BDA Believes Responsible Sourcing Is More Than An Obligation; It is The Right Thing To Do
As a global company, Bensussen Deutsch & Associates, Inc. (BDA) provides marketing services and customized branded merchandise to Fortune 500 enterprises, major sports leagues and global entertainment holding companies. Clients come to BDA to extend their reach through custom branded-merchandise campaigns, integrated e-commerce marketing, and sports and entertainment sponsorship activation.
To serve such a robust customer base, BDA employs many thousands of suppliers around the world. And as such, Co-Founder & CEO Jay Deutsch says the company has an obligation and an opportunity through responsible sourcing practices to provide brand safety to all of its stakeholders—not only because it is an obligation that we as branded merchandise professionals should all be responsible for but also because is it the right thing to do.
In this week’s Partners In Brand Safety conversation, we chat with Jay about the importance of consistently delivering safe, high-quality, socially compliant and environmentally conscientious merchandise and why affiliation with the Quality Certification Alliance (QCA) Distributor Advocacy Council (DAC) has been instrumental in demonstrating BDA’s leadership through action.
1. What does brand safety mean to you?
Brand safety means doing the right thing, the best way, for all of our stakeholders along the value chain to make sure that they are protected from risk.
2. What motivated you to seek out Distributor Advocacy Council (DAC) affiliation?
As the founding member organization of the DAC, BDA wanted to elevate the conversation with our peers about the importance of all the tenets of QCA. We believed that the DAC would demonstrate leadership through action and deliver positive outcomes throughout our industry.
3. What does “responsible sourcing” mean and why is it crucial to brand safety?
3. What does “responsible sourcing” mean and why is it crucial to brand safety?At BDA, responsible sourcing means taking all aspects of what and how we purchase into consideration. Cost, quality and delivery are obvious; but ethics, labor, environmental and social accountability bring the whole picture into focus for both our direct and indirect suppliers. As a global company with many thousands of suppliers around the world, we have an obligation and an opportunity to promote responsible sourcing practices that provide brand safety to all of our stakeholders. We believe not only that this is the right thing to do but an obligation that we should all be responsible for.
4. What’s the most common question(s) end buyers ask about product safety/compliance?
For the most part, customers are focused on product testing and raw materials, but they also want to know what quality systems and certifications we subscribe to. Expanding the conversation to also include the broader subject of sustainability throughout the supply chain is an important topic to educate the customer on. Sustainability has larger implications and most people don’t know to look past “recycling” and “environmentally friendly” labels. It’s our responsibility to provide this knowledge and help drive stewardship for the planet.
5. What would you say to other distributors who are considering DAC affiliation?
I’d say do it sooner than later. We need more leadership and vision to continue to move the efforts of QCA forward. There’s strength in numbers. The more members, the more good we can do.
