Mass buys of wholesale cans of aluminium can reduce the unit price significantly. The White Claw American drink firm committed to buying 200 million units annually, reducing the unit price from $0.15 per unit at the consumer level to $0.09, saving more than $12 million of the annual budget. The ROI has gained 18%. In supply chain efficiency, Coca-Cola entered into a regional centralized procurement agreement with Ball Corporation during 2021, shortening the order cycle from 14 days to 5 days, speeding up the inventory turnover rate to an average of 8.3 times per year (industry average of 5.7 times) and reducing the logistics cost ratio by 12%.
From the environmental compliance angle, bulk buying enables green innovation. Through AB InBev’s “100% Recycled aluminum Can Program” launched in 2022, procurement on the wholesale aluminum can level reached 5 billion. Emissions per ton of recycled aluminum were only 5% compared to those of primary aluminum (0.6 tons vs. 12 tons of CO₂), and energy consumption was reduced by 95%. This move led to a 23% increase in its ESG rating and meets the EU Circular Economy Action Plan target of recycling 65% of packaging material by 2030. On the technical side, Carlsberg’s “Snap Pack” six-pack of cans, through bulk purchasing custom-made aluminum cans, increased packaging material cost per can by only $0.002 after the cost of designing the mold was diluted, while the plastic usage decreased by 76%, saving 3.4 million euros on packaging material annually.
From the perspective of market competition, small and medium-sized brands can become differentiated by wholesale procurement. In 2023, Bubly, a company dealing in sparkling water, purchased 5 million thin aluminum cans (10 grams each) at Alibaba International Station at a unit price of $0.07, which was 15% lower than that of the same category. It also optimized design parameters (90 psi compressive strength, 4 micron coating thickness) with platform data, reducing the product shelf life by 30%. Bulk purchasers, according to a McKinsey study, can knock the suppliers down by 40% with central buying, and the procurement error rate from ±8% to ±3%. For instance, after consolidating three key aluminum can suppliers in 2022, Yanki Forest’s supply chain risk cost declined by 25%.
The policy-finance synergy advantages are equally significant. Under the United States’ Inflation Reduction Act, the purchase of domestically produced wholesale aluminum cans is eligible for a tax credit of $45 per ton. Ball Corporation’s Kentucky factory utilizes this to provide Pepsi with a preferential price of $0.06 per piece, 20% below the cost of import. Moreover, bulk buying agreements usually carry longer payment terms (e.g., 90 days for Net) to reduce the cash flow burden on businesses. For instance, Bang Energy brand of the energy drink beverage increased its working capital turnover ratio from 4.2 to 6.1 through a deferred payment policy and reduced its average annual cost of capital by 8 million US dollars.
Eventually, technological innovation compels the value enhancement of mass purchasing. In 2023, Orekin launched an intelligent aluminum can solution. The wholesale price of NFC tag-implanted aluminum cans increased only by $0.03 per unit, yet consumer interaction rates increased by 40%, while the rate of accurate data retrieval became 98%. According to the estimates of Boston Consulting Group, the percentage rate of year-over-year growth of customers’ brand loyalty that adopt such technologies is, on average, 7.2% higher than that of the industry average. Besides, mass procurement can reduce the cost of technology adaptation by 60% and hence ideal for companies with over 100 million units of demand annually.