Who Uses Group Ordering in Marketplace eCommerce?
Most commonly, the organizations that group order are known as buying groups or group purchasing organizations. The members are all from small to mid-sized organizations that they represent. They form buying groups to give themselves more buying power, similarly to how a larger enterprise has buying power.
For example, independent craft stores may form a buying group so they can get a better deal on material, supplies, tools, etc., that they need to regularly resupply. This gives them a way to be more competitive in their prices compared to larger stores.
Another type of buying group is a franchise, which contains a chain of stores under the same company name, but each store may be run by its own manager or owner. Franchises include anything from restaurants to small or large stores. A restaurant franchise can use its power as a buying group to help franchisees get better deals on cooking supplies, cleaning supplies, napkins, utensils, and more. In this case, group orders ensure each franchise has the same quality of material, supplies, etc.