Butler County experts: Granite can match any kitchen
Countertops that reflected a more muted color scheme dominated the business of Isacco Tile and Granite for years, but recently, the Center Township-based business has been installing more brightly colored countertops for clients around the region.
Josh Isacco, owner of the business, said the family-founded company has been installing natural stone countertops for decades. The company provides full service installations for customers looking to redo their kitchens, bathrooms and, more recently, even outdoor spaces.
“Very rarely do they choose a stone they want and then build a kitchen around it,” Josh Isacco said of clients. “In the last six years, everyone wants a really light, bright kitchen. Suppliers kind of fell in line with that too.”
According to Isacco, clients typically come to Isacco Tile and Granite after being referred by someone else, and then he will help them choose a style of stone that fits their kitchen, and their desired aesthetic for it. Isacco works mainly with digital templates these days, which make the stone cuts more uniform for installation compared to handmade tablets.
Isacco also said the cost for new countertops is unique to every project — it depends on the style of stone and the amount needed. Prices for stone can range from about $60 per square foot and up, but Isacco will estimate the amount before the installation, he said.
Despite changing fashions, Isacco said stone surfaces have remained a popular option for people looking to redo their kitchens.
“That’s a big thing now, is people are remodeling their kitchens,” Isacco said. “It has grown exponentially. When we first started there were only a handful of suppliers.”
While the preferred countertop styling has changed in the years since Isacco Tile and Granite opened, people still need appliances that were typical in kitchens in the area 50 years ago, when Parkers Appliance first opened. Isacco said his company has worked with Parkers Appliance over the years as well.
Brian Parker, owner of Parkers Appliance, said people may come to the store to buy a new oven or refrigerator, but associates can also help them choose a style that fits the aesthetic of their home, or the one they would like their kitchen to have. Parker added that people in the area sometimes get all of their major appliances from the store — some having done so for decades.
“People will bring kitchen designs in to us just to help fit what they’re looking for, so we will fit what they need,” Parker said. “We’ll sit down, we’ll take time, multiple trips in for some customers and help them pick if they need it.”
Parkers Appliance also offers maintenance service on items sold there, and Parker said that keeps the business pretty busy as well, because “appliances don’t pick certain times or seasons to break.”
Additionally, Parkers Appliance helps with installation of appliances.
“We deliver, set up, haul the old stuff away, we do the build-in stuff, if needed,” Parker said. “Sometimes the customers do the build-ins. Then we service after the sale. The service end is really busy.”
