Promotional Items
Case Study
Learn how this fully integrated property developer saved 18% on promotional items and other services by joining Una’s group purchasing program.
Introduction
The member featured in this story is a fully integrated real estate developer, imagining and creating state-of-the-art offices, residences, retail spaces, and more everywhere you want to be. They are responsible for managing over 800 properties worldwide, and is dedicated to setting the precedent for developing real estate that exceeds industry standards for sustainability and quality.
In an effort to save money in some of their larger indirect spend categories, this member was looking for help when it came to negotiating contracts, leveraging their spend, and delivering cost savings quickly. They also needed a solution that could be easily integrated into the different facets of their company.
Una’s vast supplier portfolio and dedicated team proved to be a good fit, allowing the member to realize savings quickly and remain focused on creating iconic properties around the globe.
Read on to learn more about this member’s success with Una.
CASE STUDY
PROPERTY DEVELOPER
A fully integrated property developer working to build quality and sustainable real estate around the globe.
LOCATION:
Worldwide
U.S. HEADQUARTERS:
New York, NY
INDUSTRY:
Real Estate
About Our Valued Member
This organization’s dedication to creating beautiful spaces where people actually want to be is palpable. Their mission is to design and build workplaces and neighborhoods that are welcoming and inviting, and work to produce moments filled with energy, excitement, and authenticity.
From a business perspective, this translates into organizations being able to attract and recruit top talent, promote environments in which their people can thrive, and establish a path to success for everyone involved.
As they continue to expand worldwide, the member also has a clear commitment to sustainability. Their goal of reaching Net Zero GHG emissions by 2050 throughout their entire portfolio is admirable, and one they plan to accomplish by implementing renewable energy sources within their retail spaces, focusing on the environmental performance of their office buildings, and utilizing technology across the organization.
Challenges
Procurement departments are often understaffed and under-equipped to handle all areas of spend or the sheer volume of transactions that are taking place across an organization.
This member is a global entity yet really only had one sourcing professional overseeing purchases.. Understandably, their main focus was to manage direct spend categories, which left little to no oversight for the other segments of spend. Because of this, they were undoubtedly leaving money on the table.
Our member was looking for category expertise as it related to indirect spend, and needed to find a way to leverage their own spend so they could continue delivering cost savings quickly and efficiently.
After the initial discovery call, the Una team got to work conducting cost analyses with our network of suppliers and presented potential savings opportunities back to the member for consideration.
Why partner with Una?
Not having worked with a group purchasing organization in the past, the Supplier Relationship Specialist at this organization wasn’t quite sure what to expect.
They started searching for tools that would assist them with reaching their goals: find and deliver savings in a timely manner, increase buying power, and elevate their indirect spend management strategy. A discovery call was scheduled with Cindy Rittel, Una’s Senior Sourcing Advisor, to discuss the challenges they were facing and to learn how Una could help save money, time, and effort.
Cindy walked them through Una’s three-step process that includes the aforementioned discovery call followed by a cost analysis. This is where Una collects spend data to compare it to real contract terms and pricing to determine cost savings. Once those savings opportunities are identified, the final step is getting connected to the supplier contracts.
Una’s sense of urgency and dedication to responsiveness, transparency, and communication won their trust:
"Overall [our experience] was really great, Cindy was very on top of it, not pushy and very helpful. [She was] prepared and I was impressed with how quickly they got response and answers back [to me]."
Una's response
The Una team first analyzed several categories for this member, including shipping, office supplies, IT and branded promotional items. Based on their level of need and priorities at the time, Una moved forward with connecting them to one of our contracts to help secure discounts on the promo products they used throughout the department.
With almost three-quarters of a million dollars in spend – in this single category – Una’s contract saved them over 18%. This resulted in an estimated savings of more than $100,000.
And because of Una’s procurement and category expertise, established supplier relationships, and unmatched customer service, the member was able to start saving money in this category within one month of connecting to the contract.
0
%
Percentage of savings in the promotional items category
$
20000
+
Estimated dollar amount saved within this single category
An ongoing partnership
The member featured in this story is a large, global organization with several different business arms. Our partnership started with a single team and Una continues to nurture the relationship to this day, offering ongoing support from both our sales team as well as Member Experience.
The goal of Member Experience is to ensure companies like them see continued success in all areas of business. Regular calls and quarterly check-ins allow for Una to keep a pulse on the needs of our members and help identify other savings opportunities.
For this member, this includes analyzing new areas of spend such as mobility and other technology categories, where Una members typically save an average of 20-35%, and revisiting our discounted shipping programs to see if we can uncover cost savings.
As always, Una remains dedicated to empowering procurement teams to develop comprehensive sourcing strategies that improve their bottom line and offering superior service every step of the way.
Additional resources
Ready to become the next success story?
Whether you’re needing help with a single category or are looking for ways to implement a cohesive procurement strategy, the Una team is here to help.
Membership is always free and there are never any purchasing requirements or exclusivities.
Get started with a no-obligation discovery call to learn more.