COGS Conference – a place to think, talk and do business in Shropshire

The Shropshire and Telford procurement group COGS have brought together some of the biggest buyers in the county for the annual COGS Conference “Think, Talk, Do Business”　to look at utilising local suppliers for the benefit of your business. 　

This year’s event is on Monday 15 June 2015 at 3pm-7pm at Shrewsbury Town FC’s stadium.

They are also running a series of workshops at the conference along with opportunities to network and share what services, goods and provisions they provide.　

Organisations such as Shropshire Council, Severnside Housing, the NHS, Telford and Wrekin Council, along with many more, will be attending.

Steve Charmley, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for business and culture, who will open the conference, said:

“Shropshire Council jointly set up COGS with the Shropshire Business Board to make sure both the council and all public and private sector partners procure as much as possible locally. We know that if we can make sure the Shropshire pound is recycled as many times as possible in Shropshire, our Gross Value Added will be boosted. We are proud of the fact that 68% of all the council’s spend is within Shropshire, and last year we were sixth best council in the country.” 　　

The COGS group encourages businesses to sign up to the Shropshire Procurement Charter at www.cogsatwork.co.uk. The charter asks businesses to commit to buying locally wherever possible, and has doubled its membership in the last six months.

The COGS Conference is being sponsored by Shropshire Council, Telford and Wrekin Council, NHS, Business Watch and the Federation of Small Businesses.

Ann Johnson, Chair of the COGS working group, said:-

“The COGS group is working hard to help small and large businesses to do more business together. This conference will be a great opportunity for small and local businesses to meet buyers, improve their procurement knowledge and seek opportunities to further network and promote their own services.”

To book go to http://cogsconference2015.eventbrite.co.uk. To find out more about COGS go to www.cogsatwork.co.uk.