Product Fulfillment for Packaged Goods

Need a custom product fulfillment solution for your consumer product sales? Look to a 3PL like Warehouse Specialists (WSI) for rapid and accurate fulfillment and distribution of packaged products for your retail or online sales. With more than 55 years of warehousing, supply chain logistics and transportation experience, we’ve built an expansive nationwide warehouse network that serves all types of business models – Direct 2 Consumer (D2C), B2C, dropshipping, B2B, etc.

Don’t let our name fool you: we’re experts in more than just warehousing. Our clients rely on our eCommerce and retail fulfillment services to accelerate the delivery of products to customers across the globe. And they trust us because of our dedication and unwavering commitment to providing reliable storage, handling and transportation. Through our consistency and quality assurance, we set the standard for 3PL logistics providers.

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What Is 3PL Order Fulfillment?

In businesses ranging from online commerce to retail, order fulfillment refers to the outsourcing of product handling operations such as managing inventory, receiving orders, custom packaging, kitting and product assembly. When you choose a product fulfillment solution, your provider will manage storage, orders, inventory, pick/pack and shipping for you.

Product fulfillment solutions come in different forms. Some specialize in picking/packing and shipping and others operate warehousing companies and distribution centers, while industry leaders like WSI provide everything under one roof. Through our specialized 3PL logistics, ecommerce and retail businesses can reduce shipping costs, improve delivery logistics, lower shipping times, manage returns, and provide their customers with better service.

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How 3PL Product Fulfillment Solutions Work

Warehousing and Storage

  1. Send your inventory to the 3PL provider: To get started with 3PL fulfillment, you will coordinate the shipment of your inventory to your selected logistics company.
  2. Fill out a Warehouse Receiving Order (WRO): You may be asked to document names and quantities of the products in your inventory. This is done with a Warehouse Receiving Order (WRO).
  3. Inventory storage: Once your inventory is received, your product fulfillment company will place it on racks, shelves, pallets, and/or bins at the warehouse(s).
  4. Categorization and labeling: The 3PL provider will categorize and label the inventory. This makes it easy to identify products when ’ orders are received

Online Order Handling

  1. Integration of the ecommerce warehouse management system: For efficient 3PL ordering handling, the online store is integrated with the fulfillment center warehouse management system (WMS).
  2. Order alerts: When a customer places an order on your ecommerce website, the 3PL provider is immediately notified.  This kickstarts the product fulfillment process with the 3PL receiving order  information from your store

Pick, Packing and Shipping

  1. Product retrieval (picking): The warehouse team retrieves the order from its location, often in batches to increase efficiency, and then proceeds to packing.
  2. Custom packaging: The 3PL packs the order per your specifications. You can create a packing formula based on weight and cost and also customize the packaging material to highlight your brand. Carrier pickup: Once packaged, the 3PL provider will place a shipping label on the product, and stage it for shipping carrier pick up.
  3. Order tracking: The 3PL’s order management system (OMS) will keep you updated on the status and progress of the shipment.
  4. Returns management: In the event a customer requests a return, the 3PL logistics company can handle the entire returns process.

 

End-to-end Product Fulfillment Solutions

  • UCC-128 Labeling
  • Retailer Invoicing

  • EDI Direct to Retailer

  • Must Arrive By Date (MABD) Compliance

  • Kitting and Assembly
  • POP Display Design / Construction

  • Shelf-Ready Packaging and Retail-Ready Packaging

Types of Product Fulfillment Services

Dropshipping Order Fulfillment

Dropshipping is an ecommerce business model where you don’t keep any inventory on hand. Instead, the manufacturer dispatches items after your customer places an order. Everything is then sent directly to your 3PL logistics service, which coordinates the customer fulfillment process from there.

You get to focus on marketing, design, and other aspects of your business while the 3PL logistics company takes care of the entire product fulfillment cycle.

B2C vs. B2B Fulfillment

Business to Consumer (B2C) fulfillment is the process of fulfilling orders that are directly shipped to an end consumer rather than a business or any other party.

B2B fulfillment refers to the process of fulfilling orders that are shipped to another business (like a big box retailer) or organization instead of an end consumer. It typically involves larger order quantities and more complex supply chain processes compared to B2C fulfillment. Retail fulfillment also usually requires greater regulatory compliance.

