If you're responsible for art, design or resource budgets at a college, university department or academy, you'll know the drill: term starts, sketchbooks run low, and you're placing another individual order. But if your institution sits inside a Multi-Academy Trust, a college group, or a federation, there's a question worth asking before you do - could you be buying this collectively, and could that get you a better deal?
At Graphics Direct we've supplied schools, colleges and universities for over 25 years, and at the moment we deal with the vast majority of our education customers as individual accounts. For a standalone institution, that's exactly right. But for sites that belong to a wider group, buying independently often means missing out on pricing and service that's only available when a Trust or group buys as one.
What changes when a Trust buys collectively?
Collective buying isn't just about a discount. In our experience working with education groups, it typically brings:
- Contract pricing across every site - one negotiated rate instead of each site quoting separately.
- A single point of contact - one account manager who understands the Trust's specification and standards, rather than each site starting from scratch.
- Consistent quality and specification - every campus or faculty working from the same product standard, which matters if departments compare notes or share resources.
- Simpler admin - consolidated ordering and invoicing instead of duplicate paperwork across sites.
We already work this way with a number of Trusts and college groups, including Aspire Academy Trust, Chester Diocesan Academies Trust, Atomix Educational Trust and University of Winchester Academy Trust - alongside individual college and university customers such as UAL, Northumbria University and the University of Liverpool.
If your institution buys art and design supplies independently today but is part of a wider Trust or group, it's worth a conversation. We're not asking you to change how you buy - just highlighting that there may be a better option available than the one you're on now.
Where to start: this term's sketchbook range
Sketchbooks are one of the simplest places to start, because every department needs them and the specification differences are easy to compare across sites. We supply two ranges that between them cover most classroom and studio needs:
ArtGecko Sketchbooks
150gsm acid-free cartridge paper with a durable, wipe-clean cover, made in Otley, Yorkshire. Available Case Bound and Spiral Bound, in sizes from A5 to A2, in class packs of 5 or 10. Education establishments can order on an instant credit account, and pricing is competitive against high street and online retailers alike.
GraphicPro Sketchbooks
UK-made 140gsm premium white cartridge paper, 40 sheets per book, spiral or stapled binding, and FSC certified. Available in A5, A4 and A3, in class packs of 5, 10 or 20, with bulk discounts for larger orders.
Both ranges are things we can quote against a single Trust-wide specification, rather than negotiating site by site - which is exactly the kind of item that benefits most from collective buying.
Beyond sketchbooks
Once a sketchbook specification is agreed across a Trust, it's usually a natural next step to look at the rest of the art and design list under the same arrangement - drawing boards, mountboard, portfolios and project cases, trimmers and guillotines, drawing pads, spray booths, and marker pens, among others. We supply all of these as part of our standard education range, so a Trust-wide agreement can flex to cover as much or as little of the department's list as makes sense.
Trusted by education, not just claiming to be
We have over 7500 genuine customer reviews and a 5-star rating on Trusted Shops. We've planted over 10,500 trees as part of our commitment to sustainable sourcing. As a family business trading since 1998, we've built our education relationships on next-day delivery, specialist advice and personal service - not on being the cheapest quote in the room.
Is your institution part of a Trust or group?
If you buy independently today but your institution is part of a Multi-Academy Trust, college group or federation, get in touch and we'll talk through what contract pricing could look like across your sites. No obligation, no change to how you order today - just a conversation about whether there's a better way. Email us on sales@graphicsdirect.co.uk or call 01423 359 730 and let’s start that conversation.