The BC Exchange Story – Loyalty, Honor, Respect & Quality
Carpet Infrastructure & the Global Purchasing Advantage
In 1991, following his grandfather’s passing, CEO David Simon decided to relocate the business to Manhattan and change the name to “BC Exchange
” to disconnect the Brooklyn connection in ‘exchange’ for a more global brand. And throughout most of the 1990s, business was good.
But with the economic collapse of the dot.com sector in the late 1990s, David knew he needed to become more innovative in his business marketing strategies. Working closely with major real estate investment trust client SL Green, he created a new commercial “carpet infrastructure” that helped building owners control the procurement of carpeting and eliminate the second and third markups of traditional distribution channels. As a result, clients realized millions of dollars in savings per year.As David explains: “This became our Global Purchasing Advantage program, whereby building owners are assured of mill discount pricing based on volume, and thereby save millions of dollars a year in carpet spending—savings that they can pass on to their tenants. There isn’t a general contractor, architect or carpet dealer in the country that can provide better service and pricing for tenants and building owners than our distribution policy.”
SL Green suggested that David share this “formula” with other building owners to help increase the real estate community’s leverage to buy better. “Great people really do want to make other people greater,” says David.
Currently, Global Purchasing Advantage participants account for more than 100 million sq. ft. of carpet.
