The Advantages of Group Purchasing

There are three things many procurement professionals try to achieve in their role:

1. Save their company money,
2. Be more conscious of their time
3. Focus on the activities that will truly drive value for the organization

But the way we procure goods and services is cumbersome: riddled with steps and processes, RFPs to submit, contracts to negotiate, and more. It's easy to get distracted from the true goals you're trying to reach, especially when resources are limited and you're trying to accomplish too much on your own.

Thankfully, procurement teams have the opportunity to capitalize on the power of group purchasing to make their jobs easier, catapulting them into a position of success, driving value, and reducing costs, while saving time and effort in the process.

What is Group Purchasing?

The group purchasing method of sourcing is when buyers join a group purchasing organization (GPO) and use the GPO's collective buying power to purchase goods and services at discounted rates. Because the GPO has previously negotiated contracts with lower rates based on members' committed volume of spend, members can immediately take advantage of discounted pricing on the items they need to run their business without actually needing to purchase more.

Any business, regardless of size or industry, can join a GPO to leverage the collective buying power of its membership base.

For another brief explanation, check out this video:

9 Advantages of Group Purchasing

When you decided to partner with a group purchasing organization, it paves the way for procurement leaders to utilize purchasing solutions that elevate their existing procurement strategies, increase cost savings, and refine their approach to effective spend management.

1. Cost Savings

While not the only goal, finding cost savings is arguably one of the most important tasks procurement’s scope of work. There are several ways sourcing professionals can reduce costs and make a massive impact on the organization, but very few strategies offer a straight shot to savings right off the bat.

When working with a GPO, the fact that cost savings can be realized in a matter of weeks is a huge advantage of incorporating group purchasing into your procurement strategy. Una members save an average of 18–22% across indirect spend categories including office supplies, shipping, food service, facilities, and more.

Use Una's free calculator to estimate your own savings:

2. Time Savings

GPOs can facilitate a faster way to savings for your organization. Thanks to pre-negotiated contracts that are already in place, you bypass the supplier search process and contract negotiations because the GPO has done it for you. This frees up your time to focus on more strategic areas of spend and value-driving initiatives that will impact your organization at a larger scale.

Under the traditional procurement model, the sourcing process is time-consuming at every stage. Supplier discovery can take weeks, assessment requires cross-departmental input, and negotiation can drag on for months. A GPO eliminates those steps entirely for indirect categories.

3. Collective Buying Power

Suppliers typically set prices based on the volume you spend with them. Imagine your organization needs to purchase 10 desktop computers at $500 per unit. A larger company purchasing 100 computers at a time pays only $350 per unit. Now imagine both organizations purchase through a GPO contract. The GPO has negotiated a rate of $150 per unit, meaning any member can access that price regardless of how many units they buy.

A GPO pools the purchasing volume of thousands of businesses with varying needs. When a GPO can offer that aggregate spend to a supplier, the supplier has strong incentive to offer deeper discounts thanks to the committed volume. Una currently represents over 100,000 members and more than $100 billion in collective buying power — that's leverage no individual organization can replicate independently.

4. Access to Resources

Whether it be limited staffing, outdated technology, the inability to see spend data, or minimal category knowledge, the lack of resources is a common complaint amongst procurement professionals, especially when it comes to indirect spend. The bulk of a procurement department's time and energy tends to go toward direct spend and strategic categories, leaving little to no attention for indirect or tail spend.

There is, however, significant value and savings to be found in these categories. Partnering with a GPO to tackle indirect spend immediately grants your organization access to resources that allow you to manage these categories effectively.

A GPO partner should act as an extension of your procurement team, completing tasks, getting you connected to savings quickly, and be a trusted advisor that’s helping you reach your goals.

5. Cost Analysis and Spend Benchmarking

Understanding your company's current purchasing status can be challenging and time-consuming. GPOs can sort through the data and analyze your savings quickly and efficiently.

