What is a 3PL? And why Be Fulfilled is more than one
By John Brown, Founder & CEO, Be Fulfilled ·
A 3PL stores your products and ships your orders. Be Fulfilled does that, and we also handle everything that has to happen before your inventory reaches a shelf: import and duties under our own import bond, packing lists, receiving documents, counting what arrives and putting it away for fast picking and packing. You don't need to know anything about logistics to work with us.
What is a 3PL?
3PL stands for third-party logistics. A 3PL is a company you hire to store your inventory and pack and ship your orders, so you don't need your own warehouse or shipping team.
Most ecommerce brands use one once orders outgrow a garage or spare room. But "3PL" covers a wide range of services. Many only handle storage and outbound shipping, and they expect you to manage the hard part: getting your inventory to them.
How a typical 3PL works
With many 3PLs, the brand does the homework before anything ships. That usually means following a routing guide, a document that sets the rules for how shipments must arrive. A routing guide can include:
- Advance ship notices (ASNs). An electronic notice of what's coming, sent before the shipment arrives.
- Carton and pallet labels. Barcodes in specific formats and positions.
- Delivery appointments. Booked ahead, with set windows and cutoffs.
- Import paperwork. Customs, duties and a bond, arranged by you or your freight forwarder.
Racklify's guide to inbound routing guides notes that missing these rules can lead to rejected receipts, chargebacks and delays. For a new brand, that's a lot to learn, and mistakes cost money.
How inbound works with Be Fulfilled
We take care of the steps between your factory and our shelves, so there's no routing guide for you to learn.
- Import and duties. We import under our own import bond and handle the duties. An import bond, or customs bond, is a legal guarantee to U.S. Customs and Border Protection that duties and taxes will be paid and customs rules followed.
- Packing lists. We work from the factory's packing list, which shows what's in every carton.
- Receiving documents. We create the receiving records, so there's a clear record of what arrived and when.
- Counting on arrival. We count your inventory when it arrives and check it against the packing list.
- Put-away. We store your products in organized locations so orders can be picked and packed quickly.
Once your stock is on the shelf, orders normally ship within 24 hours, and historically 99.98% of our shipments have been accurate. Read how we ship your orders for carriers, international DDP shipping and returns.
Why it matters for your brand
Every hour spent on routing guides, customs paperwork or chasing a missing carton is an hour not spent selling. We've shipped more than 4 million orders from our 20,000 square foot warehouse in Bluffdale, Utah, so the behind-the-scenes work is already built into how we operate.
You focus on your customers, your content and growing your brand. We make sure the inventory is there when they order.
More than a 3PL: done for you
Fulfillment is only one part of what we do. We also design products, write tech packs, work with factories and manage production. That's what we mean by done for you. If you're comparing options, our guide to choosing a software tool or a done-for-you service walks through the questions to ask.
Have a shipment coming or a product in the works? Book a call with our team, or start a free Product Design Board.
John Brown Founder & CEO, Be Fulfilled
Frequently asked questions
What is a 3PL?
A 3PL, or third-party logistics provider, is a company that stores your inventory and packs and ships your orders for you, so you don't have to run your own warehouse.
How is Be Fulfilled different from a typical 3PL?
A typical 3PL expects you to manage everything before your inventory arrives. Be Fulfilled handles that too: import and duties under our import bond, packing lists, receiving documents, counting on arrival and putting stock away for picking and packing.
What is a routing guide?
A routing guide is a set of rules from a warehouse or 3PL that tells you how a shipment must arrive: how cartons and pallets are labeled, what notices to send ahead of time, and when deliveries can be booked. Missing a rule can lead to delays or extra fees.
What is an import bond?
An import bond, also called a customs bond, is a legal guarantee to U.S. Customs and Border Protection that an importer will follow customs rules and pay any duties and taxes owed. Be Fulfilled imports under its own bond, so you don't need to arrange one.
What is a packing list?
A packing list is the factory's document showing what's in each carton of a shipment, such as products, sizes, colors and quantities. We use it to check that everything that was shipped actually arrived.
Do I need logistics experience to work with Be Fulfilled?
No. We handle the inbound process behind the scenes, so you can focus on selling and growing your brand.