Client Feature: The benefits of banking local
General Factory Supply switched away from a large national bank in order to work with a local team that understands their business
As a one-stop-shop supplier of tools and equipment for industrial manufacturers, General Factory Supply offers such a wide variety of services, their large national bank struggled to understand what they did. Frustrated by constantly explaining themselves to their bank, they switched to First Financial Bank and now have a team that knows their business and can identify which financial solutions work best for them.
The Problem
There is an old saying that you can’t be everything for everyone, but General Factory Supply has built a business on being everything for their clients. They started out distributing industrial supplies — nuts, bolts, wheels, many of the pieces of machinery that wear down over time and need to be replaced. As their client relationships grew, they also began to address the additional needs that arose.
For example, when a major client mentioned struggling with their bottled water supplier, General Factory Supply found a vendor and added bottled water deliveries to their scope. Word spread about their reliability and cost effectiveness, and now bottled water is a common part of their contracts. In the same vein, the company has supplied children’s books, janitorial supplies, and even live butterflies. “It’s a way for our clients to increase efficiencies,” explains CFO Jeff M. Stautberg.
Unfortunately, this broad range in clients and supplies presented challenges in banking. They had been a long-time client of a large national bank and began to find it difficult to access the credit they needed to meet their growth goals.
“As much as we liked our Relationship Manager, he couldn’t get anything done without bringing in leadership from other cities,” remembers Jeff. “Even back during COVID, when we went to get the PPP loan, it was a real challenge. They were asking us questions they already should have known the answer to. We wanted to find someone more local.”
They found First Financial Bank.
Banking with First Financial
Jeff remembers shopping around and being sold on First Financial’s promise of building a real relationship between the bankers and the General Factory Supply team. Jeff attests that it has been everything as advertised. The General Factory Supply team quickly met their dedicated Relationship Manager, Treasury Management Advisors, and even people in the Credit department. Their concerns that a more local bank would involve less sophisticated technology were quickly put to rest — Jeff insists that the website and financial management tools have even been an upgrade.
The real value-add, though, is the relationship. Jeff sees the clear efforts of the banking team to identify needs and suggest solutions. They’ve experienced increased efficiency and optimization thanks to the f1RSTNAVIGATOR portal, Check Positive Pay, and Interest Sweep Accounts.
“Our Treasury Management Advisor always comes to us with ideas; we like that,” says Jeff.
The relationship even goes beyond suggesting banking solutions. Jeff recalls times that the Relationship Manager has introduced him to other clients who could be a useful business contact. Additionally, he turns to the Bank team as trusted guides. When a business acquisition required assuming a building lease, they decided to sub-lease it, which would be a new endeavor for them. They were able to turn to their First Financial Team for recommendations of commercial real estate people to help with the process.
“They aren’t just trying to be our banker,” describes Jeff. “They network for us. They are a trusted adviser and a great partner. First Financial feels like a big bank and that you can handle all of our needs, but you still feel like you’re working with a neighbor. It feels good, that First Financial is in our corner as a partner.”