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About Us

Our History

In 1977, after 10 years of playing football at the collegiate and professional levels, Heisman Trophy winner John Huarte decided to focus his leadership and team-building skills on a new business endeavor. He took a leap and signed a lease on the back of a cardboard box, opening the first Arizona Tile location in San Diego, California.

Forty years later – With hundreds of employees, nearly half of which have been with the company for over a decade, and many who have been with the company since the beginning, unparalleled customer service, and products from around the world – Arizona Tile has become one of the leading tile and slab distributors in the U.S. Our products are distributed to residential and commercial customers throughout the Western United States.

about us founder

Our Founder

John Huarte, CEO and Owner of Arizona Tile, founded the company in 1977. Beginning with a small store in San Diego, California, the company has since grown to have locations in 10 western states. John and his wife, Eileen, have five children, including sons Matt and Mark and son-in-law Joe Kennedy, who are part of the Management Team and involved in the day-to-day management of the company.

Prior to founding Arizona Tile, John spent almost ten years playing football. He graduated from the University of Notre Dame with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and was awarded the Heisman Trophy in 1964 as quarterback of the Fighting Irish. In 2005 he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. After graduating from the University of Notre Dame, he played professional football for eight years with Boston, Philadelphia, Kansas City, and Chicago in the NFL, as well as Memphis in the WFL, before retiring from professional sports in 1975.

In addition to his responsibilities as CEO, John is involved with several philanthropic organizations. Currently, he is a member of the Board of Trustees for St. John’s Health Foundation in Santa Monica, California.

Our Team

Arizona Tile was founded on the concept that goodwill towards others, including our fellow employees, is good business. We are committed to supporting our employees in providing an outstanding experience for our customers. With many employees choosing to spend 10, 20 and 30 years of their career with us, we value the family we have created within our team members.

Executive TEAM

John Huarte

Founder and CEORead Bio

John Huarte

Founder and CEO

John Huarte, CEO and Owner of Arizona Tile, founded the company in 1977. Beginning with a small store in San Diego, California, the company has since grown to more than 25 locations in 7 western states. John and his wife, Eileen, have five children, including sons Matt and Mark and son-in-law Joe Kennedy, who are part of the Management Team and involved in the day-to-day management of the company.

Prior to founding Arizona Tile, John spent almost ten years playing football. He graduated from the University of Notre Dame with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and was awarded the Heisman Trophy in 1964 as quarterback of the Fighting Irish. In 2006 he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. After graduating from the University of Notre Dame, he played professional football for eight years with Boston, Philadelphia, Kansas City, and Chicago in the NFL, as well as Memphis in the WFL, before retiring from professional sports in 1975.

In addition to his responsibilities as CEO, John is involved with several philanthropic organizations. Currently, he is a member of the Board of Trustees for St. John's Health Foundation in Santa Monica, California.

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Joe Kennedy

PresidentRead Bio

Joe Kennedy

President

Joe Kennedy is a member of the Executive Management Team and serves as President. In his role, his responsibilities include overseeing Operations, Sales and Marketing functions.

Joe joined Arizona Tile in 2007 and previously served the company as a Executive Vice President, General Manager and Commercial Sales Representative. As General Manager, he managed all aspects of the Operations and Sales functions for day-to-day-operations in his region which was comprised of several areas in California including Los Angeles, Orange County, Inland Empire and Palm Desert. As a son-in-law of the founders, John and Eileen Huarte, he spent many years learning about the company and industry, even prior to beginning his employment in 2007.

His business and marketing background includes serving in roles such as:

Senior Vice President, International Program Sales and Business Affairs: Discovery Communications

Vice President, International Program Sales, North America: International Television Enterprises Inc.

Junior Executive: J. Walter Thompson Advertising Agency

Joe received a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration from Loyola Marymount University.

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Mark Huarte

OWNERRead Bio

Mark Huarte

OWNER

Mark Huarte was named Vice President of Operations in September 2003. In this role his responsibilities include overseeing the company's day-to-day operations for all locations, as well as improving the overall operating efficiencies.

