Bulk Buyers Clubs - How to eat good food and save money (and the world)

“Saying eff you to the big supermarkets, saving $$$, meeting like minded people, learning new things, buying better quality at lower prices - I would recommend joining one for so many reasons.” - Jess, BNE Buyers Group

Hey there! Do you like the sound of:

  • Saving on your grocery bill

  • Lots of nutritious, locally grown produce

  • Cutting the miles, packaging and double-handling behind your food

  • Putting more money in the pockets of local farmers and makers

  • Meeting or spending more time with like-minded people

  • Taking back control of your local food system, breaking down barriers to affordable, healthy food and shunning the major supermarkets?

If yes, you sound like our kinda person - and joining (or starting!) a bulk buyers club could be for you.

What is a Bulk Buyers Club?

Kind of like a food co-op, but with fewer people and less admin! 

At their simplest, Bulk Buyers Clubs  (or buyers groups) are small groups of friends, family or neighbours who want to enjoy affordable, earth-friendly, nutrient-dense food (but also cleaning products, loo roll and more), so they combine buying power to access cheaper wholesale prices and bulk quantities.

By being part of one, you can not only save money, but tackle a number of issues we face as a commnunity - cost of living, food security, social isolation, climate change, the supermarket duopoly - all while getting together with other legends and enjoying great food.

How do I get started?

It doesn’t have to be big or complicated, and there are a number of ways to make it work - but we’re here to make it even easier!

Bulk Buyers Guide - your handbook

We want to empower many groups and communities as possible to take your food sourcing into your own hands, and nourish your family for less.

So with our 10+ years of experience supporting buyers groups, and a wealth of knowledge from our friends, we’ve compiled a practical, step-by-step guide with everything you need to set up a Bulk Buyers Group! This ebook is jam-packed with checklists, tips and learnings from people who’ve done it and made it work long term. 

It includes:

  • How to find your first members

  • Pros and cons of different ways to set up your group

  • The bare bones (and then the nice-to-haves) for getting started

  • The tasks involved

  • How to handle the money

  • Ways to turn your group into a fun, engaged community

And more!

Join an existing group

Not ready to start your own? Reach out to one of these awesome Bulk Buyers Clubs who are accepting new members:


Food Connect Foundation & Bulk Buyers Clubs - our why

We first became (directly) involved with Bulk Buyers Clubs many years ago, with some of the first staff members from our fruit and veg social enterprise, Food Connect Brisbane. They’d graduated uni and left their part time jobs with us, but were sorely missing their staff discount and affordable access to good, ethical, regenerative produce. Noting the lower prices on bulk crates of apples and spuds sold to restaurants and retail shops, they asked if they could get together to order the same to save on packing, packaging and handling. We said yes, and our first Buyers Club was created.

Since then, we’ve initiated and supported many - both as a supplier, and as an advocate. 

We see Buyers Clubs as a radical, powerful (and delicious) piece of the puzzle in creating robust, resilient local food systems - empowering individuals and communities to take their food access and security into their own hands while supporting ecological producers.

That’s why we’re creating a number of workshops, resources and tools to help more individuals and communities to start and maintain their own, as well as a number of activities to build awareness for more connected, robust food systems. If you’d like to be kept in the loop with this project, or find out how you can get started with the magic of bulk buying, sign up here.

Costa thinks it’s a great idea too!

This initiative is being supported by a generous contribution from the Ubuntu Foundation.