A Tale of Two Banks: Georgia Bank and Trust of Augusta
2004; American Bankers Association; Volume: 96; Issue: 8 Linguagem: Inglês
ISSN
0194-5947
Autores Tópico(s)Finance, Markets, and Regulation
ResumoThe Oldest name in Augusta wants to Have one foot moving into the future while the Other stays firmly planted in traditional service The traditionalist banker Dan Blanton admires good wood. The president and CEO of Georgia Bank and Trust of Augusta has been known to drive miles to obtain boards from an old barn to incorporate into his own home. Today he's examining photos of beautiful, vintage teller counters made of meticulously fitted pieces of oak and brass. He wants to incorporate these antique fixtures into the bank's new branch, which is being built into a rehabilitation of the old Cotton Exchange building in downtown Augusta. The turreted brick building harks back to a banking era when many of the bank's younger customers hadn't been born yet. This represents the 15-year-old bank's first foray into downtown, and Blanton, a self-confessed history nut, clearly enjoys being able to work a little nostalgia into a new location. Blanton doesn't just like good oldfashioned buildings. He likes good oldfashioned banking values, too. He and his veteran staff approach their jobs as an effort in customer service. We're taking care of the needs of our friends, he says. Indeed, the importance of the local network is critical to a like Blanton's. When the buys office supplies, it's from a local company that is a customer. You won't find Blanton buying at Office Depot or some other big box store. My dad would go all the way across town to do business with a company that bought from him, says Blanton, and he's always found this a good policy as a banker. What about the younger crowd? But the New Age banker Dan Blanton frets over how to appeal to the younger generation. He looks out on the public floor of his $680 million-assets bank's headquarters branch in suburban Augusta, and, while everything appears fresh and well kept, he worries that its traditional look won't appeal to the younger prospect that wants a high-tech, convenience-oriented approach to banking. He sees banks opening the likes of branches opening in the Atlanta area, which is only about two hours away, including some of Washington Mutual's Occasio branches and the offices of Futurus, a sort of bank in the round that opened in 2001 in A1pharetta, Ga. These high-tech, highly designed banking environments have him mulling what he needs to stay current. One thing is certain: I'm not going to build an office with stainless-steel seats and chrome everywhere. For Augusta, that's just a bit over the top. But he wants something current. He's already fired one design firm that didn't seem to get it, and hired another one to design a new building nearby, where the headquarter's day-to-day banking will be relocated into a more current environment. (Concepts were still on the drawing board.) With its longstanding emphasis on commercial banking, GBT and the merger on merger pattern of southern banking helped turn young Georgia Bank & Trust into the oldest veteran, by seniority, in the market. …
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