If you own a business, you know how quickly costs add up. One way to reduce your operation costs is to join a group purchasing organization (GPO). GPOs help businesses like yours cut costs through bulk discounts, negotiate better product deals, streamline the purchasing process, enhance vendor relationships, and gain key industry insights. These organizations are a valuable extension of your business.
Do you want to save more on cleaners, covers, filters, and more pool products? Contact the team at UAG today to learn more about how a GPO can benefit your business.
What Is a Group Purchasing Organization?
A group purchasing organization (GPO) is an entity that leverages its members’ collective buying power to identify the products their businesses need and secure them at discounted prices via promos and other special discounts. A GPO can be funded by administrative fees that are paid by its vendors, its members, or both. GPOs offer a shared benefit and reduced risk to both members and vendors by providing lasting value.
How Buying from a Group Purchasing Organization Can Make You Money
When it comes to GPOs, there are many reasons to join. One of the most important and practical reasons to join a GPO is to save time and money. Here’s how buying products through a GPO can make your business more money in the long run.
1. Cost Savings
GPO members gain access to a better selection of the products they need to operate their businesses at a lower price than their market value. They also gain access to vendor relationships they might not have had access to without purchasing through a GPO. The ability to build financially beneficial relationships with vendors and other suppliers allows members to spend the money they save elsewhere in their business.
2. Scale Economies or “Purchasing Power”
By pooling the resources and expertise of various businesses and vendors, GPOs achieve an economy of scale. With more products being produced for less at a larger scale, businesses like yours have greater purchasing power thanks to a better selection of cheaper products.
3. Supply Chain Management
Buying products through a GPO helps your business standardize and streamline its purchasing process by minimizing the resources required to make those purchases. That’s because the GPO connects you to vendors who offer the products you need at the prices you want, allowing you to focus your time, energy, and resources on other aspects of your business.
4. Process Economies
When organizations join forces, they can share helpful information about product vendors, new technologies, and the market as a whole. This approach makes the supply chain more efficient and reduces costs for businesses like yours.
5. Category Management & Ongoing Support
GPOs help businesses take advantage of product savings, service enhancements, and more by regularly reviewing them with the vendors who provide them. GPOs are designed to strengthen buyer-vendor relationships, not replace them.
6. Advisory Approach
GPOs take on an advisory role for their members, helping them buy smarter with every purchase. They help members address pain points in the purchasing process and provide lasting solutions that will add value to their businesses.
7. Networking
By combining the experiences and expertise of businesses throughout the industry, GPOs offer unique opportunities for collaboration. Businesses can share best practices, sourcing tips, dos and don’ts, and other helpful information. You can also address challenges faced by businesses similar to yours.
Become a UAG Member to Make More Money
Join UAG to start making more with every purchase. As a certified GPO, we have all the products you need at competitive prices. When you become a member, you can access manufacturer-direct pricing, handle ordering and billing all in one place, and build equity through vendor rebates, discounts, and ARP (Aqua Rewards Points. Are you ready to get more than distribution for less than distribution? Become a UAG member to see how much you can save.
