LOOKING TO INCREASE YOUR LOCAL PROCUREMENT?

Are you a Stockport company looking to purchase more of your goods and services from local companies? If so, Stockport Council’s Meet the Buyer event could help you build on this commitment by connecting you with locally based suppliers.

Now in its eighth year, Meet the Buyer is a key event in Stockport’s business calendar providing businesses with the opportunity to meet with local companies offering the goods and services they are looking to source.

Previous events have seen buying teams from adidas, MAN Diesel & Turbo, CDL, Equity Housing Association, plus many more participate and meet with suppliers.  Each commenting that the benefits they gained were so significant that they chose to take part in further events.

Meet the Buyer gives buying teams the opportunity to meet with potential suppliers through a series of short tailored appointments.  As well as making new business connections, each appointment gives purchasing teams the chance to outline their tendering process to suppliers.

To participate in Meet the Buyer businesses do not have to be large, international companies with million pound contracts.  As long as you have the ability to make local procurement decisions your business can benefit from the event. The goods and services previously requested by purchasing teams have included caterers, landscapers, IT suppliers, graphic designers and cleaning providers.

Companies keen to learn more about how they can benefit from participating in Meet the Buyer are encouraged to contact Stockport Council’s Growth Team by Friday 19^th June 2015, either by emailing econdev@stockport.gov.uk or calling (0161) 474 3734.

Wayne Jones, Chair of Stockport Economic Alliance commented that:

“Through Meet the Buyer we at MAN Diesel & Turbo have been able to find Stockport suppliers to fulfil a number of our key contracts.  The care taken by the Council to ensure that the appointments allocated to our buying team are only with companies who meet our buying requirements makes the event a highly effective way to engage with Stockport suppliers.”

Cllr McAuley, Stockport Council’s Executive Member for Thriving Economy said:

“Meet the Buyer is a great event that the Council and Stockport Economic Alliance host each year. It has been hugely successful in helping to raise levels of local procurement.  I would encourage any companies Stockport companies looking to fulfil contracts to consider participating in Meet the Buyer to help source local suppliers.”

This year’s Meet the Buyer is taking place on the 20^th October 2015 at Stockport Town Hall.  Fuller information about how businesses who wish to meet the purchasing teams can participate in Meet the Buyer will be available in July 2015.