Twenty-five years ago, Jie (Jack) Guan recruited wholesale dealers for his new business, Great Wall Stone.
“I gave them a call and said, ‘My name is Jack, and my business sells granite,’” he laughs. “They said yes!”
Fast forward to today, and Guan is celebrating his inauguration into the Chamber of Commerce with a ribbon cutting! At Great Wall Stone, Guan supplies granite (not countertop granite!) to be used as monuments, carved monuments, columbarium, and statues to wholesalers throughout the Midwest — from Ohio to Nebraska and Missouri to Minnesota. As you drive down the I-80 interstate, you can spot his stacks of granite, to be organized and shipped in coordination with trucking agencies. Guan carries a wide selection, with at least nine different colors and finishes, and fulfills special color requests, too.
Guan, who came to Iowa to pursue a Ph.D. in plant pathology and statistics, brought the Great Wall Stone to Grinnell in 2021 after moving between a few Iowan towns. His move was influenced by his daughter, Brenda Guan, who played tennis and graduated from Grinnell College in 2020. Although she currently lives in Des Moines as a graduated lawyer from the University of Iowa, she encouraged her dad to join us here at the Chamber!
Now in the company’s fourth year in Grinnell, Guan continues to be a savvy businessman, having created an efficient system for sorting his high-quality granite products — whether by color, finish, cut, or size. As Guan continues to operate his business in Grinnell, he has changed a few things along the way, too. Guan shared with the Chamber Ambassadors that he recently shifted his supply chain away from China, in preparation for rising import taxes on the horizon. Now, he sources most of his granite from India instead.
To check out Guan’s granite options and designs — from carvings to monuments to statues — visit Guan’s website, greatwallstone.com.
Chamber Ambassadors, listed from L-R:
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