From funding to opportunity: The power of your next purchase

Imagine you own a business and need someone to look after the garden at your workplace. You get three quotes, compare price and availability, and choose the business that best fits your needs. It is an ordinary business decision. But what if one of those businesses employed people who had struggled to find work? What if your purchase helped someone gain skills, confidence and a pathway into employment?

You haven’t made a donation. You haven’t applied for a grant. You’ve simply chosen where to spend money, meeting a business need while creating a positive opportunity for someone else.

Could this be one of the next big opportunities for social impact?

Australia’s community sector is operating in a challenging environment. The latest Australian Charities Report found that charities generated $239 billion in revenue in the 2024 reporting period, but expenses grew faster than revenue — rising 8.6% compared with revenue growth of 7.5%. More people are also seeking support as cost-of-living pressures affect households.

In my work in social services, I’ve seen how much effort goes into securing funding to keep good programs running and get new ideas off the ground. I’ve often asked, “Where can we find more funding?” But there’s another question worth asking: “How can the money already being spent create greater social value?”

For many organisations doing valuable work, grants, donations and government funding will remain essential. Not every social problem can or should be solved through a commercial model.

But social enterprises are increasingly finding ways to generate income through trading while tackling social or environmental challenges.

The 2026 Queensland Social Enterprise Awards provided some great examples. Ability Enterprises creates employment opportunities for people who have faced barriers to work. Lighthouse Care sells affordable groceries while supporting families experiencing hardship. The Nest Community is transforming responses to textile waste through a circular economy model. All show how a business can be viable, serve customers and pursue a social purpose.

That idea of sustainability matters. When a social enterprise earns revenue, it does not have to rely entirely on someone funding its next project. Grants often come from government or philanthropy. An everyday commercial purchase can help the enterprise build a more reliable income stream and, over time, may ease pressure on funding needed for critical care services.

Its customers become part of the social impact ecosystem. And those customers don’t have to be philanthropists. They can simply be businesses buying things they already need.

Think about the purchases businesses make every day: cleaning, catering, landscaping, printing, IT services and more. Procurement has traditionally focused on the right combination of price, quality, reliability and service. What happens if we add another question?

What social value could this purchase create?

A supplier still needs to deliver. But when businesses can meet the same requirement, the social outcomes created by a purchase can become part of the decision.

Queensland is already moving in this direction. Under the Queensland Procurement Policy 2026, government buyers can consider relevant economic, environmental, social and governance outcomes as part of value for money, alongside price and supplier capability.

For a CEO, this can start with one upcoming contract. Ask your team whether a social enterprise could be invited to quote. Give suppliers a clear brief, assess their ability to deliver and ask what outcomes your purchase could support.

The Social Traders Social Enterprise Finder is a practical place to search for certified social enterprises when making your next purchase. It could introduce you to a capable supplier you would not otherwise have found.

Perhaps the most powerful part of this approach is that it changes the role businesses can play. You don’t necessarily have to start a charity. You don’t necessarily have to become a philanthropist. You don’t even necessarily have to spend more money.

For a business owner, it might mean choosing a social enterprise to look after the garden or cater your next event. For a larger organisation, it could mean reviewing procurement contracts to see where social enterprises could participate. Each purchase gives an enterprise the chance to earn revenue and create more opportunities.

The opportunity is to add another way to contribute alongside funding and philanthropy.

The next time a quote lands on your desk, ask: Is there a social impact choice that meets our needs and creates an opportunity for someone else?