Direct-to-Consumer Fulfillment

D2C fulfillment is the counterpart to D2C selling, where customer orders are shipped directly from the brand rather than a retailer or distributor. This gives brands the privilege of cutting out intermediaries, which should then reduce their overhead costs.

Store Fulfillment

Two-thirds of US shoppers have purchased a product online, and then gone on to pick it up in-store. This kind of customer fulfillment, also known as buy-online-pickup-in-store (BOPIS), caters to buyers who want the item quickly but don’t wish to incur shipping charges.

With store fulfillment, customers have the convenience of searching for items on the ecommerce site, confirming their availability, and then making the purchase online to pick up at their convenience at the nearest brick-and-mortar store.

WSI’s Retailer Partnerships

Types of Consumer Packaged Products We Handle:

  • Apparel

  • Furniture

  • Appliances

  • Pet Food & Supplies

  • Cleaning Supplies

  • Sporting Goods

  • Cosmetics

  • Toys

  • Diapers

  • Wrapping Paper

  • Electronics & Parts

WSI Is Not Your Typical Product Fulfillment Service

Fulfillment Centers in Major Metro Areas

Warehouse Specialists owns and manages several different warehouse types, with unique capabilities by product and building. Many of our warehouse locations are public, which is ideal for businesses that need to expand quickly or handle seasonal inventory. Our dedicated and private warehouses are set aside to provide more security and space for enterprise businesses.

So far, we’ve established operations in 25 facilities nationwide – making WSI one of the 20 largest 3PL logistics companies in the US. These facilities together offer more than 14 million combined square feet of real estate, which is shared among public, contract, and dedicated fulfillment programs.

When you partner with WSI, we begin by analyzing your order and inventory data to identify which fulfillment location(s) will best optimize your operational spending.  Our investment in multiple locations can be your savings.

Same-Day Product Fulfillment

With delivery time often being the most important factor for ecommerce buyers, you need a proactive product fulfillment solution that is efficient enough to maintain same-day delivery. 57% of consumers want same-day or next-day delivery with their online purchases.

To better serve these customers, we’ve developed a timely order fulfillment operation that delivers products in one or two days. Once your orders are sent to any of WSI’s fulfillment centers, they are picked, packed, and handed off to the carrier on the same day.

We can achieve this high level of efficiency due to our strategically distributed warehouses. Our extensive footprint gives us the network to sustain same-day/next-day shipping throughout the continental United States.

Custom Fulfillment Solutions

WSI provides highly specialized storage and distribution services at select locations across the country. This includes secure and compliant storage for products that require special handling. Examples include food-grade items, chemicals, and hazardous materials with Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ) certification.

If your company is seeking to expand, WSI can help find the right location according to your needs and budget.In addition to our existing network, WSI’s logistics, real estate, and engineering specialists have years of experience in securing land and building commercial warehouses. We offer industrial real estate expertise when you need it. WSI helps brands scale and businesses expand into the Midwest region, West Coast and South.

Returns Management

We understand that despite accurate and timely deliveries, customers will always need to  return some purchases.

WSI’s return management services include restocking returned items to your inventory when appropriate, and handling all the logistics of product returns. Our team is dedicated to making sure that every step is handled with care and attention to detail.

3PL Product Fulfillment FAQs

What is 3PL fulfillment?

Third-party logistics (3PL) fulfillment means entrusting your entire retail order fulfillment process to an outsourced group of logistics professionals. This team handles these tasks for you:

  • Managing inventory
  • Receiving orders
  • Picking and packing
  • Warehousing
  • Shipping

What is Direct to Consumer (D2C) fulfillment?

Direct to consumer (D2C) fulfillment refers to the process of fulfilling customer orders placed directly with the brand that produces or sells the product online.

What is ecommerce fulfillment?

E-commerce fulfillment is the process of fulfilling customer orders from an online store or a third-party logistics partner. It includes receiving and storing inventory, processing orders, picking and packing, shipping and delivery, plus managing returns.

Why outsource fulfillment to a third party logistics company?

3PL companies have the expertise and resources to handle the entire product fulfillment process. This will benefit your business in the following ways:

  • Reduces the cost of order fulfillment.
  • Streamlines customer fulfillment processes.
  • Capitalizes on a network of warehouses and distribution centers.
  • Frees up your time to focus on business administration.
  • Accelerates product delivery and shipping.
  • Facilitates easy scaling of operations.

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