THE THIRD INSTALMENT OF "HARNESSING THE POWER" Once a group is poised to deliver its prized purchasing volume to those vendors who are privileged to be selected, it should develop a format to solicit proposals from the vendors.  The group should have its own vendor proposal form that it requires each vendor to complete and submit.  In addition to the legal terms designed to benefit the group (such as a good indemnity provision), it could also contain spaces throughout the ...

THE SECOND INSTALMENT OF "HARNESSING THE POWER" In order to win meaningful concessions from the vendor, the group must give them something they don’t already have.  They must be able to deliver significant additional volume to them.  In some rare instances, it may make sense to have two or three vendors of similar lines be “approved” or “preferred” vendors in exchange for “group” deals without the requirement of any particular amount of support from the group for any of their ...

INTRODUCTION On a previous vacation, my wife and I visited the Niagara Falls.  We went to the foot of the Falls on a tour boat and witnessed their awesome power and majesty.  They hit the bottom with so much force that they produced a perpetual mist around the bottom requiring all of the people on the boat to wear ponchos to stay dry.  As I reflect back on that day, it occurred to me how much power must be generated ...

Without question, marks used by a business to identify either its services (service marks) or its goods (trademarks) can be among its most valuable assets. Ironically, like goodwill, value is seldom listed on the balance sheet of a business in connection with its marks. Nevertheless, the service marks and trademarks of a business are very much an integral part of its going concern value. One need only reflect upon the fact that a bottle of designer water with a prestigious ...