Imperial Marble and Granite

Don’t use Imperial!!! I actually created a google account just to write this review in hopes that it helps people out. This is going to be a long one but I want people to know what they are getting into if they choose Imperial Marble & Granite. First of all there customer service is pathetic and I am being kind. Most of the people I spoke with there I found very unprofessional and they really could care less about it. On to the issue I had with their services. I spent $1,400 on counter tops for my basement bar. After the installers put in the counter top I thought it looked great and had no issues. They did take a chuck out of my trim going down the steps and on the ceiling molding but since my basement is a tight squeeze I wasn’t going to make a giant deal out of it. Before leaving they placed a 2 by 4 under the bar for support and said leave it for 24 hours before removing. The next day I went down and removed the 2 by 4 and turned on my bar lights which weren’t on when the installers where over and noticed a decent size scratch on the granite. I immediately reached out to Imperial and sent pictures to show the scratch and damage to the trim and ceiling molding. I was told I signed a paper stating that everything was fine after installation. Which I then exampled how I didn’t have the overhead bar lights on and even sent pictures with and without the bar lights on so they could see the difference. Keep in mind this is about 24 hours after the install not like a week later. After I sent the email of all the pictures I receive and email back asking if I or someone else in my house may have damaged the granite. Which I am not to upset about because I understand people probably do things like that to get money back which I wasn’t even looking for. I wasn’t even mad at the installers because I understand accidents happen. All I was looking is for someone to come back and look at the scratch. You would think that’s the least they could do. The next day I never received and email from the sale person who said they would get back to me in the morning and let me know what’s going on. I had to reach out to them which again goes back to my dislike for the customer service they provided. Finally the sales person got back to me via email saying they had to speak with someone and would get back to me. Three days later no email and again I had to reach out to them. They ended up setting up a time they would come out and the scheduler emailed me saying they would be out between 3-4 on Monday. Monday comes it’s 4pm and know one has shown up. At 4pm someone texts me, yes texted me not even a phone call. The texts says I won’t be there till 445, I then ask him why I wasn’t contacted earlier about this and his response is I didn’t have my phone handy. 4:45 comes know one has shown up, it’s now 5:15 and I texted him asking where he’s at and he says stuck in traffic. I ended up telling him not to bother coming because at this point I am ready to explode. My suggestion is that there are tons of counter top stores and places that sell counter tops out there and I would highly recommend looking elsewhere if you’re thinking about using Imperial.

First, the price was good, which is why we went with this company. The installation was 2.5 years ago, so I don't recall how that went, or having any problems. HOWEVER, 2 years later, a glued seam between two parts has broken, leaving one whole side of our kitchen useless.  We contacted the company and explained the problem, first via email. Response time was a few days. We were asked to provide photos, which we did. The response was, "it appears that the glue between the two parts did not go all the way through, but sat on top."  This sounds like an installation failure to us, so we did not expect to be told that there would be a $250 service-call charge to repair it! We certainly expected a proper installation to last longer than 2.5 years!
We were told that they only stand by their work (guarantee) for 1 year. If we had broken the material or the fault was ours, we'd have no problem with this charge. Additionally, we had to contact this company multiple times over the course of a month to get a response, BEFORE we were told about the $250 charge to repair. This is SIMPLY POOR CUSTOMER SERVICE.  We are renovating our bathroom this summer, and WILL NOT USE THIS COMPANY AGAIN.

UPDATE: After calling and being ignored repeatedly, we finally spoke with the owners, who said "they wanted to make this right." We were told that they would schedule a repair-person to come and would not charge us the $250 fee. However, if there are any future breaks, we will be responsible for the $250 repair fee. After several days of waiting and calling, we finally got a scheduled date and time for repair. The team did not show up when scheduled and we called again. The repair team arrived 4 hours later. However, this is where the story finally gets better: the two men showed great knowledge, care and attention to detail in the repair work. Both obviously had many years of experience and took pride in their work, explaining the process and the materials they used. These two gents could teach the whole company a thing or two about customer care and service. I can only hope that the repair work will be long lasting, as I don't wish to deal with this company again.

