This research focuses on the role of a third party in fostering the building of strategic supplier partnerships in a specific group. It revealed how third parties provide key compensating mechanisms that reduced the power, social distance and overall transaction costs associated with collaborating to effect supplier relationships between the parties involved. Despite their potential in terms of economic power, visible minority suppliers—at least in the US, have not been the subject of systematic study. More importantly, there are hardly any first-hand accounts of the role of third parties in the development of supplier partnerships. This study fills some of that lacuna and extends the sparse literature available on the role third parties can play in interfirm relations. We found that an association with a credible third party could be helpful to the initiation of buyer–supplier relationships. Our finding that the Council provided an important market place for the partners to meet and as well served to reduce transaction costs associated with finding qualified minority suppliers is consistent with past research. Shah and Ram (2006) reported from their study of three US companies, UNISYS, Ford Motor Company and JPMorgan Chase, all with supplier diversity programs, that US corporations using supplier diversity programs reported that finding minority businesses with the requisite capacity to supply corporations is a major barrier to their supplier diversity initiatives.