What Public Purchasing Exchange (ppex) does

Public Purchasing Exchange (PPEx) is a California-based limited liability company that operates as the technology hub and distribution channel for the Local Agency Contract Exchange (LACE), a cooperative purchasing initiative founded by Los Angeles County and San Diego County. PPEx serves California public agencies — primarily county governments — by aggregating their purchasing volume to negotiate better contract terms with suppliers and by providing a web-based procurement platform that standardizes ordering, approval workflows, and savings tracking across participating departments.

The platform is composed of three core products: the LACE exchange itself, which manages cooperative contracts and supplier relationships; EzMarket, a customized procurement workflow module with approval workflows, order history, receipt tracking, and shipping address management (deployed at San Diego County with 1,000 users and 750 shipping addresses); and EzShop, an automated online shopping, quotes, and requisition application with secure login that is deployed across 50 Los Angeles County departments. The technology is cloud-based with no disclosed AI/ML, API, or SDK capabilities, and integrates with major suppliers including Staples (primary partner), Global, and Safeware.

PPEx monetizes through a supplier-sponsored managed services model: participating suppliers fund the technology administration of the exchange network in exchange for access to high-volume public agency contracts under National Best Value & Pricing Commitments. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and contracts are multi-year. The go-to-market motion is enterprise field sales driven by founding county relationships, a Public Purchasing Professional Advisory Board, and direct outreach to county procurement departments via the LACE Agency Challenge benchmarking initiative. No institutional investors, funding rounds, or external ownership relationships are disclosed.

Name

Public Purchasing Exchange (ppex)

Legal name

Public Purchasing Exchange, LLC

Website

https://laceppex.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Public Purchasing Exchange (PPEx) operates the Local Agency Contract Exchange (LACE), a cloud-based cooperative purchasing platform founded by Los Angeles and San Diego Counties that aggregates volume across California public agencies to negotiate supplier contracts and streamline procurement workflows.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Supplier Sponsored Exchange Network: PPEx generates revenue through supplier sponsorship of the exchange network, with technology administration funded by participating suppliers who gain access to high-volume public agency procurement contracts.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

PPEx operates the Local Agency Contract Exchange (LACE), a cooperative purchasing exchange platform that enables California public agencies to aggregate purchasing volume across counties to secure National Best Value & Pricing Commitments from suppliers such as Staples. The exchange is supported by two web-based procurement applications: EzMarket (customized marketplace with approval workflows, order history, receipt tracking, and shipping address management for participating agencies) and EzShop (automated online shopping, quotes, and requisition processing with secure login for county departments).

Product overview

Public Purchasing Exchange (PPEx) operates the Local Agency Contract Exchange (LACE), a cooperative purchasing platform that aggregates volume across California public agencies. The core LACE platform is supported by customized workflow modules including EzMarket (with approval workflows, order history, and receipt management) and EzShop (automated shopping, quotes, and requisition processing), enabling agencies to benchmark pricing and achieve savings through shared contracts.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Local Agency Contract Exchange (LACE) A cooperative purchasing exchange platform that enables California public agencies to leverage aggregated volume purchasing power for better pricing and contract terms from participating suppliers, administered through the EzMarket and EzShop applications with benchmarking and proof-of-savings requirements.
• EzMarket Customized procurement workflow solution deployed at San Diego County featuring approval workflows, order history, receipt tracking, and shipping address management for participating agencies; seamlessly onboarded 1,000 users and 750 shipping addresses with 3,000+ orders and $1M in transaction volume in first 90 days.
• EzShop Automated online shopping, quotes, and requisition processing application with secure login and uniform shopping and ordering experience for county departments; deployed across 50 LA County departments to replace different manual processes for securing purchase orders.

Quantifiable outcome

• $2 Million aggregate annual savings for 5 SoCal Counties
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Los Angeles CountycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-founder and lead participant of LACE. LA County contributes purchasing volume to the exchange and utilizes EzShop platform for 50 departments with automated procurement workflows.
• San Diego CountycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-founder and lead participant of LACE. Implemented EzMarket with 1,000 users and 750 shipping addresses, processing 3,000+ orders and $1M in first 90 days. Target of $600,000 or 15% annual savings.
• Orange CountycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLead participant county in the LACE cooperative purchasing exchange, contributing to aggregated volume purchasing power.
• San Bernardino CountycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLead participant county in the LACE cooperative purchasing exchange, contributing to aggregated volume purchasing power.
• Tulare CountycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLead participant county in the LACE cooperative purchasing exchange, contributing to aggregated volume purchasing power.
• StaplescoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPrimary office supplies supplier partner. Leverages SoCal counties volume to benefit LA County Staples pricing with National Best Value & Pricing Commitment. Target of $2M aggregate annual savings for 5 SoCal Counties.
• GlobalminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSupplier partner featured in the LACE exchange network.
• SafewareminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSupplier partner featured in the LACE exchange network.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• NASPO ValuePoint: NASPO ValuePoint is the cooperative purchasing arm of the National Association of State Procurement Officials, providing master agreements that state and local governments can piggyback on. Directly comparable to PPEx's state-level cooperative purchasing model.
• OMNIA Partners: OMNIA Partners (which absorbed U.S. Communities) is the largest cooperative purchasing organization serving U.S. public agencies. Like PPEx, it aggregates public-sector buying volume to negotiate supplier contracts, making it the most direct comparable in cooperative government purchasing.
• E&I Cooperative Services: E&I Cooperative Services is a member-owned cooperative purchasing organization serving education institutions. Uses a similar aggregated-volume contract model to PPEx, but focused on the education vertical rather than California public agencies.
• 1GPA (Government Purchasing Alliance): 1GPA is a national cooperative purchasing organization focused on K-12 and higher education, government, and nonprofit agencies. Closely comparable to PPEx's model of aggregating public agency purchasing volume into competitively bid contracts.
• Sourcewell: Sourcewell (formerly NJPA) is a Minnesota-based cooperative purchasing organization that competitively solicits contracts on behalf of government, education, and nonprofit agencies. It is a direct peer to PPEx as a public-sector cooperative purchasing exchange.

Broad incumbents

• Vizient: Vizient is a large healthcare-focused GPO providing aggregated contract purchasing for hospitals and health systems. Comparable to PPEx in using aggregated member volume to negotiate supplier contracts, though focused on healthcare rather than government.
• Tyler Technologies: Tyler Technologies is a large GovTech vendor providing software across many public-sector functions. Comparable to PPEx as a technology provider to government agencies, though its procurement-related offerings (ExecuTime, Civic Services) are broader and deeper than PPEx's specialized exchange.
• Bonfire (now owned by GTY): Bonfire is a procurement technology platform serving public agencies with bid management and vendor evaluation tools. Comparable to PPEx as a GovTech procurement platform, though focused on the bid/RFX side rather than ongoing catalog purchasing.

Regional players

• Texas DIR Cooperative Contracts: Texas DIR Cooperative Contracts program provides state-negotiated purchasing contracts available to Texas public entities. Operates the same cooperative purchasing concept as PPEx, but serves a different geography (Texas vs. California).

Emerging players

• Procurated: Procurated is a procurement intelligence and supplier evaluation platform for government agencies. Adjacent to PPEx's value proposition of benchmarking and validating savings on cooperative contracts.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

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 Public Purchasing Exchange (ppex)