In 1978, when Giovanni Latini was 27 years old, he migrated to the U.S. from Rome and began working for a marble shop in San Francisco, CA. Five years later, he moved to Los Angeles and started his own company, Euro Laguna Marble, Inc., which currently caters to a high-end residential market. Today, Latini runs the business with his two sons, Andrea and Phillip.

Since 2003, the stone fabrication business has been operating out of a 17,000-square-foot facility in Anaheim, CA. Euro Laguna Marble, Inc., which now has a staff of about 50, became incorporated in 1989, and it is considered to be one of the oldest stone companies in Orange County.

With 95% of the company’s business being high-end custom homes in Laguna Beach, Los Angeles, the Newport coast and Irvine, a typical job takes anywhere from six to eight months up to a year to complete. Primarily dealing with designers and builders, the company works on four to five projects at one time.

Approximately 35% of Euro Laguna Marble Inc.’s business is quartz surfacing, while the rest is natural stone. The company buys its material from suppliers such as Caesarstone, Materials Marketing, M S International and Walker Zanger, but if it is working on a larger project, it will import its own stone.

Inside the shop

The shop houses a range of machinery from GMM of Italy. A Litox CNC 6-axis bridge sawing machine plays an integral role in completing the company’s custom work. The machine is equipped with vacuum pods from Blick Industries of Laguna Beach, CA. Abrasives, glues and sealers come from Tenax USA of Charlotte, NC.

Additional equipment includes two GMM Lexta automatic electronic bridge saw profiling machines with a tilting head, a GMM slab polisher and an Intermac Master Stone 4000 CNC stoneworking center. Intricate details are performed with a Master waterjet from Flow International.

“The GMM polisher turned out to be an unbelievable investment,” said Andrea Latini. “It does polishing, honing, leathering and bushhammering.” Phillip Latini also explained that it gives the company the opportunity to polish material for other slab yards when they need it.

Business has been prosperous for Euro Laguna Marble, Inc., especially since the turn of the New Year. The Latinis explain that many of their customers are educated on stone and quartz products. Many have done two or three kitchens over the years. They come seeking the high-quality work, which Euro Laguna Marble Inc.can provide.