Research, carried out by the two organisations, showed that costs for small businesses were spiralling across the board, causing a major barrier to growth.

The study revealed that 82% of business owners saw the cost of raw materials increase over the past year, with 74% reporting that cost increases have inhibited their growth ambitions and with 45% reporting that their profitability has suffered.

FPB chief executive Phil Orford said: "At a time of recession and spiralling costs, it is important that small businesses are given all the support they need to control their overheads and cash flow worries. Group buying is a real solution to the problem."

BSA founder and managing director Matt Roper added that many businesses will miss out on good deals, because they are unwilling to talk to rivals about their costs.

He said: "We often hear small business owners say they’ve got great purchasing deals and yet they’ve not had the opportunity to benchmark these prices against other comparable businesses to validate whether this view is accurate. Not only that, small businesses can’t expect to enjoy the level of competitive prices charged to the largest companies due to their lack of buying power.

"Join a buying group for the most routine costs such as stationery, telecoms, utilities and cleaning supplies. This can free up valuable time to concentrate on the more critical and higher-value cost areas such as salaries. The economies of scale achieved by such groups also deliver an opportunity for small companies to secure prices normally enjoyed by their largest competitors."

The two organisations are offering FPB members the chance to sing up to its buying support service, which includes free access to a buying group and a free purchasing audit.

Roper added: "The BSA is about enabling smaller companies to punch way above their weight and save significant sums of money. And Forum members gain access to our buying group without charge and without obligation."