The flooring industry’s largest distributor by revenue announced a bold rebranding that unifies the Belknap White Group, JJ Haines & Company and Swiff-Train brands under UCX—the Ultimate Customer Experience.
“Our tagline is: ‘Your Flooring Connection,’” Ray Mancini, Jr., CEO, told FCNews in announcing the initiative. “It’s a people business. We want to connect with customers to let them know we care about them and offer great products and service.”
UCX replaces the combined Belknap-Haines/STC (formerly Swiff-Train), the industry No. 1 distributor with 2023 revenue estimated at $700 million. Mancini Jr. emphasized that this move is “100% a rebranding,” and does not in any way involve an ownership change or management reshuffling.
In advance of this rebranding strategy the distributor hired a marketing company to explore different name iterations, eventually choosing UCX because it depicted its commitment to customer service. As part of the rebrand, UCX has unveiled a new logo and a comprehensive suite of marketing materials that reflect the company’s commitment to innovation and customer focus. The logo is said to embody the strength, synergy and collaborative spirit that define UCX. The marketing materials showcase the company’s extensive product offerings, service capabilities and dedication to building lasting partnerships with its customers.
UCX will cover the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic and Southeast and Southwest (the Texas market) regions—encompassing 20 states and 70% of the population. Brian Green will oversee the regions as chief sales and marketing officer. “We can now market one company instead of being fragmented,” Mancini Jr. explained.
The goal, he noted, is to drive customer service down to the local level, and to make it exceptional in every aspect. “We are working really hard to act locally. We’re getting into a better position to serve our customers [by creating the regions], and we’re empowering the team to make decisions at the local level.”
UCX is already well positioned at the product level, with a bevy of national brands in its portfolio as well as import capabilities through STC. “We have relationships with manufacturers all over the country, and now we are sourcing product from all over the world,” Mancini Jr. said. “We will continue to build a culture where we streamline operations and hold people accountable. We’re getting better and better at the blocking and tackling.”
Mancini said exceptional service makes a difference. As an example, he referenced going out to dinner and having a great waiter or waitress serve your table. That one person’s exemplary service can make a huge difference in the overall dining experience. That’s the kind of impact UCX hopes to have on its customers, be they flooring retailers, contractors or builders.
UCX’s rebranding starts from a position of strength, drawing on experience from three companies with more than 200 years of combined distribution experience. “UCX builds upon the collective strengths, resources and expertise of these established companies, leveraging their decades-long experience to create an unparalleled level of service for flooring professionals,” Mancini Jr. said.
UCX (ucxflooring.com) is committed to building genuine relationships with its clients and partners, exceeding expectations at every touchpoint and understanding their unique needs.
“By putting ourselves in our customers’ shoes, we can anticipate their challenges and deliver solutions that empower their success,” he added.
The UCX rebranding comes amid a flurry of change atop the distribution heap. In June, Virginia Tile joined forces with No. 4 Galleher ($320 million) through a private equity transaction to create a flooring and tile products distributor of national scale. Prior to that, a series of distributor acquisitions culminated with the creation of All Surfaces.
