UK Trade Procurement Commission Rates: 15% or Resale Risk?

    By Faura ·

    UK Trade Procurement Commission Rates: 15% or Resale Risk?

    Procurement commission rates in the UK trade context are normally agreed as a disclosed trade-plus percentage, a fixed procurement or handling fee, or a transparent resale mark-up. Whichever model you choose, your contract must state plainly whether you act as agent or principal, because that distinction carries real legal weight.

    TL;DR:

    • For commercial supply, SBID recommends an administration fee around 15%; on £20,000 of goods at trade prices, itemized separately, that adds £3,000.
    • When reselling as principal to a consumer, you bear responsibility for delivery, defects, and returns under the Consumer Rights Act 2015.
    • Give procurement its own contract schedule covering status, fees, discount beneficiaries, invoicing timing, deposits, supplier lead times, and liability for damage, delays, or defects.
    • Agents charge VAT on their fee, while principals charge it on the full resale price; confirm your arrangement with an accountant or HMRC.
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    Table of Contents

    1. How procurement commissions and fees are commonly structured

    Trade showrooms and procurement agents in the UK tend to work from a small set of fee models, each suited to different project types and client relationships.

    The trade-plus or retained percentage model is the most widely recognised. A designer buys at trade price, then retains or adds a percentage as an administration fee. The Society of British & International Interior Design recommends around 15% as a commonly used administration fee for commercial supply, with a 15% discount often passed to the client on residential work. A fixed procurement or handling fee works differently. Instead of scaling with spend, the designer charges a flat sum per project phase, which suits practices that want predictable income regardless of how much furniture or finishes the scheme requires. The resale or mark-up model sees the designer buy stock and sell it on at a stated price, taking on the commercial risk of the transaction.

    Supplier discounts and commissions can be retained by the designer or passed through to the client in full, depending on what the contract records. The procurement route also shapes the fee: a nominated supplier arrangement, where the client deals with the supplier under the designer’s specification, tends to carry lower commission than a fully managed competitive tender, where the designer sources quotes, negotiates and administers delivery.

    • Trade-plus percentage: retained or added margin on goods bought at trade price.
    • Fixed procurement fee: a flat charge per phase, independent of spend.
    • Resale mark-up: the designer buys and resells at a set price, assuming stock risk.

    Before any fee model is agreed, you need to settle whether you are acting as agent or principal, because the two carry different obligations and different exposure.

    As an agent, you source and arrange goods on the client’s behalf; the client contracts directly with the supplier, and you earn a disclosed fee or commission for the service. As a principal, you buy the goods yourself and resell them to the client, which means you carry commercial responsibility for delivery, returns and defects. Legal guidance on agent and principal procurement explains that when a designer resells as principal to a consumer client, the Consumer Rights Act 2015 places that responsibility squarely on the reseller, so it needs pricing and documenting in the terms from the outset.

    Two procurement routes with different responsibilities

    Disclosure is not optional. The same guidance warns that failing to disclose a financial benefit while acting as an agent can expose a designer to secret-commission risk under UK law, a concern the Bribery Act 2010 was designed to address. The British Institute of Interior Design’s FF&E guidance reinforces this from a professional-practice angle, stating that designers should disclose who benefits from trade discounts and record procurement arrangements clearly to avoid disputes.

    One in four of a project’s riskiest conversations happens at procurement stage, where profit and legal exposure sit together according to commercial guidance for UK interior designers, which is why clear terms matter as much as the fee itself.

    A practical disclosure checklist:

    1. State in writing whether you act as agent or principal for each procurement item.
    2. Disclose any discount, rebate or commission you retain from a supplier.
    3. Record the agreed fee model and rate in the signed contract, not in a later email.
    4. Confirm who bears risk for delivery, damage or returns before goods are ordered.

    3. How to record and agree procurement fees in contracts

    Getting the fee model right matters less than recording it properly, because disputes tend to arise from ambiguity rather than from the rate itself.

    The RIBA/BIID Concise Professional Services Contract for interior design services is commonly used to set the appointment, and separating procurement into its own schedule within that contract, rather than folding it into general design fees, makes the arrangement far easier for clients to follow. Sprintlaw’s guidance for UK interior design firms recommends that procurement terms explicitly cover agent or principal status, how client deposits and floats are handled, supplier lead times, invoicing cadence, and who carries liability for goods in transit.

    A procurement schedule should address:

    • Agent or principal status for each category of goods.
    • The fee model and rate, stated as a percentage, fixed sum or mark-up.
    • Who benefits from supplier discounts, and whether they are passed on or retained.
    • Invoicing timing relative to supplier payment and delivery.
    • Liability allocation for damage, delay or defective goods.

    A nominated supplier route usually needs lighter wording, since the client contracts directly with the supplier, while a competitive tender route needs fuller clauses covering negotiation authority and sign-off on bespoke orders.

    Pro Tip: Ask clients to approve a procurement float before ordering bespoke items, since many suppliers will not accept cancellation once production starts.

