Our Category Management activities extend beyond strategic sourcing and category development to include ongoing cost reduction and supplier management. Together, these activities represent a key component of our value proposition.
Spend Categorization
Our spend categorization service organizes and buckets purchasing data by market solutions rather than internal budgets, helping Members develop a roadmap to cost savings and better sourcing decisions.
Item Optimization and Cross Rereferencing
We leverage data-based tools to expedite cross-referencing, optimize and standardize items, and provide the insight tools to keep operations running efficiently and cost-effectively.
Data Collection
We gather detailed Member spend data regularly so that it is available for our category management activities and also for rapid distribution to Members when needed.
New Opportunity Analysis
We provide SKU rationalization feedback, develop alternatives programs and advise on supplier reduction opportunities.
Annual Core List Rewrites
As a part of our commitment to ongoing cost reduction we annually re-write both group and Member level core lists to ensure that they closely match Member spend patterns and reflect the increasing leverage of CoVest®.
Price Auditing
We conduct annual analyses to ensure our Members have paid the correct negotiated prices.
Savings Analysis and Reporting
We report category level savings monthly to our Members, and can create customized sales reporting if a Member has unique needs.
Manufacturer Negotiations
We regularly engage manufacturers to negotiate deviated pricing that our distributors pass on as savings to our Members.
Active Implementation
We work with our suppliers to develop an implementation plan that meets your needs. Plan includes regular status calls, on-sight visits, timeline, email and marketing communication pieces and educational training seminars.
Compliance Monitoring
Ongoing compliance monitoring provides Members with breakdowns of site spend and actionable insights to continue to drive compliant spend and long-term savings.