Success Story
Darrell Moore, President of Modern Litho
I heard about GAA several years ago but was very cautious. A few years later, I was told about GAA from a trusted colleague who strongly encouraged me to look into membership but I waited over 2 years before joining.
At the time, I felt that my purchasing team was doing a good job of negotiating vendor contracts so I didn’t see the value of joining a buying group. Unfortunately, I was completely wrong. Over the course of the 2 years that I delayed joining, my friend continued to nudge me, even offering to pay the membership fee for me if I gave him half of my first quarter’s rebates. He clearly knew something I didn’t. I finally relented and paid the annual dues for my company since there was a money-back guarantee. I figured it couldn’t hurt, especially if I could leave the group and get our membership fee reimbursed. It was definitely one of the best decisions I’ve made. But the 2 years of deliberation cost the company $20,000 worth of benefits from the group. Caution cost the company money and we’ll never recover that lost opportunity.
GAA is about its members and that became clear from the moment I joined. By far, the best programs for us are the paper and Kodak consumables rebates. We also get a really nice discount on our Kodak service agreements. One of the best things about this group is that there is very little work to get the rebates. Our paper and consumables usage data is gathered automatically by the vendors and GAA so there’s no extra work or heavy lifting on our end. We haven’t had to change a single thing in our operations or purchasing since before joining, except now we get to deposit a quarterly rebate check.
For the most part, the rebates are not mutually exclusive. We buy the paper that is the best for our company, with the best negotiated pricing and the volume goes toward our rebate. There are no conflicts with what GAA provides versus what the purchasing team negotiates. What I really appreciate is that we aren’t obligated to use GAA vendors so we’re never captive to any one program.
GAA is a “zero risk proposition.” When you join, if you’re not satisfied, you can get your annual membership fee refunded so there’s really only upsides to membership. Also, GAA is very open with its books and is audited annually. There is full transparency and disclosure regarding program setup and contracts. I have total trust in how things are handled at the management level. GAA is focused on ensuring that members see a benefit, which makes the group strong and trustworthy.
All I can say is that I wish I had joined sooner. It has been a great investment for Modern Litho.
