Alberene Soapstone Company

Scott Tucker

Very disappointed. Not in the product, which we will not be using, but in the people. We were excited about the possibility of using soapstone not only from the US, but from our home state of Virginia in our kitchen remodel. Our excitement was tempered and then ultimately extinguished by Alberene's apathy about communicating with us. It took multiple calls placed to them schedule a site visit to view and select slabs. I lost count of how many times they didn't call me back. They never responded to emails. Their office staff seemed to be out of sync as to whether we could even do the site visit at all. On one phone call, the receptionist Debbie told me that they weren't taking site visitors, then when she switched me over to Candice in sales I was told that of course we could come to view slabs. Do they talk to each other? We made an appointment and went for our visit. Candice was unable to be there so we were guided by Bjorn, who was extremely friendly and helpful. However their inventory was low, and the only slabs we found that we liked were already spoken for. Bjorn advised us that they would be getting in new material in about two weeks. Despite numerous attempts to contact them by both email and phone at the end of the two weeks, no one responded to us. It's a shame. I read that this quarry was re-opened by investors just a few years ago. The investors need to get on top of whatever is going on there with regard to how customers are ignored, or they are going to see their investments turn to dust. By stark contrast, Carolina Soapstone has responded to us immediately and we are excited about visiting their site to make our selections.

Beverly stamper

Talked with one of the ppl who was HR THERE, he was so friendly Giving us history about the co. And inviting us back for a tour !! TRUELY a big part of SCHUYLERS HISTORY!!!! If you go don't miss this!! This was where EARL HAMNER FATHER WORKED!!😀😀

Emery Midyette

For a major remodeling project I purchased a total of two "kitchens in a box" and four additional cut to size Alberene Churchill Reserve slabs. It was the first time I've worked with stone. We initially used the stone on 5 counter tops in our primary kitchen (with 2 sinks), a corner counter top in a mother-in-law suite kitchenette (1 sink and one corner), and our master bath (2 sinks). We liked it so much that we returned and purchased additional slabs for a counter top in our master bath shower/toilet room and for our fireplace hearth. The fireplace hearth and a kitchen eat-on island counter top both have arches cut on one side. For a first timer DIY project it was pretty extensive and took some time, patience, and up to three other men to move the largest slabs (up to 400 pounds). Moving even the 175 lb 4' slabs is not a one man job. Fabricating the sink cutouts was definitely the most challenging part of the project, but after the first one I had confidence to complete the others. The staff at Alberene Soapstone were excellent to work with. We visited the company several weeks prior to our project start date and picked out our slabs from a nice selection they had in the warehouse. Candice provided us with a lot of information during a tour of the facility and made the purchasing process pleasurable. It was certainly not the easiest DIY project I've ever undertaken, but in the end it was the most satisfying and cost saving project I've ever completed. Everyone that visits our home on the Outer Banks of NC comments on how much they like the soapstone. That always makes me smile, and usually results in a story.

Tim Ballo

I purchased a DIY soapstone kitchen countertop package from Alberene. When the shipping company damaged one of the pieces during delivery, Alberene replaced it with a stone that matched at no cost to me. Though I have only a modest amount of woodworking and tiling experience, I was able to trim the pieces to their exact dimensions, cut out the opening for the sink, and join the pieces together at the seams with no great difficulty - it just requires some time and patience (and diamond blades sure help). I'm extremely happy with how my counters look and feel, and I'm thrilled that my soapstone was quarried locally in Virginia.