News

The Latest From The Granite Group Regarding COVID-19

Updates on The Granite Group's Response

June 1,2021

COVID-19 Mask/Face Covering Policy Update

In accordance with CDC guidelines, those who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 may choose not to wear a mask or face covering in our branches, retail bath stores and Central Services office. Those who have not been vaccinated are still advised to wear a face covering. Thank you for your help over the past year+ to aid in our effort to keep everyone safe and healthy. We will continue to monitor CDC and state guidelines and do what we believe is best for all of our customers, our local teams and our vendors.

November 13, 2020

COVID-19 Mask Policy Update

As the colder weather drives more people indoors, all customers will need to wear masks while in our branches to aid our effort to keep everyone safe and healthy. Throughout this pandemic, we have continued to do what we believe is best for all of our customers, our local teams and our vendors. This new mask policy is an extension of these guiding principles and goes into effect on Monday, November 16th. Disposable masks will be available at every entrance for those who may need them.

Thank you for doing your part to help keep everyone safe.

October 21, 2020

GTV Virtual Chat Series: Back To Business - Vol. 3

The challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic continue for businesses of all sizes and discussing those challenges is where we also continue our new Virtual Chat Series which features brief Zoom Interviews with our customers and industry experts that we hope will provide perspectives you will find helpful and informative! In Volume 3 of our "Back To Business" interviews, we feature Granite Group President & CEO Bill Condron chatting with Alan Pacheco, Owner of Pinnacle Plumbing & Heating in Smithfield, RI.

Allen is a 3rd generation owner of the business that features over 25 years of personal experience and over 50 years of combined family experience. Pinnacle Plumbing & Heating is skilled and prepared to tackle any and all of their customers plumbing and heating needs! Click here to learn more about Pinnacle Plumbing & Heating, or call (401) 349-3422.

August 13, 2020

GTV Virtual Chat Series: Back To Business - Vol. 2

In Volume 2 of our "Back To Business" interviews, we feature Granite Group President & CEO Bill Condron chatting with Andy Beardsley, Owner of A.A. Beardsley Inc. in West Boylston, MA. A.A. Beardsley is a full-service, professional plumbing company with over 30 years of experience and outstanding customer service. They have technicians on-call and ready 24/7. From routine maintenance to burst pipes, they are a true "one-stop" professional plumbing solution. To learn more about A.A. Beardsely, please visit: http://www.aabeardsley.com/ or call (508) 852-0513
THANK YOU for watching!

August 5, 2020

Thank you for watching!

June 5, 2020

Effective 6/8/20, we will begin to allow scheduled visits to all of our Branches and Ultimate Bath Stores as well as our Purchasing and Commercial Departments.

In accordance with guidelines recommended by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), we respectfully ask that you adhere to the following rules during your visit:

• The Granite Group requires the use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) - specifically masks, in accordance with local and state requirements. If you don't have a mask for your visit, please let us know and we will provide one for you!
• Visitors and vendors are required to complete a self-screening attestation each time they enter one of our buildings. Those who are ill or experiencing symptoms will not be allowed entry.
• CDC recommended social distancing of six feet or more must be practiced at all times during your scheduled appointment.
• All meetings must be scheduled in advance. Unscheduled "drop-ins" are not allowed.
• Meetings are not to exceed 30 minutes and we ask that you limit the number of people participating in your meeting, including yourself, to a maximum of three.
• For the safety of our team members and yourself, visiting restricted areas of the building and Granite Group associates other than the associate your appointment is with will not be allowed.

We thank you very much for your patience and understanding regarding the above rules, they are in place so we can conduct our business as safely as possible. We look forward to the better days coming and seeing you soon!

May 21, 2020

Please visit our "Navigating The COVID-19" webinar series page for easy access to previously recorded sessions you may have missed.

April 15, 2020

Please check out this video from Kohler President & CEO David Kohler which focuses on how they are continuing to work with their trade partners during the COVID-19 crisis.

April 10, 2020

A Free webinar featuring a panel of Legal and HR experts 

We have gathered a panel of legal and HR experts to help you understand how the latest COVID-19 legislation is affecting your business.

 Watch the Video here.

April 3, 2020

To our valued customers and friends, hopefully this message finds you safe and sound. Please take a moment to watch the latest COVID-19 update from The Granite Group President & CEO, Bill Condron.

We are in this together and look forward to helping you continue moving business forward and getting us all to better days as soon as possible.

Thank you for your continued support and partnership.

