A legacy of transparency.
UltraSource | Kansas City, Missouri
As Scott Nord prepares to retire from over two decades at processing and packaging equipment supplier UltraSource, he reflects on the strong banking relationship the company has relied on year after year. “I started with UltraSource in 1997 when we were banking with three different companies,” says Scott, the company’s Vice President and CFO. “In the 2000s, we sold off 80% of the company and had to establish new banking relationships.”
With such a drastic change in their business, UltraSource decided to consolidate their banking and search for a dependable financial partner. “We needed all the traditional services,” Scott shares, “a line of credit, merchant services, credit card. Commerce Bank blew everyone away when it came to their proposal.”
Commerce Bank’s one-stop-shop and line of credit made it easy for UltraSource to form this banking relationship. “Over the years, we've grown — and our line of credit has grown along with it,” Scott notes, “We've done multiple term loans with Commerce for big projects. We’ve had a phenomenal relationship.”
As UltraSource’s credit needs increased, Commerce Bank continued to support them. “Over the years we were in a rhythm where we would need a line of credit to support cash needs for the first eight months of the year,” Scott shares. “Then, in our fourth quarter, all the money comes in and pays off our line.” When UltraSource’s line of credit increased to unexpected heights, Commerce Bank was there to follow through. “We never got any feedback from Commerce that we were in jeopardy,” Scott recalls. “In fact, the only thing we did is meet more frequently to make sure that we were on the same page.”
What made this banking relationship so extraordinary, Scott says, is Commerce’s transparent approach and focus on the relationship. “Our merchant representative, Lisa Ostrom, at Commerce Bank would meet with us and discuss everything they were doing for us,” Scott explains. “She shared our effective rates on current transactions by month and by quarter and wanted to make sure we understood the costs of the services.”
When another bank offered seemingly cheaper credit card processing, UltraSource made the switch to obtain cost savings — but ultimately, they returned to Commerce Bank. “You know, you feel like, ‘Well, I should try something different to make sure I'm doing my due diligence and whatnot.’ But after a few months, I’m looking at our monthly reports and we’re not saving any money, we’re losing money,” Scott reflects. “The other bank could not clear the transactions within the appropriate time window to get the best interchange rates, and we were getting downgrades that we weren't getting with Commerce Bank.”
Through that experience, Scott learned the importance of close reporting — and the value of a strong relationship. “When you make a change like this, under the guise of saving money, you need to follow up and make sure you're really saving money,” Scott advises. “It was a good lesson for me and I tell that story now. I say, ‘Don’t waste your time. You’re going to save at Commerce.’”
As Scott concludes his work with UltraSource, he reflects on years of dependability with Commerce Bank. “Commerce has been an area of my job that I haven’t had to worry about,” Scott notes. “It’s great for a CFO to say, ‘Hey, this is an important part of my job and I’m 100% comfortable that everything’s under control. Everything is handled properly and effectively.’ Commerce Bank understands strategically what’s going on in the business and we’ve had such a great relationship.”
