Central Purchasing Services

What Central Purchasing Services does

Central Purchasing Services, operating as CPS Chargeback, is an Australian member-governed buying group founded circa 1985 and headquartered in Applecross, Western Australia. The company aggregates the purchasing volume of 200+ independent retailers in the building, rural, hardware, and industrial supplies sectors, providing them with collective bargaining power, preferential supplier pricing, and access to a curated supplier directory. Its core service is structured as a cooperative: active members are offered the opportunity to purchase shares in the buying group, and revenue is generated through membership participation and administrative services facilitating transactions between members and suppliers.

The technology platform is built around an integrated chargeback system, a centralized billing portal, and a member login area that consolidates ordering, payment, rebate processing, and account management into a single workflow. A public-facing supplier directory enables two-sided marketplace dynamics, with a dedicated 'Be a Supplier' onboarding pathway for supply-side recruitment. Go-to-market is community-led: CPS recruits independent retailers primarily through direct outreach, website inquiries, phone contact, and word-of-mouth referrals, emphasizing personalized service and member independence as differentiators. The company operates with 11-50 employees, has no external institutional investors, and describes its reach as national through its member network despite its Western Australian headquarters. No AI/ML capabilities, mobile app, public API, or disclosed revenue figures are evident from the available data.

Name

Central Purchasing Services

Legal name

CPS Chargeback

Website

https://purchasing.com.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Central Purchasing Services (CPS Chargeback) is an Australian member-owned buying group founded circa 1985 that aggregates 200+ independent retailers in building, rural, hardware, and industrial supplies to secure collective purchasing power, integrated chargeback billing, and supplier rebates.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Applecross

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees and Rebate Processing: CPS operates as a member-owned buying group. Independent retailers become members to access preferential pricing through combined buying power. The chargeback system processes orders, payments, and rebates. Revenue appears to come from membership participation and administrative services facilitating transactions between members and suppliers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Central Purchasing Services (CPS Chargeback) is a member-governed buying group that aggregates over 200 independent retailers in Australia to provide collective purchasing power for building, rural, hardware, and industrial supplies. Members access preferential supplier pricing through an integrated chargeback system that handles ordering, payment, and rebate processing, supported by a centralized billing portal and a curated supplier directory. Active members may also purchase shares in the cooperative.

Product overview

CPS Chargeback operates as a unified buying group platform combining multiple service components: the core buying group membership service that aggregates over 200 independent retailers for collective purchasing power, the chargeback system for centralized billing and rebate management, a member portal for account access and business support, and a supplier directory connecting members with competitive deals. The offering is architected as an integrated service rather than discrete modular products, where all components work together within a single membership framework to simplify supply chain management for independent retailers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• CPS Chargeback Buying Group Membership A membership-based buying group that gives independent retailers in building, rural, hardware, and industrial supplies access to combined purchasing power of 200+ members, preferential supplier pricing, centralized billing, chargeback/rebate processing, and tailored business and marketing support. Active members are also offered the opportunity to purchase shares in the cooperative.

Quantifiable outcome

• Access to preferential pricing through combined buying power of 200+ independents
• +1 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Ace Hardware: U.S. hardware cooperative serving thousands of independent retailers through collective buying and shared services. Comparable in cooperative ownership structure, member-supplier model, and integrated platform (e.g., chargeback/billing).
• Combined Rural Traders (CRT): Australian rural supplies buying group serving independent rural retailers — directly comparable to CPS's rural supplies vertical and overlapping with its independent-retailer value proposition.
• Independent Hardware Group (IHG): Australian hardware buying group representing independent retailers under collective brands (e.g., Home, Thrifty-Link). Closely comparable to CPS in cooperative structure, supplier negotiation focus, and independent retailer customer base.
• Do it Best: U.S. hardware and building supplies buying cooperative with thousands of independent member stores. Mirrors CPS's combined-buying-power model and member-governed structure.
• Mitre 10: Australia's largest hardware buying group for independent retailers, operating a similar cooperative-style model that aggregates independents for supplier bargaining power — directly comparable to CPS's hardware segment.
• True Value: U.S. hardware cooperative serving independent retailers through collective purchasing and shared services. Directly comparable to CPS in cooperative governance and aggregated-supplier-negotiation model.

Broad incumbents

• Elders: Australian rural services and supplies company with a national network. Comparable to CPS's rural supplies vertical; serves as a broad incumbent alternative to the buying-group model.
• Metcash: Australia's largest wholesale distributor to independent retailers (hardware, automotive, convenience). Comparable as an Australian wholesale/distribution incumbent serving independents, but operating at much broader scale and publicly listed.
• Nutrien Ag Solutions: Major rural and agricultural inputs distributor in Australia. Comparable to CPS's rural supplies vertical but operating as a vertically integrated, capital-intensive incumbent rather than a cooperative.
• Bunnings Warehouse: Australia's dominant hardware and building supplies big-box retailer. Comparable as a competitor for supplier mindshare and as the structural alternative that threatens the independent retailer base CPS serves.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/makit

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Central Purchasing Services