Three great companies unite under one brand
In the One-to-One column, NTCA Executive Director Bart Bettiga interviews industry leaders about pertinent topics.

In the past few years, the tile industry has seen a sharp increase in consolidation in manufacturing, distribution and contracting. In many instances, venture capital investment has spearheaded some of these purchases. In one unique transaction recently, three highly respected flooring distributors united under a new brand: UCX-the Ultimate Customer Experience.
The Belknap White Group, JJ Haines & Company, and Swiff-Train Company have had a strong reputation of excellence in service and support in the flooring industry. By combining under one unified brand, UCX now has operations in over 20 states across the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Southeast and Southwest. Ray Mancini, Jr. CEO of UCX, sat down with me to discuss this exciting news in flooring distribution.
How were you able to get three excellent flooring distributors, who competed with each other, to come together to form UCX?


This has been in the works for about a year and a half. We had bought the Swiff-Train Company and along with Belknap White and JJ Haines, we felt it was a better strategy to have one name throughout our territory. We reviewed many different name changes until we agreed to the UCX name. We were already a regional player, but we decided we needed to be a large regional player, and we also felt it was important to let our customers know we are one company, serving 20 states and almost 70% of the population, with a strong product portfolio, excellent service, and people that care about helping the customer.
It is important to us that we act locally, so we divided our operation into four regions (Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Southeast and Southwest) with leaders in each of these departments.
Did this take place as a reaction to other consolidations happening in the floor covering industry?


We have seen some of this movement on the west coast with Galleher buying Virginia Tile, All Surfaces purchasing several Midwest distributors, and others as well. We think as the industry moves forward, putting ourselves in a good position to compete meant that we really needed to be a large regional company, and we accomplished that with this transaction.
Tell me about the advantages you identified in this process. What are some challenges to overcome?
Collectively we have over 250 years of a proven track record of success in flooring distribution. On the tile side, JJ Haines and Belknap White were strong, while Swiff-Train was a strong resilient and hardwood company that had recently got into ceramic tile, so we feel we have categories well covered. The UCX name is aspirational and serves to remind us why we come to work every day: to serve our customers.
The challenge I see is to create the culture we want in a large regional map, get everyone on the team in the four regions to embrace this, and ensure that this culture remains consistent through our total platform.
How will you service the tile market with UCX in the four regions you now cover?


We are sourcing product in all categories from all over the world. We have a great hard surface portfolio, with brand name recognition. We also have a strong private label collection to service our customers with competitive products. We have a lot of work to do with importing and sourcing products, but we are excited with where we are at today in the marketplace.
How will you manage and plan logistics to serve such a large area with your products?
The good news is that all three of our companies had great logistics in place already. The only thing we are trying to work on now is inventory management and control. We have redone our inventory systems and upgraded our software, and we are focused on fill rates – which we look at weekly – and making sure the inventory is available locally while we communicate expected delivery schedules with our customers.
As you look ahead to 2025, how do you view the flooring market and the opportunities for growth?
We serve the builder segment, commercial and residential remodeling. 2024 has been challenging but we are optimistic interest rates will come down in 2025, and we think there is some pent-up demand in some of our markets, especially in residential remodeling. [We think] that in 2025 and 2026 we will see a good rebound if those interest rates come down. Our mix of different flooring products gives us a lot of versatility. The LVT and SPC categories continue to grow but not at the levels of the past few years. Ceramic tile is a strong category for us, and we see that trend continuing into 2025 and 2026.
Bart Bettiga is the Executive Director of the National Tile Contractors Association. Bettiga is a member of the Board of Governors of Coverings, one the largest tradeshows in North America. He has over 30 years of experience in the tile and stone industry and has served as the NTCA Executive Director since 2002. He is a well known speaker and author on ceramic tile and natural stone distribution and installation. He oversees the financial operations of the NTCA, TileLetter and the Ceramic Tile Education Foundation.