Billd Teams Up with American Express to Help Suppliers Extend Flexible Finance Terms Across U.S. Construction Industry
Plumb-Tech struggled with business growth due to insufficient supplier terms and maxed-out credit lines. By partnering with Billd, they were able to strengthen their supplier relationships, comfortably take on larger projects, and double their revenue.
"We don't have to live in survival mode anymore. Without Billd, I don't think we'd have been able to weather any type of storm."
Plumb-Tech is a Philadelphia-based plumbing subcontractor founded in 2013. We sat down with Dave Eisenhower, Plumb-Tech’s financial manager of over seven years, to hear how working with Billd has helped them transform their business.
In Eisenhower’s early days with Plumb-Tech, the company struggled with supplier credit limits. Not only were they relying on 30-day payment terms, but they also struggled with insufficient credit limits.
“One invoice could decimate our credit line,” he said.
They were working with new GCs at the time and experienced longer-than-normal payment delays for their work on these projects. 30 days was simply not enough time to make materials payments, which caused them to accrue late fees. The lack of sufficient payment terms and available credit made it stressful to execute existing projects and hurt their ability to take on new work.
Plumb-Tech had a good relationship with their suppliers, but they were worried payment delays and maxed-out credit lines would strain these relationships. They simply couldn’t sustain a 30-day payment structure on their own. “It closed off avenues to keep us expanding [into larger projects],” Eisenhower said.
One of Plumb-Tech’s suppliers referred them to Billd, explaining that Billd could offer a much larger credit limit and more favorable payment terms than what they, as a supplier, could provide.
Dave quickly found that the 120-day terms they had to pay for materials was a game changer, enabling them to pursue larger projects, gain priority from suppliers, and improve their relationships with GCs.
“To expand so quickly with limited credit is hard,” he explained.
“The longer timeframe Billd offered was super useful. They made everything much smoother; with less pressure to make material payments in 30 days, we can focus on the work that matters. Billd came at a crucial time in our growth.”
“It’s been a vital part of our business,” he said.
Eisenhower’s advice to subs who are considering Billd:
Larger projects inevitably come with bigger material price tags. You can’t comfortably take on those projects with your supplier’s credit limits. Billd lets you finance your project with longer repayment terms. If you’re looking to take on larger, more profitable projects to become a larger, more profitable company, Billd is the partner for you.
