Local Authority meet the buyer event

Date published: 11 July 2017


Small businesses from Rochdale had appointments with some of the biggest public sector organisations in Greater Manchester at a meet-the buyer event organised by STaR procurement, the shared procurement service for Stockport, Trafford and Rochdale Councils.

Small-to-medium businesses got to promote their goods and services to all three councils at the event, as well as other major organisations, like Transport for Greater Manchester and Rochdale Boroughwide Housing (RBH).

The event, held at Stockport Town Hall, was designed to help boost small businesses, with statistics showing that for every £1 spent in the local economy, 63p stays in the local economy, compared to 40p with larger businesses.

Councillor Peter Williams, Cabinet member for Business, Skills and Employment at Rochdale Borough Council, said: “We’ve always been very keen that the council and other public sector organisations purchase more goods and services from local businesses, which is why we wanted to support this first joint ‘Meet the Buyer’ event.

“Supporting and encouraging businesses to develop has always been a key priority for the council, so I’d encourage businesses to seek the wealth of support that is available from us and partner organisations.”

Businesses also took advantage of free tendering workshops, where they received tips and guidance on how they can become bid-ready.

Jack Riley from Rochdale’s Target Fire Protection, which delivers fire detection and prevention systems, said: “Meet the Buyer was a well organised event and a great opportunity to meet prospective clients. We met with a few organisations and look forward to hopefully working with them going forward.”

The event is part of a drive to spend more with small businesses. STaR Procurement will be piloting a ‘buy local’ campaign in the autumn of 2017, which will eventually be rolled-out across all three STaR Council boroughs during the next couple of years.

They are also embarking on a simplification campaign to ensure that interaction with SMEs (small to medium enterprises) across the STaR boroughs is made easier and that SMEs find it easier to do business with STaR Councils.

Do you have a story for us?

Let us know by emailing news@rochdaleonline.co.uk
All contact will be treated in confidence.


To contact the Rochdale Online news desk, email news@rochdaleonline.co.uk or visit our news submission page.

To get the latest news on your desktop or mobile, follow Rochdale Online on Twitter and Facebook.


While you are here...

...we have a small favour to ask; would you support Rochdale Online and join other residents making a contribution, from just £3 per month?

Rochdale Online offers completely independent local journalism with free access. If you enjoy the independent news and other free services we offer (event listings and free community websites for example), please consider supporting us financially and help Rochdale Online to continue to provide local engaging content for years to come. Thank you.

Support Rochdale Online