    4. Practical models for presenting and calculating fees to clients

    Three presentation approaches cover most UK trade scenarios, and choosing between them usually comes down to project size and how closely the client wants to track spend.

    1. Disclosed trade-plus retained as administration: the client sees the trade price and a separately itemised administration fee, which keeps the mark-up visible on every line.
    2. Fixed procurement fee: the client pays one agreed sum for the procurement service regardless of basket size, which suits smaller or tightly scoped projects where predictability matters more than itemisation.
    3. Disclosed mark-up or resale: the client sees a single resale price per item, with the designer’s margin built in and stated as the sourcing fee in the contract.

    Say a residential scheme includes £20,000 of furniture at trade price: under the first model, a 15% administration fee as recommended by SBID would add £3,000, itemised separately on the invoice; under the third model, the same £3,000 margin would simply sit inside a £23,000 resale price. Both are legitimate provided the basis is disclosed in the contract beforehand, not revealed only at invoicing. Smaller residential projects often suit the fixed fee for simplicity, while larger commercial fit-outs with many suppliers tend to favour the itemised trade-plus approach, since it scales with the complexity of what is being managed.

    5. Operational and tax-adjacent considerations: invoices, VAT, lead times and procurement admin

    Once procurement begins, the details that cause friction are rarely the fee model itself but the administration around it.

    Separating design fees from procurement items on invoices, and holding client funds or a float for upcoming orders, keeps the financial picture clear for both sides; some practices consolidate everything into one order and one invoice per project phase, which reduces reconciliation work. VAT treatment differs depending on whether you act as agent (charging VAT only on your fee) or principal (charging VAT on the full resale price), and because the rules depend on the structure of each engagement, it is worth confirming treatment with an accountant or HMRC before invoicing. Lead times for bespoke and made-to-order items should always be given as estimates rather than guarantees, with a clear process for delivery acceptance and recording any defects on arrival.

    • Keep design fees and procurement charges on separate invoice lines.
    • Confirm VAT treatment for agent versus principal arrangements with an adviser.
    • Record delivery checks and any defects in writing at the point of acceptance.

    Pro Tip: Photograph goods on arrival before unpacking, since this single habit resolves most delivery disputes before they escalate.

    6. Faura perspective: how a trade showroom typically handles procurement and client experience

    We built Faura around the idea that procurement clarity and showroom access should not be mutually exclusive. We work with interior designers, architects, developers and contractors who specify from a broad selection of brands across finished interiors, with samples, technical files and a materials library in one place.

    Where procurement commission structures can feel opaque to clients, we manage procurement, logistics and delivery as one order and one invoice, which gives designers a single, presentable line to show clients rather than a scattered set of supplier confirmations. We do not publish trade terms: terms are agreed individually with each approved trade account, which keeps commercial arrangements private while still letting designers present costs to clients clearly and consistently.

    — Faura Editorial

    7. How Faura supports procurement and contract clarity

    If you are drafting procurement clauses and want a working base to specify from, our residency gives you a place to show clients finished rooms rather than swatches, then hand the ordering, supplier coordination and delivery to a team once terms are agreed.

    Getting started means applying for an approved trade account and booking an appointment to visit, Monday to Friday. Architects and developers working at a larger scale can find specification and procurement support suited to multi-unit or commercial projects. For logistics-heavy stages such as installation, it is also worth planning delivery and white-glove installation separately from procurement fees, since the two are often quoted and invoiced on different timelines. Visit our trade page to see the brand directory before you book.

    FAQ

    What is a typical procurement commission rate in UK interior design?

    There is no single universal rate, but a trade-plus administration fee of around 15% is a commonly used figure for commercial supply, with a comparable discount often passed to residential clients, according to SBID. Many practices instead charge a fixed procurement fee or a disclosed mark-up, so the rate depends on the model agreed in the contract.

    Do I have to disclose my procurement commission to clients?

    Yes. Acting as an agent without disclosing a financial benefit from suppliers can create secret-commission risk under UK law, as set out in legal guidance on agent and principal procurement. Professional guidance from BIID treats disclosure of discounts and procurement arrangements as standard practice.

    What is the difference between acting as agent and principal in procurement?

    As an agent, the client contracts directly with the supplier and you earn a disclosed fee for arranging the purchase. As a principal, you buy and resell the goods yourself, which under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 means you carry responsibility for delivery, defects and returns on consumer work, per DOS’s guidance.

    Which contract should I use to record procurement terms?

    The RIBA/BIID Concise Professional Services Contract is commonly used for the main appointment, with procurement recorded in its own schedule covering fee model, agent or principal status and liability. Sprintlaw’s guidance sets out the specific clauses that schedule should contain.

    Does Faura charge a procurement commission?

    Trade terms, including any procurement arrangement, are agreed individually with each approved trade account and are not published. You can discuss terms directly once your trade account is approved.

    Sources