March 28, 2020

The Granite Group: Keene, NH - Open for Business

We are happy to report that the recovery of the team member from our Keene, NH branch that tested positive for COVID-19 is going wonderfully. We are also happy to report that no other team members tested positive for the virus after we shut the Keene branch down on March 19th to allow for the proper quarantine and cleaning measures. Because of this good news and after following all the appropriate guidelines, we have reopened the Keene Branch for business.

A big thank you to the teams from our Concord, NH, Lebanon, NH and Rutland, VT branches for stepping in to help service the Keene customers during the shut down.  And another big thank you to our Keene customers who patiently worked with us to make sure all orders stayed on track!

For any questions regarding the re-opening our Keene Branch, please contact Branch Manager Alan Fecteau at (603) 757-1021 or afecteau@thegranitegroup.com

March 27, 2020

Essential Businesses

As we all continue to adjust our lives around helping to slow the spread of the COVID-19 virus, businesses of all sizes are dealing with the effects of multiple stay-at-home orders throughout New England. Some businesses designated as "non-essential" are unfortunately being forced to close completely while other "essential" businesses are continuing operations and being asked to follow strict Centers For Disease Control (CDC) guidelines around social distancing.

The Granite Group and Ultimate Bath Stores are designated as essential businesses that provide products for the following groups:

• Plumbing Professionals
• Hydronic Professionals
• HVAC Professionals
• Fuel & Energy Professionals
• Institutional & Property Managers
• Builders
• Electricians
• Mechanical Contractors
• Home Owners

There is a lot of information floating around (some of which is not correct) about these temporary restrictions and if you have questions regarding how they may affect your business, we recommend going directly to the COVID-19 resource section of each of the following state's respective websites:

If you don’t get the information you need at these websites, please don’t hesitate to contact your local Granite Group Branch or Ultimate Bath Store and we will do everything we can to help. Our sincere hope is that we can all continue to work together to keep business moving throughout New England and get through this turbulent time as fast as possible. In the meantime, please stay safe.

March 24, 2020

As we all continue to monitor the COVID-19 pandemic, we wanted to inform you that The Granite Group has been designated an Essential Business throughout New England and we are open and ready to serve you! With that said, we are doing everything we can to conduct our required daily operations as safely and efficiently as possible.

As part of our effort to limit in-person contact at The Granite Group Branches and our Ultimate Bath Stores while following best practices for social distancing outlined by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), we are moving as many things as we can to a primarily touch-free, Safety First approach.

This will include the following:

The Granite Group Online Store and Mobile App

• We are asking that customers look to our Online Store for placing orders.
• If you have not used our Online Store before, it is open 24/7 and is your one-stop, digital connection with The Granite Group that allows you to easily shop our complete product catalog with images and documents (install guides, spec sheets and MSDS sheets) as well as check pricing and availability.
• The Online Store is also easily accessible through our newly-launched Mobile App which has all of the functionality and features of The Online Store. To find the app and download it right to your phone, search for "My Granite Access" in either iTunes or the Google Play Store.
• Please Note: You must be a Granite Group customer and have a My Granite Access/Online Store username and password to use the Mobile App.
• Of course, these digital connections are backed by the world-class customer service you have come to expect at your local branch.
• If you have any questions on how to use or activate your Online Store account or use the Mobile App, please contact: customerservice@thegranitegroup.com or visit the Online Store.

Curbside Pick-up of Orders

Some of our branches have moved to Curbside Pick-Up for all orders and will only allow our employees entry inside the building.

Currently, the following branches have moved exclusively to Curbside Pick-Up:

Please note: The list above is subject to change and all other Granite Group branch counters are open with Curbside Pick-Up as an option for any customer that wants it. These branches do have social distance barriers put in place to help keep our customers and our associates safe. Please respect the barriers that have been set up! 

Details of Curbside Pick-Up of Orders:

• We ask that you please call ahead with your ETA so we can plan accordingly.
• Any order that is placed with us (that is not being delivered) will be left safely outside the branch for you with a sign.
• If needed, we will have staff available to come outside and help you safely load the product on to your truck.
• Customers that have charge accounts will receive a copy of their order and our associates will mark down the name of the associate that picked it up. This will eliminate the need to sign the paperwork.
• Customers who do not have charge accounts and need to pay as they go, will be walked through the payment procedures by the branch staff.
• Credit Cards: A Granite Group associate will take down your credit card information and run it through our credit card processing machines so we will not need to pass the cards back and forth.
• For your protection we do not keep records of your credit card information and all records are destroyed after processing.
• Cash/Check: We will continue to take cash and checks at this time. For personal checks, we will need a driver’s license number. For business checks, we will need the business phone number.
• All transactions will be supplied with a receipt that does not need to be signed.
• Please contact your local branch for any further details.

