Johoku Shinkin Bank and General Purchases Support SMEs with Cost Analysis Service 'Cost Dock'

General Purchases Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director: Shinya Nagasaki), which operates the cost analysis service 'Cost Dock', has entered into a business matching contract with Johoku Shinkin Bank (Kita-ku, Tokyo; Chairman: Kotaro Omae). The partnership will provide 'Cost Dock', an online one-stop service for cost analysis and profit improvement, to SMEs in the areas served by Johoku Shinkin Bank.

[Background of Service Provision]

In recent years, the environment surrounding Japanese companies has entered an era of 'complex high costs'.
- Rising prices and wages
- Structural increases in electricity and gas rates (due to GX-ETS, fuel adjustment fees, and surcharges for renewable energy)
- High logistics and raw material costs
- Phasing out of fluorescent lights in 2027
- Costs associated with new regulations from 2026 to 2030, including the Energy Conservation Act, GX Act, HFC regulations, and transformer top-runner standards

Particularly for SMEs, the lack of know-how in understanding and optimizing indirect costs is severe, leading to structural issues such as 'not knowing where waste exists', 'not knowing how to compare', and 'being unable to judge appropriate prices'. Furthermore, demands for CO₂ reduction (Scope 3) are increasing, making the coexistence of 'cost reduction' and 'decarbonization' an unavoidable management challenge. Meanwhile, market structures persist where prices for energy, telecommunications, leases, insurance, and equipment can vary three to five times or more even for the same specifications. It is extremely difficult for SMEs to independently determine optimal prices. Against this backdrop, efforts to visualize the current state of companies and simultaneously support profit improvement and decarbonization are now required.

[Service Overview]

'Cost Dock' is a free online service that digitizes the 'central purchasing department' for SMEs. Cost analysis and profit improvement are available for free.

▼Target Areas

Comprehensive analysis of over 40 indirect cost items, including utility costs, communication expenses, mobile phones, leases, office automation equipment, insurance, fuel, logistics, construction and equipment, solar power, and air conditioning.

▼Features
- Free to use (no success fee)
- Analyzes current purchase prices and calculates 'appropriate prices'
- Partners with nationwide suppliers to obtain the cheapest quotes on behalf of clients
- Quantifies CO₂ emissions and reduction effects while enabling cost reduction
- Completed online, with analysis reports delivered in as little as one month
- Profit improvement also implemented for free

▼Results (as of June 2026)
- Over 700 partners
- More than 10,000 cumulative client companies
- Approximately 280 new client companies per month
- Analysis and improvement: average 15-25% reduction potential discovered

[Value of the Service]

① Visualization of 'appropriate prices' for indirect costs: By comparing market price data and nationwide suppliers, items with three to five times price differences are optimized.
② Simultaneous realization of 'cost analysis', 'cost reduction', and 'CO₂ reduction': Visualization of costs, CO₂ emissions, and timing of necessary equipment updates; presentation and execution support of improvement plans (cheapest proposals for decarbonization equipment, switching to new power and gas providers, redesign of communication costs and OA equipment, review of transportation and equipment management costs) can be compared and implemented collectively.
③ Usable as a 'accompanying support tool' for financial institutions and professionals: Objectively reports companies' improvement potential ('Cost Dock Report'), links CO₂ reduction effects to financial institutions' evaluation items, and serves as an effective service for profit improvement for companies whose operating profits are squeezed by high costs. *All are free, making the barrier to introducing customer proposals extremely low.

[Business Model]

There is no cost to client companies. The revenue source is referral fees from suppliers, so SMEs can implement purchasing improvements without any burden.

▼Easy to Proceed

Companies using this service first have an online meeting with our representative to select the items needed from approximately 40 categories (utility costs, communication costs, lease equipment, transportation, equipment fees, etc.). Then, based on the submitted materials, an analysis report is created to visualize the current cost status (numbers that can be reduced, man-hours, etc.). If costs for specific items are to be reduced, our representative will obtain comparative quotes for the selected items and select the supplier with the lowest price, saving time on meetings with each supplier.

[Future Outlook]

From 2026 to 2030, SMEs will face the following environmental changes:
- Rising electricity costs due to GX-ETS
- Strengthened obligations under the Energy Conservation Act
- Rising equipment costs due to transformer, air conditioning, and refrigerant regulations
- Mandatory ESG disclosure
- Rising labor costs and recruitment difficulties
- Worsening of the logistics 2024 problem
- Replacement of PCs and systems due to the end of Windows 10 support

These pose risks that could 'shake the foundation of management' for SMEs. Cost Dock provides a 'central office function' that anticipates these changes, enabling SMEs to focus on their core business.

▼Vision

'Build strong companies.' To achieve this, we support the improvement of profits and competitiveness of all Japanese SMEs through the standardization and visualization of costs and CO₂.

[About Cost Dock]

Name: Cost Dock
Launch: 2020
URL: https://cost-dock.com/
Target: SMEs and local governments nationwide
Price: Completely free

[Company Profiles]

■General Purchases Co., Ltd.

Company Name: General Purchases Co., Ltd.
Management Philosophy: 'Build strong companies'
Established: October 2008
Representative Director: Shinya Nagasaki
Location: 4th Floor West, Zentoku Roppongi Building, 1-7-27 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Business: Cost analysis, purchasing consulting
URL: https://general-pcs.co.jp/

■Johoku Shinkin Bank

Company Name: Johoku Shinkin Bank
Founded: May 1921
Chairman: Kotaro Omae
Location: 79-7 Arakawa 3-chome, Arakawa-ku, Tokyo
URL: https://www.johokubank.jp/index.html

[Contact for This Release]

General Purchases Co., Ltd., Administration Department
〒106-0032
4th Floor WEST, Zentoku Roppongi Building, 1-7-27 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Phone: 03-6661-0075
Email: info@general-pcs.co.jp