Thorntons whips up suppliers with reverse auctions

Chocolate retailer Thorntons has secured significant savings by switching its reverse auction procurement services to Wax Digital.

silicon.com Retail & Leisure

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The retailer has signed up three suppliers, of hazelnuts, diesel and air-conditioning, to the system, and has made a six-figure saving on the latter as a result of the deal. Each of the three contracts is reaping a saving 15 per cent above the benchmark set when Thorntons awarded the deal.

Before Wax Digital took on the contract in May this year, Thorntons had a similar agreement with another reverse auction provider, Source 42, for laundry, workwear and shop signage, which has been discontinued. The retailer hopes to extend the number of supplier relationships it maintains through the Wax Digital sourcing package to another three by the end of November.

Caroline Simpson, senior buyer at Thorntons, explained to silicon.com that the retailer shifted its sourcing to Wax Digital because it offered better functionality on its website and provided better information and training to suppliers. She said the cost of the service was a single figure percentage of each supplier contract.

Simpson said: "Ultimately it's about cost reduction. It's about putting our suppliers in a competitive environment. This is a good negotiation tool and saves us a lot of time compared to negotiating face-to-face."