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Imagine this scenario:

You’re in charge of procurement at a city or county office.

You’ve honed your budget, fine-tuned your processes and done the hard work of wrangling contracts that keep things predictable.

But as the fiscal year progresses, a troubling trend emerges — a surge of indirect, sometimes off-the-books spending.

You dig into the details and find department heads placing orders with whichever online seller happens to offer a quick ship or a tempting promo code.

It’s easy to understand why. In the public sector, requests can be unpredictable, timelines are tight, and the expectation to “do more with less” never goes away. Sometimes a well-intentioned clerk or manager, just trying to keep operations humming, turns to a non-standard supplier to solve an urgent problem.

These purchases may look harmless, but beneath the surface, they introduce a tangle of risk, waste and compliance headaches that can undermine the very goals your agency is working to achieve.

Let’s take a closer look at why consolidating your suppliers and aligning with strategic procurement policies can save money, time and headaches.

The government-specific pitfalls of non-standard suppliers.

At first glance, allowing public staff to use online “big box” retailers or local shops for small orders seems flexible. These outlets promise convenience and — occasionally — a flash-sale price.

But government procurement isn’t meant to be a free-for-all; every decision comes loaded with public trust and legal requirements.

Extreme pricing variability: public dollars in the crosshairs.

Popular online marketplaces leverage dynamic pricing algorithms that fluctuate by the hour. For structured government agency budgets, this makes cost control nearly impossible.

In one week, an office chair or laptop cart might jump by 100%. Coffee supplies, safety gloves, printer toner or hand sanitizer — items that cities and counties buy in bulk — can swing 50% or more from order to order.

For instance, imagine a scenario where a county public works team orders ergonomic chairs for its field office. In just a few days, the price for the same model could swing from $75 to over $220. Multiply that by dozens of staff and you have a procurement officer fielding tough questions during the annual budget review. Aggregated over a year, these ad hoc purchases become a silent sinkhole for taxpayer funds.

Real-World Pricing Variations You Typically See with Non-Standard Suppliers and Dynamic Pricing¹

Office Furniture

Breakroom supplies

It’s important to note that we didn’t cherry pick these few examples just to make our point. There are thousands of products with price fluctuations like these from non-standard suppliers. The risk of paying prices that could potentially be marked-up 150% – 200% should be all the justification a smart procurement director needs to limit purchases from non-standard suppliers.

The better solution? Work with suppliers who offer stable, negotiated pricing. This not only reduces financial risks but also makes forecasting and budgeting more reliable.

Compliance gaps and audit nightmares.

When public agencies buy from non-standard sellers, essential documentation tends to fall apart.

• Purchase orders get replaced by simple email receipts.
• Product specifications are muddy.
• Tax-exempt transactions may be missed or improperly processed.

During audits, untracked spend with third-party sellers makes reconciling accounts time-consuming and often unsuccessful.

Worse, many non-standard suppliers lack robust reporting. That means supply chain transparency, minority and woman-owned business tracking, and local purchase reporting — all central to many state and city mandates — are often ignored. Your agency’s ability to demonstrate compliance and stewardship takes a hit.

Sustainability and community impact concerns.

Some public bodies are required to meet strict local sourcing and sustainability guidelines. Does yours? If so, be very aware that non-standard vendors, whose supply chains are mostly invisible, can derail these initiatives.

Purchases might inadvertently contravene your agency’s policies meant to support local businesses, lower emissions or favor recyclable and non-toxic materials.

Quality and liability risks.

Non-standard products may not meet government-mandated specifications. A county government discovered that cut-rate office chairs purchased outside contract specifications failed in routine use tests — the chairs were later recalled.²

Inadequate quality checks also raise the risk of counterfeit or non-compliant goods, from janitorial chemicals to HVAC filters. When these products fail, your budget is negatively affected, but often, so is public safety and your agency’s credibility with the public.

Working with multiple vendors exacerbates these quality issues. If there’s a problem with a product or delivery, non-standard suppliers often lack responsive customer service, leaving customers frustrated and more likely to buy replacement items instead of resolving the issue — further increasing unnecessary spend.

The hidden time tax: returns, customer service and lost productivity.

Buy from an approved contract vendor, and you get standardized returns and fast credit reconciliation.

Buy from a non-standard seller, and you run into inconsistent return windows, shipping fees and the dreaded process of disputing charges. Local government staff who might normally manage community events or respond to emergencies instead find themselves buried in order-return paperwork.

Data security and confidentiality.

