Funding will assist granite manufacturer to develop new markets

A Gander dimension stone company will seek new customers for its granite products with the help of funding from the Department of Innovation, Trade and Rural Development. Cabot Granite Fabricators Incorporated received $15,560 through the department�s Small Business and Market Development Program to assist its marketing efforts in eastern Canada, the U.S. and the Caribbean. The company hopes to attract new clients for monument blanks produced at its Jumpers Brook Quarry near Bishop�s Falls.

"Cabot Granite is an innovative leader in the province�s dimension stone industry, which has significant growth potential in Newfoundland and Labrador," said Innovation, Trade and Rural Development Minister Kathy Dunderdale. "This investment through the Small Business and Market Development Program will help the company to broaden its product line and target new customers outside the province."

"Innovation, Trade and Rural Development�s cost-shared marketing assistance funding has enabled us to conduct successful marketing trips to the Maritimes, Quebec and the eastern United States. It resulted in Cabot Granite successfully expanding our sales area and sales for our finished monuments and monument blanks," said Varrick Hillier, Manager of Dimension Stone Operations at Cabot Granite.

The funding has led to the creation of three new jobs. The company employs 21 people - 11 full-time and 10 part-time - at peak season.

The Small Business and Market Development Program provides small businesses and new entrepreneurs with funding to help them acquire expertise to pursue new business ideas and markets for their products or services. Eligible applicants can receive up to $25,000 in funds that must be matched by the business.

Media contact: Lynn Evans, Communications, (709) 729-4570

2004 06 15                                        9:55 a.m.