for natural stone
developed in her teens, as she watched her father grow the family's NY-based flooring
business. She gained all of the insight needed to embark on a career that would
alter the landscape of the natural stone industry. In her early twenties, and armed
with $5,000 provided by her supportive father, she was ready to start her own business.
She decided to call it Innovative Marble and Tile (now Innovative Stone), and twenty-five
years later, she runs the world's largest natural stone sourcing and fabrication
company.
In a quarter century, Ms. Pearse has accomplished a great deal in the natural stone
industry, including expanding her small company into a global design and architectural
stone enterprise and commencing operations in Brazil, China, India and Italy. Needless
to say, her passion for, and her knowledge of, natural stone is unmatched. In 2004,
when the city of New York sought a fitting monument for the new Freedom Tower, Ms.
Pearse donated the Freedom Stone, the official cornerstone of the new, historic
building. In 2006, The Home Depot and Expo Design Center signed on to become the
exclusive carriers of her new brand of stain-resistant granite called Stonemark®.
Everlife™, her latest labor of love, features a fine collection of designer colors
and is available from select kitchen dealers. From resplendent stone designs for
the Time Warner building, to exotic projects such as the Palace of the Lost City
in South Africa, Ms. Pearse’s company has delivered with award-wining designs
each and every time.
Despite all of her accomplishments, Ms. Pearse has not lost track of her community
and the problems that affect many people today. She has received honorary awards
from the American Heart Association, March of Dimes and Crain’s New York Business.
For press inquiries, please contact Shannon Benton by phone at 770.518.1000 x213 or by
email at sbenton@kleberandassociates.com.
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