At Una, we run a cost comparison analysis by gathering your historical spend data category by category, then sending it directly to suppliers to compare your current pricing against our pre-negotiated contract rates. The result is a side-by-side view of what you're currently paying versus what you'd pay as a Una member before any commitment is made. This analysis is always free, and most members start seeing potential savings within days of the initial conversation.

6. Supply Chain Management and Support

GPOs provide businesses with valuable cost-avoidance solutions by standardizing and streamlining their purchasing through supply chain management. When a GPO manages some procurement activities from start to finish, it cuts down on the number of internal resources required to handle purchasing. For non-strategic spend and tail spend, using a GPO to help manage suppliers is a smart move.

Importantly, having an established GPO partnership allows for quick access to a robust supplier catalog, making switching or working with a new supplier seamless in the event of supply chain disruptions. When your primary supplier can't deliver, pre-vetted alternatives are already available through the GPO's network.

7. Risk Reduction

Group purchasing doesn't just save money, it reduces several categories of risk that procurement teams face on a daily basis.

Supply security risk: Una's long-term, stable relationships with top suppliers give members confidence and continuity amid challenges like global shipping disruptions or supplier financial instability.

Maverick spend risk: When indirect categories are managed through a GPO's pre-negotiated contracts, rogue purchasing is harder to justify — reducing the unmanaged tail spend that erodes savings.

Transparency risk: A reputable GPO discloses all fees, supplier relationships, and contract terms upfront. Members always know exactly how their GPO makes money and what obligations, if any, are involved.

Cost escalation risk: Pre-negotiated contracts with locked-in pricing protect members from price volatility and supplier-driven increases in the categories where individual negotiating power is limited.

8. Strategic Alignment

A good GPO doesn't seek to replace or impose a new procurement strategy on your organization, it comes alongside your existing strategy and adds value through additional cost savings and reduced risk. Una's team of Sourcing Advisors work one-on-one with members to determine what success looks like and where group purchasing fits in order to best reach your goals.

Think of it as a well-rounded procurement function where the GPO handles indirect and non-strategic spend so your team can focus on the categories and supplier relationships that require your deepest expertise. The result is a procurement function that is both broader in reach and deeper in strategic impact.

For a full framework on integrating group purchasing into a broader procurement strategy, see: Transforming Your Procurement Strategy With Group Purchasing.

9. Short-Term and Long-Term Value

Una offers more than immediate, one-time savings. We act as a true sourcing accelerator by working with members to discover value on two levels:

First, we offer turn-key procurement solutions that empower you to achieve category quick wins — immediate savings in time, cost, and effort generated from pre-negotiated contracts that give members access to the power of group purchasing. Most members connect to their first contract and start saving within weeks of joining.

Then, we move on to long-term strategies that make your organization more profitable over time. These are the benefits that flow from increased spend visibility, consolidation of purchasing, streamlining of processes, and risk reduction across your supplier portfolio. We help organizations move faster, save more, and work smarter, not just at onboarding, but throughout the entire membership relationship.

Free Membership (and You Stay in Control)

Another significant advantage of group purchasing is the fact that businesses can implement it free of charge. At Una, our pricing structure is set up to ensure our contracts are always free to join and free to use. Every time you purchase through an Una contract, we are paid an administration fee by the supplier allowing us to keep membership permanently free for members.

In addition to never charging a membership fee, Una does not require members to purchase from certain suppliers or commit to a specified purchase volume. Members pick and choose which suppliers best suit their needs and remain in complete control throughout the relationship. There are no lock-ins and no exclusivities, just access to 5,000+ pre-negotiated contracts ready to activate on your schedule.

A GPO isn't coming for your job — it's here to make you look better doing it. Our members control the GPO relationship, not vice versa. Think of Una as an additional resource that takes on selected non-core categories, enabling your team to focus on higher-value strategic sourcing and the work that truly differentiates your organization.

Ready to take full advantage of everything group purchasing has to offer? Get in touch with our team of Sourcing Advisors to learn more.