COO Samantha Lautanen began her career at Stone Mart, a wholesale supplier of natural stone and engineered material, in 2012 after responding to an ad for a customer service position. What began as a summer job while she attended college turned into more than a decade of loving what she does.
I fell in love with the industry, she says. Within six months she was promoted to outside sales. Then, in 2014, Stone Mart expanded its Columbus, Ohio headquarters, and CEO Yash Lunkad felt Lautanen’s skills could be better used in management. She oversaw inside sales and purchasing and, as operations manager, the warehouses. She did whatever was needed for the rapidly growing company.
Her positions continued to change and grow along with the company. And by 2022, just 10 years from the time she started, Lautanen became Stone Mart’s Chief Operating Officer (COO). To what does she credit her quick progression?
I tried to learn anything and everything, she says. I needed to know all the details whether they seemed relevant or not.
Lautanen also credits her college coursework – she earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work – with giving her greater compassion, empathy, and understanding for all kinds of people.
Early on in her career as a 23-year-old outside salesperson, she found the niche industry to be mainly male-dominated. However, ten years of progress have made a difference, with more women in every level, from management positions to warehouse workers and truck drivers.
Every industry has its challenges, but Lautanen believes that anything’s possible if you put your mind, passion, and drive to it. Her advice to women thinking of working in this industry is threefold. Knowledge is power. Learn everything you can. Confidence comes from knowledge. If you think you can, you can. The use of stone in homes continues to trend, and Lautanen believes engineered material, such as quartz, will become even more relevant moving forward. I’m really excited for what is to come, she says. For your next project, start at Stone Mart and work with their expert staff to find the perfect material for your home.
