NBC boosts revenue and attracts ‘immense interest’ from wholesalers

National Buying Consortium’s revenue grew to over £39 million in 2025 and it increased the terms returned to members – on time and in full – by over 39% year on year.

New NBC chairman Kevin Jopson.

The news was announced by NBC’s director David Lunt at the group’s trade show, held recently at Whittlebury Park, Silverstone.

Also at the event, NBC announced its new member director appointments: Kevin Jopson from Northern Retail Group was appointed chairman, and Joe Marlow from Spectrum Foodservice was appointed vice chairman.

The trade show, which was described by both members and supplier partners as the group’s best ever, was sold out to suppliers, with several on the waiting list for a stand in the hope of a last-minute cancellation.

The day included presentations from the NBC team. Clare Spindler, business development manager, said: “The interest in the group has been immense, with over 70 applications for membership and customer accounts in recent months. Clearly they see the real benefits that the group provide in terms of access to great brands at great net prices, and very clear and regular messaging about what the group is doing with our supplier partners.

She added: “Our membership model is clearly a no-risk decision and provides potential members with a simple decision to make – do I join a group with an integrated business solution or one that charges fees? We think the answer is clear!”

Elenie Abbott, consortium trading manager, said that supplier partners clearly see the results of working with NBC in a collaborative way and of the group providing a safe route-to-market solution that allows them to access all of the channels of trade that its members and customers serve. She added: “NDN continues to be an attractive solution with more and more of our supplier partners getting behind supplier specific messaging.”

New NBC vice chairman Joe Marlow.

In presenting the main financial aspects of the previous 12 months, Lunt commented: “What a journey this has been since we started in 2019! Our growth demonstrates clearly that we are negotiating well on behalf of our members and they, in turn, are supporting our supplier partners brand plans.

“What sets this group apart from the others is simple – we are not just a buying group, we are an integrated buying and distribution group that can fulfil what it negotiates with our supplier partners.”

At the trade show, there was also a great deal of interest shown in the NBC Toolkit, which provides members with a flexible web-to-print solution that can be tailored to each member’s needs, including opportunities to provide branded workwear.

At a supplier awards dinner held in the evening, several executives from suppliers, including Red Bull, Purity, Montgomery Waters, AG Barr and Oatly, were presented with recognition awards for their contributions in 2025.

The next major event for NBC is its Annual Conference in Budapest.