Brands and owners that put as much thought and consideration into their physical space as they do into their luxury products often come against obstacles during the procurement process.
We caught up with Renee Santalo, global procurement, and sustainability at Shawmut Design and Construction, to ask her a few questions regarding this process.
1. What was the impetus behind a dedicated global procurement team at Shawmut?
Finding flawless, one-of-a-kind materials can be a complex and lengthy undertaking that leads to cost and schedule overruns. While global procurement of materials is not a new trend, in the past few years we’ve seen a shift in projects requesting custom finishes that require a more in-depth procurement process. For example, in April we were in Italy sourcing slabs for a retail project in New York City and in China purchasing stone at the request of a residential client in Beverly Hills.
Having a dedicated team allows us to continuously expand our access to quality materials and exceptional craftsmanship, easily organize buying trips, and ultimately enhance the choices for our clients and partners while affording creative options for budgetary parameters.