eCommerce Fulfillment: Beyond the Garage
You’re up and running. You’re gaining some traction, and then suddenly you’re feeling like this:
It may be time to outsource your logistics.
The ecommerce sales channel is growing at an unprecedented rate. According to the U.S. Commerce Department,
It’s no wonder that more and more entrepreneurs are trying their hand at online retail. The concept is simple: Choose a product that meets a need, build your ecommerce site, and market it with a compelling offer. The challenges come once you start seeing success:
- Amazon Effect – Innovation is constantly changing the game
- Warehousing – You’re running out of space
- Inventory management – Receiving more orders than you have products
- Picking and packing – The quality and accuracy of the fulfillment process
- Shipping and/or Distribution – Carrier management and partnerships
- Scaling – Your resources are limited and tied up
To ease your pain, there are several alternative choices for managing operations:
Self-warehousing
In the interests of control and simply misunderstanding what will be required, some will start their own warehouse operation. With this option, the business owner is now running two businesses, and not focusing on their revenue generating business.
Co-habitation
Joining forces with another business allows you to share responsibilities and cost. These releases some of the burden of self-warehousing but misses the opportunity to partner with a professional.
Outsource to a 3PL
Bringing in a professional with the right tools and connections allows you to focus on your strengths while assured that your distribution is handled with efficiency in time and cost.
The options span the gambit, but please don’t try to build a warehouse for your fulfillment needs. The costs associated with rent, equipment, staff and the mistakes you’ll inevitably make far outreach the costs of hiring a professional that already has these in place. A 3PL will handle all your logistical challenges so you can focus on your core competencies:
- Manages warehousing and distribution channels
- Has the processes and systems in place to manage your inventory and orders with accuracy
- Reduces costs associated with running a warehouse and distribution center
- Provide a personal touch to optimizing your business logistics and supply chain
A 3PL solves your warehouse and fulfillment challenges so you can get back to focusing what you’re good at – driving ecommerce sales through your business.
Column: U.S. e-commerce sales grow 16.0% in 2017. (2018, February 16). Retrieved June 2, 2018, from https://www.digitalcommerce360.com/article/us-ecommerce-sales/