The Ultimate Bath Store

• To limit the number of people in our stores and allow for a safe shopping experience, effective Monday, March 23, 2020, ALL Ultimate Bath Stores have moved to “BY APPOINTMENT ONLY” visits to our showrooms.
• We would also be happy to arrange a phone call to set up a “VIRTUAL APPOINTMENT” using some of the digital tools we have at our disposal.
• To schedule an appointment with your local store, please visit the “Locations” tab on the Ultimate Bath Store website.
• As part of our policy on social distancing:
  • If you have booked an in-store appointment, when you now enter The Ultimate Bath Store showrooms, you will be greeted with the same friendly faces, but we will also be ensuring that all in-person business is conducted with no handshakes or contact.
  • While in the store, we also ask that you please refrain from touching any of the products. We will happily demo any product you need us to!
  • Both of these items will be strictly enforced.
  • We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause but in these extraordinary times, the safety of our customers and team members is our number one priority.

Training

Because in-person training is obviously not an option at the moment. To continue to offer this valuable service, The Granite Group would like to offer webinar-based training as an option. To facilitate this, we will be working with vendors, manufacturers and internal resources to bring you multiple new on-line and easy-to-use training options. Stay tuned for more information on dates and registration options.

As we’ve stated before, we consider our customers to be part of our family and in these extraordinary times, we are firmly committed to continuing working with you all to find ways to keep business moving and help get things back to normal as fast as possible.

The Granite Group Statement On Positive COVID-19 Test At Our Keene, NH Branch

March 19, 2020 – Concord, NH

Earlier today The Granite Group learned it had its first confirmed COVID-19 case amongst one of our team members. The affected person works at our Keene, NH Branch and we are happy to report this team member is recovering well while being quarantined at home.

Throughout all aspects of our company, we have been diligently following the recommended COVID-19 guidelines provided by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). We have taken unprecedented precautions over the last 2 weeks to ensure that we are operating all of our branches throughout New England in the safest way possible. While we wish none of us had to deal with the current situation gripping our country, we were prepared to implement our response should one of our team members test positive.

Here is an overview of the pertinent details regarding our response to this positive test in our Keene, NH Branch:

• The team member was feeling ill last week, was wisely sent home, and has not been in the branch since March 11th.
• The team member will remain home until cleared by medical professionals to return to work.
• We learned about the positive test today, March 19th, and immediately shut the branch down and sent all of our team members home. We will have the building professionally cleaned.
• We are asking all of our Keene team members to get tested and are assisting them through that process. We are also attempting to contact all customers that could have possibly been exposed. If customers are concerned, we are encouraging them to reach out to their healthcare professional for further guidance.
• The Keene branch will remain closed until at least March 26th - more than 14 days since the infected team member was in the branch. Currently, no other team members are showing signs of the virus. If that changes after testing is complete, we will adjust the re-opening date accordingly.

We remain committed to responding to a rapidly evolving environment for our associates, customers and other affected parties with transparency and the required sense of urgency.

March 16, 2020


To our Granite Group Partners and Valued Customers,

Like other companies and organizations around the country, the team here at The Granite Group has been monitoring the spread of COVID-19 and we are committed to following the recommended guidelines provided by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). The health and safety of our customers and team members is our number one priority and for that reason, we feel it is important to let you know that we have taken unprecedented precautions to keep our customers and employees protected as we look to continue operating in the safest way possible.

When you now enter our Granite Group branches and Ultimate Bath Store showrooms, you will be greeted with the same friendly faces, but we will also be ensuring that all in-person business is conducted with minimal contact. In addition, you will see posters from the CDC outlining best COVID-19 practices and work areas that have been professionally cleaned.

Other specific steps The Granite Group is taking:

• We are ensuring all of our team members are properly educated on COVID-19 and we are imposing strict self-quarantine guidelines for anyone that may have come in contact with the virus.
• We are providing additional hand sanitizer, soap and paper towels for all branches and showrooms.
• To help decrease in-person contact in our branches as much as possible, we are asking that customers look to our Online Store for placing orders. 
• If you have placed an order with us and you prefer to have your materials left outside the branch with a sign, we can arrange that for you.

As we all navigate this situation, we pledge to keep you informed of any further changes that may impact our business operations and we ask that you please visit this page for the latest information. In the meantime, our sincere hope is that everyone stays safe and healthy and that we continue to work together to help get things back to normal as fast as possible. If you have ANY questions, please feel free to contact our Virus Response Team directly at: virusresponse@thegranitegroup.com

Sincerely,
The Granite Group