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Sourcing & Suppliers

Multi-sourcing

Multi-sourcing is the practice of buying the same item or service from several suppliers rather than relying on a single source.

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Spreading demand across multiple suppliers reduces the risk that one supplier's disruption halts operations, and it keeps competitive tension on price and service. It is a common strategy for critical materials, high-volume consumables and categories with volatile supply.

The trade-off is complexity: more relationships to manage, smaller volume per supplier and potentially weaker discounts. Buyers balance resilience against efficiency, often using multi-sourcing for critical items while consolidating low-risk categories with fewer suppliers.

Frequently asked questions

What is multi-sourcing?
Multi-sourcing is buying the same item or service from several suppliers instead of one, to reduce supply risk and maintain competitive pricing.
What is the difference between multi-sourcing and single sourcing?
Multi-sourcing uses several suppliers for the same requirement to spread risk, while single sourcing deliberately concentrates it with one chosen supplier for simplicity or closer partnership.

Go deeper

Supplier risk management guide

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