Small Business Today Magazine MAR 2015 IMPACT STONE DESIGN | Page 8

COVERSTORY

Impact Stone Design, Inc.
A Rock-Solid Family Business Carved Out of Unwavering
Principles and Dreams

By Barbara R. Davis and Heather Green Warner

J

In 1979, Joel, who had grown up in Hioel and Irma Reyna, along with their fabrication; family matriarch Irma Reyna is
the
Company
President;
daughter
Verondalgo,
Mexico, was attending the university
close-knit family, have carved out a
there
and
decided to vacation in the United
ica
Reyna
is
the
Chief
Estimator
and
Projrock-solid business, Impact Stone
States.
He
wanted to visit his father who
ect
Manager;
daughter
Victoria
Lara
is
over
Design, based on unwavering prinhad
come
to
the U.S. as part of the BraceBusiness
Development;
and
daughter
Irma
is
ciples, integrity, a strong faith in the Lord,
and care for others. As a young man, the Office Administrator. In addition, oth- ro Program. Joel’s brother was also living
Joel dreamt of running his own business. er family members are actively involved in in Houston and was married. 21-year-old
He would frequently gaze in awe at the different areas of the business including son Joel had intended to return to Mexico and
large stone-cutting machine worth nearly Joel, Jr. who is in charge of Technical Support continue his education but after meeting
$130,000 at the granite and marble plant and son Eduardo who is in charge of Safety. Irma, the sister of his brother’s wife, his plans
where he worked and say out loud, “One
day I’ll have one of my own machines like Irma and Joel Reyna founded Impact Stone Design, Inc, in 1989. It was their combined dream to create
that!” His coworkers would laugh at him a legacy for their children and future generations. Photo by Gwen Juarez Photography.
and tell him he was crazy because it would
be impossible for him to ever achieve such
a lofty dream.
After working very hard for years doing
jobs on the side along with the help of his
wife, Irma, Joel saved up enough money to
buy a small saw and gave his supervisor
two weeks notice. His supervisor tried to
discourage him by telling him that he didn’t
speak English well enough, he didn’t know
enough about the business, and he was not
going to make it. Four years later, the company Joel had worked for went out of business and not only did Joel buy the stone-cutting machine at an auction, he took over the
location where the company had been and
hired some of their employees!
Today, Impact Stone Design is a leader
in the fabrication and installation of natural
stone. Quality work in residential, commercial, and government projects have earned
them respect and admiration around the
country. In addition, they are also known for
the service they do throughout the community. Joel focuses on the assurance of quality
6 SMALL BUSINESS TODAY MAGAZINE [ MARCH 2015 ]