Tradebank: Bartering Holds Allure For Businesses
By Vincent Ball
John Porter calls it the “new” old way of doing business.
“Bartering has been around forever and all we’ve done is take it to a whole new level,” says Porter, president of Tradebank Canada.
“Instead of being a one-to-one exchange, we’ve created a large network for businesses – small and large – to exchange products and services.”
Tradebank arrived in Canada in 1996 and Porter, who owned the Niagara Tradebank franchise, from 1997 to 2001, purchased Tradebank Canada in 2001 and took over as president.
Back then, there were about 700 Tradebank members in Ontario. Since then, the company has expanded into two other provinces with franchisees in Saskatchewan and Alberta, as well as Kitchener/Waterloo, London, Ottawa and northern Ontario.
“I think that with the economy being so tight that businesses were looking for alternative ways of getting things done without spending cash.” Etienne Vaillancourt
Tradebank now has more than 2,500 active accounts and this year plans to add more than 700 new one this year.
The company’s head office is in Stoney Creek and manages a territory that includes the Golden Horseshoe from Fort Erie to Oshawa and Brantford. In Brantford, the company is represented by Etienne Vaillancourt, a trade broker.
“We already have about 50 companies in Brantford and the surrounding area registered with us and about 22 of those have joined since July,” Vaillancourt said.
“I think that with the economy being so tight that businesses were looking for alternative ways of getting things done without spending cash.
“With Tradebank, instead of spending money on printing, advertising, furniture, dining, jewelry or golfing, businesses were looking to trade for what they needed.”
The list of local business registered with Tradebank includes several restaurants, he said.
“Historically, having two companies swap products and services of equal value was the only way to experience the benefits of trade,” Vaillancourt said. “Times have changed.”
Services provided by Tradebank include sending companies new business, facilitating purchase requests and automating the record for each trade transaction. All transactions are credited immediately, so there are no receivables, collection efforts or bad debts involved, he said.
Anyone interested in learning more about Tradebank is invited to attend a Trade University, a seminar being held by Porter and Vaillancourt at Addison’s Brantford Conference Centre, 664 Colborne St. E. on Wednesday at 5 p.m.
The evening includes a dinner.
Economic downturns often lead to an increase in bartering.
Porter said that Tradebank’s business is good when the economy is good and “it’s great when it’s bad.”
Meanwhile, Tradebank has set up a matching funds program to help registered charities obtain products and services from members of the Tradebank Network. When a charity chooses to make a purchase from a participating business, be it printing, advertising, promotional goods or event costs, Tradebank will cover half the cost at the time of the transaction by making a gift from the foundation to the charity.
http://www.brantfordexpositor.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=3438037
Filed Under: Tradebank
