The Mayor's Spirit of St. Louis Award recognizes businesses that make major expansions or improvements to their existing City locations, businesses that open or relocate to the City, and certain major City projects.

"The Spirit of St. Louis award is reserved for members of the St. Louis business community who have the vision to recognize the enormous potential of our city and the dedication required to make that vision a reality," Mayor Slay said. "It is fitting that we are giving the Spirit of St. Louis award to European Tile & Marble Company."

European Tile & Marble Co. began in 1998 as a marble and ceramic tile importer and wholesaler and a year later, branched into customized marble and granite countertops, fireplace surrounds, vanity tops, and other custom work.

When European Tile & Marble Co. outgrew its original location on LaSalle Street, it purchased a 1.5-acre lot on S. Kingshighway and designed and built a new facility to accommodate the vision and future growth of the business. The new facility features 3,000 sq. ft. of showroom, 5,000 sq. ft. of manufacturing, and 12,000 sq. ft. of warehouse space.

The company currently has 20 employees, the majority who live in the City of St. Louis, and is in the process of building an additional 18,000 sq. ft. of space to adjoin the current warehouse, investing an additional $300,000 in new manufacturing equipment, adding 10 new jobs. It now specializes in custom granite countertops that are sold to homeowners, contractors, cabinet dealers, and builders.

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