Star Building Materials Calgary Keeps Customers Informed with Insightful Market Reports

Calgary, AB – As a market leader, Star Building Materials Calgary saw an opportunity to provide customers with valuable information about the lumber market via monthly reports posted on the company’s website, as well as weekly reports shared through direct emails called, STAR Market Reports. The team posted and sent the first reports in the spring of 2021 and have been sharing them every week and month since. The reports are unique in the market and help set Star Building Materials Calgary apart from competitors.

Jason Poloway, Star Building Materials Calgary’s Purchasing Manager, works to gather the latest information on building material pricing, supply availability, and ongoing market trends and presents it in a comprehensive, easy-to-read format. The market information is pulled directly from the Random Lengths reports through the price reporting agency, RISI Fastmarkets.

Ken Crockett, Vice-President, Star Building Materials Calgary, said the challenges Star Building Materials Calgary faced when they first started to put the reports together included ensuring that the reporting was accurate and unbiased without plagiarizing others and trying to present helpful projections based on the market trends.

“Being an industry leader required us to take a leap of faith and provide market intelligence that seemed to be lacking within local markets,” he said. “Although we are not always right, over time we can provide some insight into what trends might be building or which supply pinch points builders should be paying attention to.”

Star Building Materials Calgary strives to be a trusted voice in both the market and industry, and Ken noted that providing information to customers that help them make informed decisions is part of being an industry leader.

“We are expected to know the markets,” he said. “Earning the trust of our customers goes beyond the products we manufacture and supply – providing them insights about supply and price volatility is just as important.”

Rachel Kahane, Marketing Coordinator, Star Building Materials Calgary, said the market reports have received positive feedback from the public and have garnered plenty of attention. She noted that the reports have been particularly useful throughout the pandemic.

“During the pandemic, these reports were incredibly beneficial for customers due to the immense uncertainty, especially with the housing market and supply chains,” she said. “Many building materials and other commodities were either hard to get or expensive during the pandemic, so Star putting out these market reports provided a lot of clarity and helped many customers.”

Star Building Materials Calgary plans to continue sharing the weekly and monthly market reports and will likely look to add innovation or industry benchmarks in the future – giving customers even more valuable market information that can help guide their purchasing decisions.

To learn more about building material pricing, supply availability and ongoing market trends, read the latest STAR Market Reports.