Cary Daily Times ( Events News Weather Sports and Featured Columns for Cary, NC)

Barter Business Exchange proves that the system of bartering is helping businesses survive in a difficult economy.  BBE was recently honored at the International Reciprocal Trade Association’s annual conference.

Barter Business Exchange (BBE) announced today that their National Barter Broker, Elizabeth Powell, was awarded the UC Broker Extraordinaire Award at the International Reciprocal Trade Association (IRTA) annual conference while BBE founder, Maurya Lane, was honored for her contributions to the barter industry by being named Barter Ambassador.  These recognitions come as no surprise since the Cary-based bartering agency serves more than 700 local business owners by offering a membership based trading system much like those same traditions of the Great Depression.

“Operating a business during a difficult economy has been one of the reasons business owners are looking for innovative ways to preserve cash flow and attain new clients.  At BBE, we are helping business owners do exactly that.  We have seen our 2008 cash revenues increase by 7.76% from 2007 and we recorded highest cash revenues since the birth of BBE in 1994” says Maurya Lane, Founder. 

Business owners are finding that bartering services and/or products with other businesses through BBE has helped them persevere through a very difficult economic time.  Some of the benefits they’re experiencing are:

• Business expansion of new clients
• Referrals of barter clients friends (non-barter new business)
• Increase in cash flow
• Advertising/marketing of business to BBE members

“Having been a member of BBE for about 7 years I have found that using barter not only creates an income stream that would not normally be there but it also has proven to be very beneficial during a difficult economy” says Tim Goodwin, owner of Goodwin Automotive.  “I recently moved to a new location and without BBE I would not have been able to do all of the upgrades and up fits to the new location in this economy without it.”  Tim also says, “I find business owners are able to use barter during these difficult times as a way to save cash and hold on to the money they have.”

Barter Business Exchange is a Cary-based company with more than 700 members trading products and/or services within the exchange.  It has been featured in the News & Observer, Triangle Business Journal, Meridian Magazine, BarterNew Magazine, and recently the Charlotte Observer.  Founded by Maurya Lane in 1994, BBE has been honored by the International Reciprocal Trade Association as Barter Ambassador and UC Broker Extraordinaire and is a member of International Reciprocal Trade Association www.irta.com and the National Association of Trade Exchanges www.nate.org. BBE also helps members trade nationally and internationally with hundreds of barter exchanges through these associations.