You’ve always enjoy catching up with your fellow retailers at an exhibition, talking over the state of business and catching up on the latest gossip, particularly over a good meal and a glass of a nice red. Over the years some of them have become firm friends, but part of you shrinks inside when some of them, as they always do, start extolling the latest deal, HR advice, access to suppliers they would never have come across in a thousand years and the general wonderfulness of it all achieved through their membership of a buying group.
You’ve thought about joining their ranks enough times, even had a few conversations, but every time there has been a product range or supplier you wouldn’t give floor space to, let alone do business with, that seemed part of the package. This is the thing: you don’t want to be told what to sell, you are your own boss. After all you aren’t doing badly – you’re still in business, when so many people you knew have gone under.
This is the view of many retailers when the topic of buying groups comes up, but with Minerva Furniture Group there are no compulsory purchases: members are free to buy (or not) direct from suppliers.
When it comes to making those buying decisions, the group has an experienced and knowledgeable buying panel made up of fellow retailers who source all new suppliers. The group has more than 100 approved suppliers from across the globe and products range the spectrum, from upholstery and cabinet to beds and accessories and services. These offer group members pre-negotiated terms and often exclusive products.
A Minerva online portal provides information on discounts, terms and promotions, backed up by the head office team, while quarterly regional meetings allow you to discuss matters that interest you.
The group also organises the Spring Furniture & Bed Show and Autumn Furniture Show at which it holds members’ seminars debating key topics of the day.
More than 150 retailers across the UK and Republic of Ireland have become members of either the full membership category for furniture retailers or associate membership for bed retailers.
According to the group, members can also benefit from notable rebates. It cites the example of about £160,000 of business with six suppliers generating a rebate of more than £3,800 for a full member and more than £1,100 for an associate member doing £47,000 of business with just three suppliers.