He joined the company in July 1995 and has served in various capacities including warehouse employee, Warehouse Lead, Warehouse Manager, Order Desk Personnel and General Manager. As a son of the founders, John and Eileen Huarte, Mark spent many years learning about the company and industry, even prior to beginning his employment in July of 1995.

Mark received his Bachelor's of Science in Business Administration from University of San Diego.

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Don Kesteloot

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICERRead Bio

Don Kesteloot

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

Don Kesteloot was named CFO in January 2019. In this role, his responsibilities include financial planning and management for the organization. He works closely with the President and other members in management in setting overall policies and the direction of the company's operations.

Prior to his current role, he served as the company's Vice President of Finance. Don joined Arizona Tile in May 2000.

Before joining Arizona Tile, Don spent nine years with Joe E. Woods, Inc. General Contractors as a Controller and six years with McGladrey and Pullen Public Accounting Firm as an Audit Supervisor.

He received his Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting and Management Information Systems from the University of Arizona.

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Beth Gaughan

Senior VP OF SALES AND MARKETINGRead Bio

Beth Gaughan

Senior VP OF SALES AND MARKETING

Beth Gaughan was appointed Vice President of Sales in September 2003, Vice President of Sales and Marketing in January 2019 and most recently promoted to Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing in January 2024. In her role she leads the implementation of sales strategies in the field and showrooms including the management of nine Regional Sales Managers. She oversees the development of new showrooms, the remodeling of existing showrooms and is part of the Product Design Team for all products. Beth guided the development and promotion of the National Builder Programs and is responsible for maintaining positive customer relations, including overseeing customer service training for Customer Service Representatives and Sales staff. Beth also works with, and oversees, the Marketing Team in the development of sales tools for showrooms and outside sales team, as well as all marketing and digital initiatives.

She previously served the company in various roles including Sales Manager, Outside Sales Representative and Showroom Consultant. Beth joined Arizona Tile in April 1987 as a Showroom Consultant.

She received her bachelor's degree in Education from the University of Missouri, Kansas City.

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Roy Kunihiro

VP OF QUARTZ, STONE AND TILERead Bio

Roy Kunihiro

VP OF QUARTZ, STONE AND TILE

Roy Kunihiro was named General Manager in 2009, after serving several years as the GM of the Stone Division. In his current role, he oversees sourcing and vendor relationships for stone, quartz and tile in Asia, Turkey and India. He also directly manages the office and staff in China, working closely with them to achieve premium product quality and design.

Roy joined Arizona Tile in 1999 and has been involved with product development since that time. He frequently travels to many countries throughout the world, searching for new products and suppliers.

Roy has been in the stone industry since 1979, when he worked for the largest trading firm in Japan, as a block inspector and later as a procurer of tile and slab.

Roy attended Hawaii Loa College in Kaneohe, Hawaii.

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Rick Collins

VP of OperationsRead Bio

Rick Collins

VP of Operations

Rick joined Arizona Tile in 1986 while completing a Bachelor of Science program in Purchasing and Logistics Management at Arizona State University. Rick has served the company in a variety of capacities including, Warehouseman, Order Desk CSR, Branch Manager, Regional Operations Manager and Director of Operations & Safety. In these roles Rick was responsible for order fulfillment, customer service, daily branch operations, developing safe material handling practices, managing the Safety Department, equipment development and acquisition.

Rick was named Vice President of Operations in January 2022.

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Jack Bramson

VP, Pacific NorthwestRead Bio

Jack Bramson

VP, Pacific Northwest

Jack Bramson joined Arizona Tile in the Fall of 2018 in the role of Regional General Manager of the Pacific Northwest, which was an expansion territory for the company. Jack was appointed to Vice President/Pacific Northwest in April of 2021.

Jack has more than 30 years of experience in the tile and stone industry, and has held various leadership and executive positions with other companies in the industry.

Jack attended Pierce College and LACC for degrees in Business and Administration of Justice as well as being a graduate of the Ceramite Tile Institute.

