A buying group is an organization that brings independent promotional products distributors together. Many groups negotiate pricing and volume rebates with suppliers on behalf of their members, and members remain fully independent businesses. Every group has its own benefits, values, and membership criteria, so we encourage you to visit each group's website to learn more and find the right fit for your business.

Buying groups bring independent distributors together, and the benefits often go well beyond purchasing power. Common benefits include:

• Community: connecting with peers across the industry to share knowledge, ideas, and support.
• Buying power: group-negotiated pricing and programs with suppliers, often including rebates on pooled spend.
• Staying independent: members typically keep their own business, brand, and client relationships.
• Support behind the scenes: some groups also take on work like supplier management or central finance, so members can focus on selling.

Every buying group is different, so the right fit depends on what matters most to your business.

Buying groups and commonsku solve different problems for the same distributor, which is why they work so well side by side.

What a buying group does
A buying group brings independent distributors together so they can accomplish more as a group than they could on their own. Depending on the group, that can include:

• Negotiating pricing and programs with suppliers on behalf of members
• Earning rebates on members' pooled supplier spend
• Building community, where members share knowledge, ideas, and support
• Handling behind-the-scenes work like supplier compliance, payables, and reconciliation

What commonsku does
commonsku is the connected workflow platform built for branded merch distributors, unifying sales, production, supplier collaboration, and finance to help teams work smarter, grow faster, and safeguard every point of margin.

In short, a buying group works on your behalf with suppliers and alongside peers, while commonsku is the platform your team uses to run your business every day. Neither one replaces the other, and together they help you build a stronger business.

A buying group charges a flat or annual fee and members keep full ownership of their business, their brand, and their client relationships. An affiliation group takes a percentage of each sale in exchange for back-office support. The economics and the level of independence are different in each model.

Fees vary by group and are usually annual rather than commission-based. Some groups set minimum revenue thresholds for membership. Each profile in the commonsku Buying Group Network links to the group directly so you can get current terms from the source.

No. Buying group members stay independent owners. You keep your company name, your clients, and your pricing decisions. What you gain is collective negotiating leverage with suppliers and, in many groups, centralized help with payables and rebate tracking.

No, and there are three paths worth weighing. You can negotiate directly with suppliers, which often means better economics and no intermediary. You can join a buying group if you want structure and community alongside the leverage. Or, if your volume is too low for either, you can use the supplier benefits already available through your technology platform.

The group negotiates rebate agreements with participating suppliers, tracks member spend against those agreements, and pays rebates out on a set schedule, often annually. Rebate value depends on where and how much you buy, so it's worth checking which suppliers a group has agreements with before joining.

Neither. The Network is a resource for distributors researching buying groups. There's no contract, financial arrangement, or ranking involved, and commonsku doesn't recommend one group over another. Groups are listed because they chose to be included.

No. Membership decisions belong to each buying group, and the Network exists to help you find the right group whether or not you use commonsku. Some groups do ask members to standardize on a shared technology platform, which is noted on individual profiles.

Yes. Many distributors in these groups already run their business on commonsku, and several groups have defined onboarding paths for members who are new to the platform as well as those already using it.

Buying groups that work with commonsku distributors can request inclusion. There's no cost and no commitment, and the group supplies its own logo, description, and member criteria.