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Success Stories
Big River Tile &
Stone
Michael Kauten
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Big River Tile & Stone
Big River Tile
& Stone is located near Alma, WI, a small river town with a lot
of character and a long history. The owner, Michael Kauten,
works with that history and character every day. He does mostly
remodeling work, adapting his tile and stone work to the oddities of
old houses and the old limestone foundations which support
them. "I enjoy working with customers, finding solutions to
the kinds of problems you run into in old houses. Long
straight hallways that aren't really straight, for instance. And some
of the newer stuff--infloor radiant heat is the new thing, and it is
perfect for tile."
Start-up
and Planning
Kauten
started Big River early in 2008,
after a brief stint doing construction sales in Florida ("too hot, too
hectic"). He had been laying tile, one way or the other,
since he was in high school, working alongside his dad, but had
regarded it as a sideline for much of that time.
Kauten
wanted to explore turning the tile work into a full time
business. He worked
with Business Development Specialist
from Western Dairyland's Business Center "who really helped me
focus and take the business to the next level."
Marketing
and Branding
Kauten
recalls "At first, I didn't even
have a name-I'd just always used my own name for the
business-but she helped me come up with 'Big River' which
really fits-given our location" And then "She just kept asking
questions-'Who is your market? What else can you do?' and I realized
that I could do tile work, inside and out, and I could lay
stone--including the local limestone they cut out of the Winona
bluff--and I could do tuck pointing and restoration work on old stone
and brick buildings." They worked on a marketing plan, which included
truck magnets-big magnetized signs that attach to the doors of his
truck-business brochures, price lists, business cards and more.
"Dentistry
for stone"
Since
then, the business has been steadily
growing "We are coming close to meeting the
projections Western Dairyland and I worked on when I
started." Kauten says. He has done "a bunch" of remodeling
jobs and has restored some old limestone foundations, "It is
detailed work-kinda like dentistry for stone." Lately he's
been thinking about doing some smaller mosaic pieces for a local art
gallery.
Good
planning, plus Kauten's versatility, his willingness to try
something new, and his contacts and knowledge of the area (he and his
family have lived in Alma since 2000) have made Big River Tile
& Stone a success in a year when many would have hesitated
start a business. Kauten can be reached at (608) 685-4021 or
bigrivertile@yahoo.com.
A website
with photos of his work is coming soon.
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