The Central Purchasing Office is a non-profit corporation owned and operated by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Cleveland. CPO's mission is to help our customers save time and money by facilitating the purchasing process, and utilizing our volume price contracts.
    Since 1964, we have provided Schools and Churches, as well as other non profit groups, with discounted pricing on everything their facility needs to operate. CPO achieves such savings by consolidating the purchasing power of all the organizations we serve; and then, negotiating national and local contracts based on this volume.

• School and Office Furniture
• Office Supplies, Software and PC's
• Maintenance Supplies and Equipment
• Kitchen and Food Service Equipment
• Audio Visual and Educational products

   Cpo provides a benchmark for busy administrators to help insure prudent purchasing practices. We are proud to bring personalized service and quality goods to non-profit organizations within the Dioceses of Cleveland, Youngstown and Toledo as well as Detroit, Gaylord, Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Lansing, Marquette and Saginaw in Michigan.

Our Staff

   Like so many small to mid-sized organizations, the daily events within our offices take on a recognizable pattern. The staff arrives, the customers begin to call, vendors and distributors are contacted and sometime during the day problems occur that challenge our resources and threaten the trust and reliance that our customers place on us.



   Unlike most large corporations, our employees offer a familiar face and a reassuring voice to our customers. In a world full of digital voice recordings suggesting that one “press 9 for more option”, CPO stands apart in its commitment to personalized customer service. Our staff takes pride in fulfilling our customers’ needs at the lowest possible price available to us. Conversely, when mistakes are made or trouble arises, our staff members will go that extra step to resolve the situation.

View Our Staff Directory

Having Reached Our 45th Year..

  serving Dioceses from Ohio to Michigan as well as numerous other non-profit institutions,
the following passage provides a glimpse into the past. The excerpt is taken from a letter composed on the eve of our 20th anniversary.

My dear Friends in Christ

  The Central Purchasing Office of the Diocese of Cleveland was established on October 16, 1964.
Mr. Edward J. Zamiska was named Director and was asked by the Diocese to establish purchasing and service
programs which would save both time and money for all.

  Much has been accomplished in the 20 ensuing years. Over $125,000,000.00 worth of orders have
been placed and it is estimated that in excess of $20,000,000.00 in savings for the Diocese has resulted.
The concept of centralized purchasing is certainly valid.

  The projected good that would result by increased participation is very substantial and merits
serious consideration by all of us. If you do not regularly consult with C.P.O. on your product and service
needs, even if it is only for price comparison, I urge you to do so. It seems to me that by developing a
better dialog with our Purchasing Department you have nothing to lose and quite possibly a great deal to gain.
I think it is incumbent on all of us to work together to develop programs in all areas that will better serve
the need of the church now and in the future.

        ~except from a letter by Most Reverend Anthony M. Pilla on June 6, 1985

Although the figures mentioned have more than doubled, the goals outlined above remain as true today as they have for over the last four decades.

How We Have Help...

   As the Central Purchasing Office for the Diocese of Cleveland, we are, first and foremost, a non profit entity. Nevertheless, our office functions as a business receiving compensation for services rendered and goods delivered. One might suggest that CPO is composed of two very basic and conflicting ideas.

“The first time I heard Eugene offering a large sale of blankets to a homeless shelter barely above our cost, I understood CPO a little better.” Thomas Reilly on joining the staff

  Staff compensation is commensurate to our offices’ nonprofit status and our sales people do not receive commission. Rather than seeking to maximize profits, our goal is to cover our expenses while minimizing the cost to our customers. The actual end result is one nonprofit group helping another nonprofit institution by saving them time and money. For over four decades Central Purchasing has assisted hundreds of non profit organizations.

projects highlight (coming soon)