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Chad Raymond

VP, West RegionRead Bio

Chad Raymond

VP, West Region

Chad Raymond joined Arizona Tile in 2002 as a Sales Representative, focusing on slab sales. Building relationships and increasing the customer base in his territory, he was named Regional Sales Manager in 2015. In this role, he managed all Outside Sales Representatives and internal Sales Teams for the Greater Los Angeles, Orange County and Inland Empire region.

He was most recently appointed to Vice President, West Region in January 2024. In this role, he oversees all Sales and Operations functions for the state of California.

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Jared Ekas

VP of Commercial SalesRead Bio

Jared Ekas

VP of Commercial Sales

Jared Ekas was recently named VP of Commercial Sales. In this role, he works with our Regional Sales Managers and Commercial Sales Representatives to develop and execute strategic plans to grow business in each region, as well as lead the hiring, training and development of our Commercial Sales Team. Jared joined Arizona Tile in 2004 working in slab sales. During his tenure, he opened a new location and served as the manager before moving to our Commercial Sales Team in 2006. During this time he led our efforts in the cut-to-size markets and grew our marketing share in all commercial segments. He was promoted to Director of Commercial Sales in 2020, where he created and implemented our marketing approach for all commercial sales initiatives and worked on developing new products and market segments.

Jared grew up in Southern California and started working in the tile industry as a young teenager, helping his older brother’s installation company. He attended Fullerton College while working in dealer sales in Southern California.

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Gary Skarsten

SENIOR ADVISOR, PROPERTY DEVELOPMENTRead Bio

Gary Skarsten

SENIOR ADVISOR, PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT

Gary Skarsten was named Senior Advisor Property Development in January 2019. His responsibilities include new location development, financial planning and property management of the Arizona Tile locations.

Prior to his current role, he served as the company's CFO and Executive Vice President. Gary joined Arizona Tile in December 1987.

Before joining Arizona Tile, Gary worked in the tax department of the firm, McGladrey and Pullen.

His education includes a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Finance from Minnesota State University at Mankato.

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GENERAL AND REGIONAL MANAGERS

Stein Wixom

Regional Manager
Nevada
[email protected]

Meghan Wise

Regional Sales Manager
Arizona
[email protected]

Ty Tolbert

Regional Operations Manager
Arizona
[email protected]

Tracy Morlack

Regional Manager
New Mexico
[email protected]

John Culver

Regional Operations Manager
Los Angeles / Orange County
[email protected]

Caroline Hulshof

Regional Sales Manager
Los Angeles/Orange County
[email protected]

Brady O’Connor

Regional Sales Manager
Northern California
[email protected]

Steve Skarsten

Regional Operations Manager
Northern California
[email protected]

Mark Roberts

General Manager
San Diego
[email protected]

Mark Beaudoin

General Manager
Colorado
[email protected]

Darin Birschbach

General Manager
Utah
[email protected]

Heather Haas

Regional Sales Manager
Texas
[email protected]

Brian Sancet

Regional Operations Manager
Texas
[email protected]

Jack Bramson

Vice President,
Pacific Northwest
[email protected]

Visit Our Unique Showroom and Experience It For Yourself

Bring your home design inspiration to life. Stop in to see and touch extraordinary surfaces we've hand selected from around the world. Best of all, confer with our professionally trained design consultants to find the perfect fit for your home.

Store Locations

Our Customers

Arizona Tile stocks an unparalleled breadth of inventory, thereby allowing us to provide exceptional service to our customers. Commercial developers, designers and architects look to us as a resource for technical information; while designers and builders entrust their clients to us. For customers, the experience we create while taking them through the selection process is the essence of Arizona Tile.

Our Quality

Every product we purchase must pass a detailed inspection before it is shipped to Arizona Tile and ultimately, our customers. All products undergo a rigid quality control process including both automated and human inspection, utilizing the most advanced technologies available in the market today.

Our Suppliers

Our years of experience in the international market allows us to select only the top suppliers with which to work. Our suppliers must adhere to the same ethics and quality standards we expect of ourselves.