It started out okay visiting the company, looking at the pieces of granite and quartz.  
When scheduled for installation, they were a little late in arriving, and there were about 3 young men who came in to install, seal, etc.
We were there when the pieces were installed.  We had contractors who were installing the remaining cabinetry at the same time. 
We did not live in the house while the project was underway.  We were there when something was being delivered, and lived else where so that our contractors could do their job in 3 months.
They had to return back the following day as they had to redo one end piece.  Unfortunately we were not present during the delivery and installation of that end piece.
We were advised when the template was being measured, that the granite was going to be installed in one piece.  It ended up being cut near the sink area, but it ended up being shimmied underneath the sink with wood showing under the sink.  (We did not notice this until after the final project was completed, and we were moving everything back in).
With the quartz, they claimed that we would not need sealing.  
We did not go around the cabinets (after installation) to investigate anything wrong since we did not find any reason to look.  Yes, we were admiring the beauty of the granite and quartz.  Not looking at what the installers did to our cabinetry when they apparently applied too much glue on our cabinets, and the aftermath mess.
It was after we moved back in, blinds up, afternoon sunshine coming in, and placing things in our cabinets, we realized that there was an overspray on the entire 5' panel of our island.  We did not notice this until after the fact since there is a 12" overhang.  We never thought to look under a 12" overhang for a problem.
Where the bar stools slide in, you have a "right" leg.  You can tell where they added too much glue, and it dripped down the cabinet.  They sprayed aiming for this "right" leg, and unfortunately the "spray" went to the panel where the 12" overhang is.  It's very obvious they they oversprayed, and did not spray on the cloth.
Unfortunately we did not see this the morning they installed as the sun was not coming in.  Plus, we were admiring the beauty of the big piece of quartz (5x 7')!  However, again, when we moved in permanently, with the blinds up, and around 2pm, the sun was shining, and we noticed the mess the installers created on our beautiful cabinetry.
When we requested to know what they used since we provided them 3 pictures of the installation with their spray bottle on the quartz.  They stated that "the installers said they did not do that to the cabinet. They said if they did they would have certainly said something because they wouldn?t do that first because its not right and second because of how noticeable it is."  
If this was a professional and reputable company, the owner would visit, look at the damage, to assess the situation, and admit the mistake, NOT deny.
Unfortunately for us, it was in poor judgment to choose this company to buy and install our granite.  Every part of our project was successful except for the fact that now our cabinet is ruined.
With the beautiful quartz, there seems to be a mark in the middle...almost like a small L shaped--almost like tape was stuck to the countertop.  We actually believe since we have pictures of this installation (including a bottle of spray on the quartz!), and something else that had to have had a chemical on, since the mark is there for good.  Almost no gloss on one spot.  
Again, unless you are LOOKING for something, you wouldn't notice anything.  Why would we look under a 12" overhang since we trusted a company to install countertops?  Or, who would have known that you have to take a look upside down, kneeling, with a flashlight before the installers leave.   
Buyer beware.  No matter if you are not living in your house while the project is underway, look at the ceiling, as you apparently have to look as to where the spray goes, and if you don't, well SHAME ON YOU.  You missed your opportunity, and personally, we believe, we would have just been advised that the installers said they did not do that!  Glue drips, spray etching on the furniture to remove the glue.  They literally "sprayed" and "aimed" to the glue area, but unfortunately etched our entire side of the cabinet.  Unfortunately this can not be removed unless we go through "sanding" the entire island (gorgeous brand new furniture), and have it repainted.  No apologies...just denial.
It's truly ashame that the owner can not admit their mistake.  Mistakes happen, yes.  Admitting would be nice. The owner to assess would have been ideal.  However, we assume that he would just say that we should have seen it when this was installed.

Great job.  Love the granite.  Workmen who installed the granite were very accommodating and careful.

After getting proposals from several vendors, Imperial had the best price for the material we wanted.
We hired them and work was scheduled and completed on time and to our satisfaction.

The process of getting our new granite counter tops began with the sales team.  We worked with Mohammad in sales who was very informative and patient as we asked questions and decided on just the right granite selection.  Nicole worked with us to schedule the templating visit before we went on vacation so the counters could be made. Stan then came to our house and did the measuring to create the production template.  We received a call to have the counters installed and we agreed on a day and time.  The installers arrived and quickly got to work.  The installers were very professional.  They kept the work area clean even using their vacuum to catch the dust as they drilled the holes in the granite for the new faucet.  The counters are beautiful and the entire process went seamlessly smooth.  I would highly recommend Imperial if you are looking for new granite counter tops.



GREAT JOB - Imperial Team!!

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We had been looking for the right granite for our basement and after a number of visits to local granite showrooms and suppliers, we happened to stop by Imperial Marble and Granite to take a look. We were impressed by the range of slabs that they had in stock and finally ended up selecting a granite that went well with our cabinets and flooring. The staff was extremely professional and we also worked with Albert to get a quote for the work. The template was scheduled and we went back to layout the template on the slab. The process was quick and we were able to get the install scheduled in about 10 days time since they were backed up with other jobs. The installation went very well although we had an issue with the drywall not being straight resulting in a small gap between the granite and the wall in one or two places. The crew did their best to minimize the gap. We may end up installing a backsplash to cover up the gap (which was filled in with silicone). Overall, we were happy with the granite which was just the right color and matched our cabinets.

