3PL Fulfillment Centers Explained

Even after the infamous dot-com bubble burst one thing was clear, e-commerce was here to stay. Through the growing new economy 3PL and fulfillment centers became synonymous. The speculation of the 1990’s survived into the aughts and sustained a new online economy that continues to soar. Today, entrepreneurs and enterprise organizations alike rely on third-party logistics (3PL) for outsourcing e-commerce fulfillment. A fulfillment center, like My Fulfillment Company, is a resource for inventory management, warehousing, packaging and delivery. Now, 3PLs, or fulfillment centers, are also responsible for customer service and reverse logistics. As fulfillment services expanded into warehousing, transportation and customer service the function of third party logistics, 3PL, are now a critical part of the new economy.

Third Party Logistics

While there are many advantages of employing a 3PL, fulfillment centers offer other services to help expand business operations. Economies of scale provide cost savings for online businesses including warehouse space, human resources and technology. A good 3PL service is also a partner business owners can trust. Shipping and logistics trends and keeping up-to-date with new issues and complexities is the job of your 3PL partner. Also, many fulfillment centers have a network of resources that may extend distribution reach and improve delivery times.

Outsource Distribution and Warehousing

If you are wondering about using a 3PL for your fulfillment services consider your monthly volume of sales. For example, if you are shipping from 50-100 items per month it’s time to consider hiring a fulfillment company. Another indicator is that you are running out of storage or warehouse space. Instead of investing in more lease liability consider your options. Finally, you want to improve your shipping. The giant fulfillment companies are now offering 2-day shipping as the new normal and your business needs to compete.

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