Illinois Retail Merchants Association

What Illinois Retail Merchants Association does

The Illinois Retail Merchants Association (IRMA) is a 501(c)(6) statewide trade association founded in 1957 and headquartered in Springfield, Illinois, with a regional office in Chicago. It represents more than 23,000 retail stores across Illinois — ranging from independent Main Street businesses to national brands spanning grocery, hardware, pharmacy, restaurant, convenience, and boutique categories — and serves as the sole statewide advocacy body for the Illinois retail sector on legislative and regulatory matters in Springfield, Chicago City Hall, the Cook County Board, and state regulatory agencies. The organization does not develop proprietary technology products; its operational infrastructure consists of standard association management software (GrowthZone) supporting membership applications, member portals, and member-benefit delivery.

IRMA monetizes primarily through tiered annual membership dues, with retailer dues scaled by annual sales volume (from $240 up to $500K in sales to $420 between $501K and $1M, plus $100 per additional $1M), and a flat $395/year associate membership for vendors and suppliers. Member benefits are largely delivered through a Mission Partner ecosystem — Constellation for energy procurement, FMS Solutions for accounting and payroll, Bamboo Health for PDMP healthcare integration, The Viti Companies for insurance and telehealth, Wix for commerce and POS, UserWay for ADA compliance, and others — supplemented by direct programs such as coupon redemption and 401(k) retirement services. Advocacy is the strategic centerpiece, with recent legislative wins including online sales tax collection generating over $300 million annually and successful defense of the Interchange Fee Prohibition Act. The affiliated IRMA Foundation extends the mission through workforce development (retail apprenticeship program, scholarship competitions) and research, including a 2025 University of Cincinnati economic impact study quantifying the sector's $112 billion annual contribution to Illinois.

Name

Illinois Retail Merchants Association

Legal name

Illinois Retail Merchants Association

Website

https://irma.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1957

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Illinois Retail Merchants Association is a 1957-founded, Springfield-based 501(c)(6) trade association representing more than 23,000 retail stores across Illinois through tiered membership dues, a multi-vendor Mission Partner benefits ecosystem, workforce development programs, and statewide legislative advocacy on tax, swipe fee, and organized retail crime issues.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Springfield

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: IRMA generates revenue through annual membership dues structured based on retailer annual sales volume. Vendors and suppliers pay a flat associate membership rate. The membership tiers scale with business size, creating a tiered revenue model.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

IRMA is a statewide nonprofit trade association founded in 1957 that represents more than 23,000 retail stores across Illinois. It sells tiered annual memberships to retailers and flat-rate associate memberships to vendors, and delivers value through legislative and regulatory advocacy, member benefits (energy procurement, insurance, retirement plans, coupon redemption, ADA compliance), workforce development programs, scholarship competitions, and an affiliated charitable foundation.

Product overview

The Illinois Retail Merchants Association (IRMA) is a statewide trade association representing Illinois retailers, offering member benefits programs (energy procurement, insurance, retirement, coupon redemption, ADA compliance), advocacy and policy services, workforce development programs (apprenticeship, scholarship competition), and research publications. IRMA's membership tiers include Annual Retail Membership (tiered by sales volume) and Associate Membership for vendors. The association does not offer a traditional software product but provides member services and advocacy representation for retailers ranging from independent businesses to national chains.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• IRMA Annual Retail Membership
• IRMA Associate Membership
• Energy Program
• Constellation Procurement

Quantifiable outcome

• Generated more than $300 million annually through online sales tax collection advocacy
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• FMS SolutionscoreOthers · 29 February 2024IRMA partnered with FMS Solutions as a Mission Partner to provide members with financial and operational services tailored for the retail industry, including accounting, payroll, and advisory services designed to improve profitability and streamline operations.
• Bamboo HealthcoreOthersBamboo Health serves as an IRMA Mission Partner, providing prescription drug monitoring program (PDMP) integration solutions that help pharmacists and prescribers access real-time controlled substance data to improve patient safety and combat the opioid crisis.
• WorkShare IL (Illinois Department of Employment Security)coreOthersIRMA partnered with the Illinois Department of Employment Security's WorkShare IL program to help retailers retain workforce during slow periods by reducing employee hours while supplementing pay with unemployment insurance benefits.
• WixminorOthersWix partnered with IRMA as a Mission Partner to provide members with commerce and business solutions, including point of sale systems that unify online and in-store sales, simplify inventory management, payments, and customer interactions.
• The Viti CompaniescoreOthersThe Viti Companies partnered with IRMA as a Mission Partner to offer members telehealth benefits for employees, providing virtual care solutions that reduce sick days, lower healthcare costs, and increase productivity.
• Illinois Pork Producers Association (IPPA)minorOthersIPPA partnered with IRMA as a Mission Partner, providing educational resources about pork products including webinars on cuts, packaging, and merchandising to help food retailers and restaurants maximize pork sales.
• DCAP (Discover Card Settlement)minorOthersDCAP partnered with IRMA to help members file claims for the $5.4 billion Visa-Mastercard settlement, assisting businesses that accepted card payments between 2004-2019 in recovering funds.
• ConstellationcoreOthersConstellation partnered with IRMA as a Mission Partner to provide members with energy procurement programs, webinars on renewable natural gas, and cost-effective energy solutions for businesses.
• Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic OpportunitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDCEO partnered with IRMA to fund the Illinois Retail Challenge Scholarship Competition and the retail economic impact study, supporting workforce development and research initiatives.
• Illinois Pork Producers AssociationminorOthersMission Partner providing pork industry education and resources to help food retailers and restaurants with menu development, inventory management, and sales optimization.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Market position

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ilretail
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@ILRetail
• Facebookfacebook.com/ILRetail
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ilretail
• Instagraminstagram.com/ilretail

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries1 record

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 Illinois Retail Merchants Association