On March 5th, 2011 I signed a contract with Edward G. Stein, a designer representative for a company called Cabinet and Counter Depot to remodel a bathroom in my house at 241 Haverford Road, Wynnewood Pa 19096. The work was completed by the end of the summer in 2011. Mr. Stein and Cabinet and Counter Depot supplied the materials and the installation was performed by M. Ahadi of Royal Construction. My wife and I were very satisfied with the final appearance of the bathroom, but we didn't use the shower very much because it was generally used only by my sons and both sons were away at school. When they came back the following summer and began using the shower regularly we noticed a dripping in the basement after about a week's use of the shower. I contacted Mr. Stein who no longer worked for Cabinet and Counter Depot to complain about the leaking problem and he sent out M. Ahadi of Royal Construction to fix the problem. Over the next year Mr. Ahadi came out 8 or 9 times to try to correct the problem using patchwork solutions and finally replacing the whole surface of the shower floor. The leak still persisted and Mr. Ahadi finally said he didn't know what the problem was.
In the interim between March 5, 2011 and now the Cabinet and Counter Depot has closed up shop. I understand the ownership of Cabinet and Counter Depot now operates the Imperial Marble and Granite Company. I contacted this latter company 4 or 5 weeks ago and talked to someone named Lucy who had been associated with the ownership of Cabinet and Counter Depot. She told me the company was closed and she had no insurance records to cover my leakage problems. She told me to talk to Edward Stein to see if he could get M. Ahadi to fix the problem. Both Mr. Stein and Mr. Ahadi have not returned my recent calls.
I have in my possession the original contract proposal signed by myself and my wife as well as Edward G. Stein. I also called my credit card company to verify the payments I made to Cabinet and Counter Depot to honor the contract signed in 2011.
I would like Angie's List to contact Imperial Marble and Granite, Edward Stein (610-420-4493), and M. Ahadi (215-687-3968) of Royal Construction to see if anyone will cover the expenses I will incur to fix my bathroom leak. If they are going to walk away from my problem, I would give a poor rating to all of them regarding the work they did in remodeling my bathroom.

We dealt with them by phone to set up a time for measuring and to pay for the quartz. They were very knowledgeable and courteous. The young man who measured was polite and did a great job for when the quartz were delivered they fit perfectly. The installers were swift and did a good job.

Albert (owner?) was willing to work with my meager budget and I was able to afford a much nicer countertop than I ever hoped, by allowing me to select from a few partial slabs (leftovers) they had. He also sold me a good quality extra-deep sink and single-handle faucet for less than I had priced out at other places. I think it helped that I went prepared with a detailed drawing and color palette. The template was done a couple of days later and installation the following week. The installation was delayed a couple of days due to snowy weather, but the installers were great. They had to shovel a path to my driveway because my street wasn't plowed, and carry the very heavy countertop up a dozen icy stairs into my house, but they didn't complain about it and were quite friendly and good-humored. Installation was flawless and I was pleasantly surprised to find that the countertop was one whole piece, with no seams. I had been told several times that there would be a seam around the sink or possibly a larger one at the junction of the "L", but somehow they managed to cut it in one piece. It's a gorgeous piece of stone and I've received many compliments on it. I'm still astonished that everything went so smoothly for the price I paid. I couldn't be more pleased and definitely recommend this company!

I supplied my own material; IMG was a rare firm willing to fab material that they did not supply. Shop staff works all phases of fab/install and thus know the entire job well. Template maker pointed out inconsistencies with my old countertops and suggested minor dimension changes for uniformity. He also took my sink to ensure the cutout matched. Fab was done well, esp. for my asymmetrical sink cutout. Installation went quickly despite having to cut the cabinet frame (to accommodate the sink) and the drywall (which was not straight). Everyone from the firm did a high-quality job and were pleasant to work with.

Excellent experience. Staff extremely helpful and showroom had good selection on-site. Since warehouse lighting was different than my kitchen they even broke off a sample so I could it bring home to double check. Worked within my budget and didn't try try to upsell. The owner came out to template himself and offered great advice. Actual work completed faster than expected. Workers were very polite and detail oriented. This is one of the few hired projects where I was completely happy (even upon close inspection after the crew left)!