by Hélène Buzzetti

Henry Brunelle, President, speaks little of the methods his company used to so rapidly invade our Southern neighbors' difficult market. "When you're the leader and everyone's trying to copy you, you don't reveal your tricks," he explains. On top of this, the morning of the interview, he'd just learned that one of his competitors, Plastiques JR, had been bought out by an American company, and he felt somewhat fearful of this new player.

However, this bit of bad news seemed to affect neither the 39 year old businessman nor the solid team spirit which prevails over the company. A camaraderie which shows clearly in their customer services geared at making retailers enjoy doing business with Bains Ultra. "This special attention given to the customers aims at developing true bonds with them, not to mention collaboration", the President proudly explains

Not open to everyone!

Bains Ultra entered the United States simultaneously through the doors of New York, Chicago, and New England. Following a failed attempt by a "guy" he'd hired for prospecting agents and retailers, Henry Brunelle went onto the terrain himself. His perfect knowledge of the product, that the other man didn't have, made its promotion easier: "I'd hire and train agents who'd recrute the retailers. Then, I'd return to close the sales (...) Just last year, I made 60 trips, and that's just with Air Canada!"

In spite of all the work it requires, he doesn't hesitate to recommend that you go to the targetted markets yourself in order to feel them out For their conquest of the United States, the Ultra team underwent extensive preparations, so as not to arrive unprepared: export seminars, studies of the market and of business habits, insurance of the accounts receivable by the Export Development Corporation (EDC). Obviously, you've got to fight hard and deploy much effort to penetrate this market which protectionism renders even more ferocious and unforgiving.

Objective: superior quality

Bains Ultra avoids distributing its products just anywhere "We select only the best retailers. We're not a Home Depot for baths. We want to ensure the service and the quality. We'll never become a manufacturer of the do-it-all, anytime, no matter how," insists Henry Brunelle

In addition, the company has published a practical guide suggesting concoctions of herbs or aromatic oils designed to increase the virtues of its baths. A sachet of heather or germanium is soaked in the water of an overweight bather and the active ingredients of these plants will help disolve the stores of fat which the body will then more easily eliminate; a touch of green anise, linden or basil reinforces the system's capacity to combat stress!

"We don't sell baths, we sell a concept of relaxation, of recreation and of health," insists the President. Bains Ultra insures its strong advance on its competitors, as much through the publication of this Guide, as by being the first to offer remote control, the programming of massage sequences, and especially, patented lateral air-jets. Instead of propelling the bath water vertically, the water moves horizontally, thus increasing the turbulence. And the half-seat - a gradient in the bath - allows the addition of extra jets for the back, a part of the body that cannot be reached in competitors baths.

Expansion in sight

He became stockholder of the company in 1978 - one year after the foundation of the company - barely 20 years old and his business diploma not yet completed, Henry Brunelle was already attracted by the international growth opportunities of Bains Ultra. A passion which now gives the tone to his leadership. During the next five years he plans to attack Asia and Europe. Despite the fact that the concern over water conservation and the restricted space characteristic of these regions represent major obstacles, he believes that the americanization of Asia and the care which Asians usually take of their bodies will facilitate this entry

The location of the factory, in Bernières, has nothing to do with its markets, given that the majority of Bains Ultra's business takes place in New England and New York "We're established here simply because we come from here. But it requires planning for transportation, a sizeable expense," he admits. This is why the company is seriously considering the construction of a new factory closer to its markets. "With the globalization of trade, he also forecasts, people will become more and more protectionist by saying to themselves that they'd better buy products made at home in order to protect jobs. We want to show them we're not chauvinistic!", concludes the big boss of Bains Ultra. Being ahead of events, another of Ultra's ways of doing things.