According to the Thomson Reuters Institute’s Risk & Compliance Report, which surveyed professionals in compliance, legal and procurement, 82% cited data and cybersecurity concerns as their organization’s greatest risk.³

Non-standard suppliers often operate with minimal data security and privacy protections. Sensitive payment or vendor data might be handled by low-compliance e-commerce platforms. That can lead to increased risk for breaches or fraud — a particular concern for government agencies that handle confidential information or public records.

Given all the issues associated with non-standard suppliers — pricing, compliance, quality, returns and data security — it’s no wonder that most supplier quality metrics are focused more on fixing problems instead of anticipating them.⁴

You might have too many suppliers.

How many suppliers, standard or otherwise, are currently on your list of approved vendors? Your procurement teams may unintentionally cause inefficiencies by keeping too many vendors on that list.

Let’s look at the top three issues with too many vendors and what you can do to avoid them:

Administrative burden.

We touched on this earlier, but it’s worth mentioning again: too many vendors means managing everything from different invoicing systems to inconsistent delivery timelines and unpredictable return policies. As a result, your procurement staff could spend vital hours coordinating these logistics, which takes valuable resources away from big-picture improvement.

Actions for government leaders:

Refine your supplier list and prioritize relationships with partners who provide robust, centralized procurement solutions. The result? More predictable processes, fixed pricing and reliable customer support, all of which frees up your team’s time for strategic projects.

Limited oversight of spending.

When purchases are spread across a sprawling list of suppliers, it becomes nearly impossible to spot trends, avoid duplicate orders or rein in wasteful spending. Lack of consolidated data means critical budget planning decisions rely more on guesswork than insight.

Actions for government leaders:

Analyze current purchasing practices by pulling comprehensive data from across departments. Watch for common purchases, and flag non-compliant vendor use. With this consolidated view, you’ll uncover gaps and get back in control.

Operational complexity.

Every extra vendor introduces more steps into your procurement process — raising the odds of missed details, delayed shipments and uneven service standards.

Actions for government leaders:

Simplify procurement by choosing a supplier partner with a centralized, user-friendly ordering platform. This ensures access to curated, approved products, streamlines workflows and minimizes inefficiencies while maintaining compliance.

Strategies for reining-in non-standard spending.

To protect public dollars and reinforce policy goals, your agency should:

Centralize and streamline vendor lists.

Partner with suppliers that meet government requirements — competitive pricing, local and diversity sourcing, and strong service-level agreements. Limit the list to those that provide robust eProcurement integration and clear, tailored government invoicing.

Enforce clear purchasing policies and user training.

Regularly update staff on approved sourcing protocols. Make compliance simple with easy-to-use ordering portals and built-in controls that flag unapproved items at checkout.

Leverage data and analytics.

Centralized reporting is vital. Work with suppliers and platform partners that provide real-time spend visibility, compliance dashboards and the ability to slice data by department, project or grant source. Use insights to surface out-of-policy purchasing and identify structured savings opportunities.

Elevate vendor performance management.

Regularly review supplier performance, return rates and product quality metrics. Solicit staff feedback on usability and support. Remove vendors that don’t measure up.

Prioritize public values.

Ensure that your suppliers align with your entity’s environmental and social purchasing mandates. Build bid criteria and scoring models that reward local sourcing, sustainability and economic equity.

The key takeaway.

Every dollar spent off-contract has a ripple effect — one that goes beyond mere dollars and cents. It erodes trust, complicates oversight and siphons resources away from your agency’s core mission.

In today’s environment — when governments face intensifying pressure for transparency, efficiency and long-term stewardship — procurement leaders must resist shortcuts that undermine the process.

By consolidating suppliers, enforcing rigorous policies and insisting on real accountability, your local and/or state agency can save money. You can serve your communities better, create operational resilience and ensure public funds are directed where they matter most: delivering reliable, high-quality public services.

Ready to take the next step? Work with our procurement experts, who are equipped to serve government agencies. We can help make your agency a model of efficiency and fiscal responsibility for every constituent you serve.

Sources

1 Bungee Tech now Clear Demand, “Amazon Quick Quote Data Since February 1, 2025”.
2 Furniture Today – “More than 60,000 office chairs recalled due to risk of collapse” 2025.
3 Thomson Reuters Institute – “Risk & Compliance Report” 2023.
4 Gartner – “Supplier Relationship Management Best Practices” 2025.

Staples works with organizations to develop customized programs with specialized pricing, dedicated account management, and a complete assortment of products and services at the lowest total delivered cost. Staples is dedicated to helping you procure all your business needs including; technology, furniture, facility solutions, print, promotional items and of course all office supplies.

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