Hyakujushi Bank and General Purchase to Support SMEs with Cost Analysis Service 'Cost-Doc'

General Purchase Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; CEO: Shinya Nagasaki), which operates the cost analysis service 'Cost-Doc,' has entered into a business matching agreement with Hyakujushi Bank (Headquarters: Takamatsu City, Kagawa Prefecture; President: Masafumi Mori). Through this agreement, General Purchase will begin offering 'Cost-Doc,' its one-stop online service for cost analysis and profit improvement, to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the area served by Hyakujushi 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 surge in electricity and gas prices (GX-ETS, fuel adjustment costs, rising renewable energy surcharges)

・Sustained high levels of logistics and raw material costs

・Phase-out of fluorescent lights in 2027

・Compliance costs for new regulations from 2026 to 2030, such as the Energy Saving Act, GX Act, HFC regulations, and transformer top runner standards

Particularly for SMEs, the lack of know-how in grasping and optimizing indirect costs is a serious issue, leading to structural problems such as:

'Not knowing where the waste is,' 'Not knowing how to compare,' and 'Unable to judge the appropriate price.'

Furthermore, with increasing demands for CO₂ reduction (Scope 3), balancing 'cost reduction' and 'decarbonization' has become an unavoidable management issue for companies.

On the other hand, a market structure persists where prices for energy, communications, leasing, insurance, and equipment can differ by 3 to 5 times or more for the same specifications. It is extremely difficult for SMEs to find the optimal price on their own.

Against this backdrop, there is now a need for initiatives that visualize a company's current situation and simultaneously support profit improvement and decarbonization.

【Service Overview】

'Cost-Doc' is a free online service that digitizes the 'central purchasing department' for SMEs.

Cost analysis and profit improvement are available for free.

▼Target Areas

Utilities / Communication costs / Mobile phones / Leases / OA equipment / Insurance / Fuel / Logistics / Construction & Equipment / Solar power / Air conditioning, etc.

Comprehensive analysis of over 40 indirect cost items and related administrative tasks.

▼Features

・Completely free to use (no success fees)

・Analyzes current purchasing prices and calculates the 'appropriate price'