| 111 T T Kelly Deeks Successful career path set in stone Universal Granite and Marble offers a broad selection of high quality stones at competitive prices. Universal Granite And Marble MANUFACTURING Starting in 2011 with little more than a dream and some relentless determination, Universal Granite and Marble is now New Zealand’s largest distributor of stone, with the widest and most diverse range of natural and engineered stones. Universal Granite and Marble director Siva Kilari arrived in New Zealand in 2001 from Tirupati, a city in South India, to complete a computer science degree. “I had the option to study in the United Kingdom, Australia, or New Zealand, but I chose this great country because I was a fan of the Black Caps, especially Stephen Fleming,” Siva says. “In 2004, I graduated from Unitech Auckland.” Siva had always dreamed of owning his own business and to make this dream a reality, he started working for John Andrew Ford in Auckland and drove taxis at night to save money. One day, during a lunch break, he saw a truck carrying stone slabs drive by. “This made me curious, and after some research into the stone industry, I decided this was the right business for me. With money borrowed from friends and credit cards, I founded Universal Granite in 2011.” The business began with a single shipping container in a gravel yard, but from the start, Siva aimed to offer the largest range of stone in New Zealand. Like many Kiwi ventures, this goal was fuelled by relentless determination. Siva went door-to-door introducing himself to every stone fabricator across Auckland and 13 years later, Universal Granite and Marble has become the country’s largest distributor of stone, with showrooms in Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch, and its own fleet of trucks and drivers making deliveries of this fragile freight from Kerikeri to Invercargill. Siva attributes the realisation of his dream and the success of his company to the strong supplier relationships he and the team have developed over the past 13 years through annual trips to quarries worldwide. “Ensuring our customers are the first to discover new stones is a key part of our offering,” he says. “I want people to be amazed when they visit our warehouses and see the thousands of slabs on offer, knowing they have access to almost endless design possibilities. There’s nothing more rewarding than working with designers and fabricators to bring someone’s dream to life.” As the exclusive suppliers of UniQuartz, Ascale, COMPAC®, and TPB tech Invisible Induction Hob, alongside a range of natural stones from Antolini, Universal Granite and Marble aims to offer Kiwis a broad selection of stones at competitive prices. Siva says the stones Kiwis need for your benchtops, bathrooms, and floors don’t all come from the same place. “You must search various parts of the world for the right stone. Italy, for example, is famous for its stones like marble, historically used in sculptures like The David, and Travertine used to build the Colosseum. Brazil is known for its colourful quartzites, and India for its granites. Additionally, there are stones like dolomite, sandstone, onyx, and more, each with unique properties perfect for a variety of design applications.” He says the best part of the stone industry is working with exceptionally talented designers and fabricators. “Stone plays a significant role in bringing beauty to interiors, and there are some incredibly skilful people out there making these designs a reality. Unless you’ve been into a fabricator’s workshop, you don’t realise how much precision goes into something as simple as a countertop with a sink in the middle. These people are true masters of their craft, and the designers are the artists who bring it all together.” ˁ˘˪ ˍ˘˔˟˔ˡ˗Ϡ˦ ˟˔˥˚˘˦˧ ˪˛ˢ˟˘˦˔˟˘˥ ˢ˙ ˦˧ˢˡ˘ ʴ˨˖˞˟˔ˡ˗ ʬ ˇ˨˥˜ˡ ˃˟˔˖˘ʟ ˂˧˔˥˔ʟ ʴ˨˖˞˟˔ˡ˗ ˇ˘˟ʭ ʣʬ ʥlsʧ lzlzʧʩ ʶ˛˥˜˦˧˖˛˨˥˖˛ ʥʤ ˊ˜˦˘ ˆ˧˥˘˘˧ʟ ʴ˗˗˜ˡ˚˧ˢˡʟ ʶ˛˥˜˦˧˖˛˨˥˖˛ ˇ˘˟ʭ ʣʦ ʦʦlz ʨʨlsʨ ˊ˘˟˟˜ˡ˚˧ˢˡ ʧʣʤʟ ʻ˨˧˧ ˅ˢ˔˗ʟ ʴ˟˜˖˘˧ˢ˪ˡʟ ʿˢ˪˘˥ ʻ˨˧˧ ˇ˘˟ʭ ʣʥls ʦʣʧ ʬʬʩʥ ʺʸˇ ʼˁ ʶ˂ˁˇʴʶˇ ˁ˂ˊʔ ˦˔˟˘˦ʳ˨ˡ˜˩˘˥˦˔˟˚˥˔ˡ˜˧˘ʡ˖ˢʡˡ˭
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