Unitas says that while there is no doubt its collective scale and strength delivers real results, it is the group’s agility, pace and innovation that truly sets it apart.
David Cooke, COO of Unitas spoke to Wholesale Manager.
What are the benefits of joining your group?
As the UK’s largest wholesale buying group, we offer scale, efficiency and effectiveness for both wholesale members and suppliers. Our members and supplier partners have seen first-hand how Unitas’s incredible scale and commitment to service is delivering incremental benefits for wholesalers and measurable return on investment from suppliers.
We leverage our unbeatable buying power to offer our members the best trading terms and conditions available and, unlike other buying groups, every penny of those centrally negotiated terms goes directly to wholesaler members, who are the group’s sole owners.
How many members do you have and what is their combined turnover?
Unitas currently has 124 members, who represent a combined buying power of more than £8bn, and 14 of our members feature in The Grocer magazine’s list of the Big 30 Wholesalers.
Has the membership grown over the last year?
In 2025, we welcomed Enzo Wholesale to the group as the business embarked on an ambitious expansion plan, combining traditional wholesale values with modern service excellence. It is undoubtedly a challenging market, but our members are investing more into their businesses than ever before to increase distribution, drive volume and build genuine momentum across wholesale, retail and foodservice channels.
Do you have an own brand range? How many products are in the range? Do you have any new extensions to the range at the moment?
During the past year, we have invested heavily in our own brand ranges to reflect consumer demand and market trends in both retail and foodservice.
In retail we have strengthened our impulse offering with a new Local Living snacks and confectionery range, as well as expanding core grocery and household essentials. Local Living provides products that resonate with shoppers while also delivering results for retailers and wholesalers.
In foodservice, Caterers Kitchen continues to go from strength to strength, widely recognised by chefs and caterers for delivering exceptional value without compromising on quality.
What kind of promotions do you run?
Our promotions lead the industry – with 17 three-week offers across the year, which provides more than 4,000 individually crafted deals to keep shoppers flowing into independent stores and out-of-home outlets. Our promotional programme is built around key events in the calendar, and backed with huge support and sector-specific innovation from suppliers. These are widely publicised through depot, store, print and online materials, aimed at both customers and consumers, reaching in excess of 150,000 independent decision makers.
Do you provide marketing services for your members?
We have an industry-leading marketing service for our members, which includes bespoke deal brochures and digital capabilities such as the Plan for Profit app, creating more than 1.5 million touch point opportunities for you to promote your business.
We don’t stand still, and already in 2026, we have launched two essential guides on how members can engage with Unitas central office marketing team to achieve record results. Last year we launched our groundbreaking Supplier Marketing Clinic and this is now being extended to benefit our members’ marketing teams.
We also have a raft of new initiatives launching over the coming months, including One Week Special promotions, exclusive pack formats for NPD, pricemarked pack promotions and bespoke core range guides for out-of-home channels.
Do you offer members guidance about their core range and NPD?
We pride ourselves on the support we offer to our members. The Plan for Profit information resource includes core range advice, merchandising tips and planograms to offer guidance and a toolkit for independent retailers. Right now, our biggest-ever research project is underway with wholesalers, suppliers and more than 300 independent retailers to shape how we evolve Plan for Profit for the future to deliver even greater value for members and their customers.
We also publish digital and print magazines and category guides to keep our members’ customers up to date with consumer trends, legislation and of course suppliers’ new offers.
Do you run events for members?
Between our trade show, conference and Meet the Member events, we facilitate more than 5,000 one-to-one meetings between members and suppliers, as well as providing essential insight, analysis, networking, celebration and entertainment.
What makes your group unique?
Unitas’ unrivalled scale means we can negotiate the best possible trading terms and advertising agreements with suppliers and it works as we are outperforming the market. We appreciate how important it is for suppliers to see a return on investment, and how future investment in our channel depends on results delivered now. Unitas is solely owned by its members, so any surplus profit goes directly to them.
What news do you have to share with us?
At connect26, our annual trade show in Liverpool in March, we announced our plans to overhaul our existing services to deliver even stronger engagement platforms that will drive execution all the way to the consumer which offers our members an incredible opportunity to step change their service.
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