He can send ideas to clients no matter where they are located. The soon-to-be completed company web page is another way Stephen is using technology to sell products and his knowledge of the industry. It can be accessed at www.zoombuy.net/prcustomtile-marble.

When it comes to price, Stephen wants to “talk turkey and compare apples to apples.”

Powell River Custom Tile and Marble sells the same products as Vancouver at the same or better prices. Cost of freight needs to be eliminated from the equation, adds Stephen who is happy that his shop’s growing reputation for great tiles and good taste means his customers are trusting what he is telling them.

One woman from the United States came into the store in January and said she and her husband have been in a lot of tile stores in their lives. “She told me flat out we had the most beautiful, best quality and selection they have ever seen.”

Even more compliments came from a pair of middle-aged Italian brothers, one visiting here on vacation from the old country. Interpreting for his brother, the Powell River brother asked, “He wants to know why you have the most beautiful tile from Italy in the bush?”

Stephen responds, “That’s what we do, carry the most natural products of the best quality.”

He has done a lot of research while redesigning his showroom. After collaborating with professional designers to select colour and texture coordinated samples, he now has more than 150 display panels, three feet wide and seven feet tall.

The majority of Powell River Custom Tile and Marble clients are between the ages of 30 and 70. And many of them have moved here recently from out of town. “They are not necessarily moving into new homes,” says Stephen, “but they are definitely renovating and finishing their new homes with quality products.”

Poor quality products do not stand up to the test of time and these people are experienced enough to know this, he adds.

That $20,000 spent on a new car could go a lot further and have better appreciation if spent on a home, according to Stephen.

He sells quality Italian tile, granite countertops, rock fireplaces and heated floors. “If you have installed any of these in your home since 1984, chances are that decision has not only paid for itself but has also created more equity to your home than what you originally paid.”

More than half the floors being sold at Powell River Custom Tile and Marble these days are electric radiant heat. Why? Because it’s one of the most cost-effective ways to heat your home, and it’s so warm on the feet. “Like walking on the beaches of Waikiki all day,” says one client.

Just recently Stephen installed 600-square feet of heated floor system with non-staining epoxy grout, in his newly expanded showroom in Cranberry.

“It only costs six cents an hour to run a 10-foot by 10-foot kitchen floor,” he explains. For really cost-conscious people, they can put the system on a simple programmable thermostat.

“You’re only going to spend 30 cents a day and all that heat is considered a primary heat source to heat the room.”

Stephen advises people to make sure they choose the right system for the area. There are three types that he sells and installs. “We have even installed them in walk in and wheelchair-accessible showers. The system we sell the most is very easy to install and is only three millimeters thick.”

After 10 years in business, Stephen says, “I’m still passionate about what I do.”