Bradford Custom Homes: Gaining an edge by offering clients more value

Who is Bradford Custom Homes?

The Bradford Custom Homes origin story is a little different than most. In 2006, Brad Robinson started a painting and drywall company that did turnkey services for custom builders in the Atlanta market.

However, just two years into business, the global market took a nosedive. The 2008 financial crisis brought about the largest recession since the Great Depression of the 1930s. And unfortunately, this caused a lot of unprofessionalism in the industry, and builders treated vendors like Brad poorly.

“It just was not a great environment to be in,” Brad said. “I made the decision to sell and move on. I got an offer to round out my resume doing retail design for people like The Home Depot and Petco. It was really fun.”

Brad took his career in a whole new direction and started working in a heavy marketing environment, developing point-of-purchase graphics and displays before coming full circle back to construction. Then in 2018, the housing market became hot again. His phone just kept ringing.

“I finally just decided to answer it one day, and I landed a $200,000 remodel project,” Brad recalled.

Shortly after, he met his business partner Cody Shriver. They teamed up to create the Bradford Custom Homes you see today. Brad’s unique corporate background has given the company advantages not only in marketing, but in the strategic processes and principles they implement daily.

“We have a very strong culture in our organization,” Brad said. “We call it ‘better-for-you culture.’ If presented with two options, the decision we’ll make for our client is oftentimes going to be the one that’s better for them.”

Seeing the benefits: Adding value for clients equals a competitive edge

“I sell CBUSA to every client that’s in front of me,” Brad said.

A major selling point of CBUSA’s group purchasing organization that isn’t as frequently mentioned is the benefit for clients – and how builders can use that to their advantage.

Not only is CBUSA great for builders – it’s a financial advantage for their clients. By working with a home builder who participates in a group purchasing organization, homeowners get access to lower pricing on materials and quality national brands.

“People like hearing that,” Brad said. “One of the things I tell them is, ‘You have the advantage of these lower prices because we’re buying as a top five builder in the nation.’”

Members of CBUSA also put themselves amongst a group of other like-minded individuals that are at the same caliber, automatically differentiating them from other builders in their area. This is another unique selling point for potential clients.

“I tell clients it’s an application-based process to join CBUSA, so not every builder can join,” Brad said. “That intrigues people. It’s just like saying you’re on a good team, right? You’re now going to be categorized as a winner.”

Another benefit of joining the ranks of national builders? Supplier relationships.

Vendors in the CBUSA network are incentivized to perform well, and they understand the value of relationships more than suppliers outside of the network. And because all builders and suppliers are vetted from the start, the trust is already established.

“If they were to do something for us in good faith, to help us out upfront, they’re doing it for the right reasons. Not just for the opportunity on the backside, but to truly help us,” Brad said.

CBUSA works as a catalyst to form relationships between the best builders, the best suppliers and the best brands across the nation. These pre-established relationships and quality assurance also make it more likely that vendors will prioritize CBUSA builders and vice versa.

“This program has allowed us to make meaningful and deeper relationships that are much more impactful to our business,” Brad said.

Finding success: Focusing on the big picture

With CBUSA, the Bradford Homes team found the opportunity to standardize their business, improve the client experience and ensure better supplier relationships. These are the big picture benefits that Brad finds the most value in – but that doesn’t mean he’s discounting the boost to their bottom line.

“I would say with the amount of projects that we’ve done over the period of time and being engaged there have been hundreds of thousands of dollars saved,” Brad said. “Whether that’s soft cost or using vendors we weren’t aware of before joining CBUSA and then add on rebates on top of that.”

By combining the value of CBUSA’s network with the monetary gain, Brad was able to confirm with absolute certainty that …

“We would not be where we are today without having had joined CBUSA.”

Atlanta is one of the top-performing markets in CBUSA. Are you ready to join in on their success?

If you’re a builder who cares about growth or creating a lasting product, you first need the right partner that’ll go to bat for you.

Apply to become a CBUSA member today and start seeing the benefits of group purchasing. Offer clients more value, improve supplier relationships and add hundreds of thousands to your bottom line.