Scalability in e-Commerce Fulfillment

The Value of Scalability in E-Commerce Fulfillment

E-Commerce has been steadily growing year-over-year, but changes in consumer spending during the pandemic greatly accelerated the growth beyond predictions. The boom in e-commerce caused by the pandemic lockdown orders in 2020 is not falling off despite vaccines and stores reopening. Q1 of 2021 saw an increase of 39% in e-commerce sales compared to Q1 of 2020, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. Fast-paced growth is great for established companies with an optimized supply chain. However, most online retailers struggled to adjust their supply chain quickly enough to meet increasing demand. The challenges faced by online sellers in 2020 showed just how important scalability can be.

Rising e-commerce volume means businesses are receiving an increasing number of online orders. For many businesses, volumes are reaching levels that are difficult to maintain in-house with their current resources and staffing. When companies try to keep up with order fulfillment after reaching this limitation, they are often holding back their sales and growth potential. Out of stock items or slow order-to-delivery times will hand sales over to competitors, cause canceled orders, and hinder repeat customers, which typically leads to a long-term decline in sales. To meet demand, these companies will have to invest in resources to grow their fulfillment capabilities or outsource to a third-party logistics provider (3PL).

Graph showing life-cycle of product
A 3PL can provide e-commerce fulfillment along with warehousing, distribution, transportation, consulting, and other resources. With online shopping on the rise, the ability to obtain additional resources quickly is key to optimizing sales. Increasing in-house fulfillment means acquiring expensive real estate, equipment, technology, labor, and more. Alternatively, a 3PL partnership ensures that companies can meet demand without a significant initial investment. 3PLs that have the ability to do API integrations with shopping carts like Shopify and WooCommerce can offer a fast and efficient fulfillment process. While there are many benefits to partnering with a 3PL, scalability is one of the most valuable. Resources can be quickly expanded or contracted to help companies save money in their off season and capitalize on periods of high demand.

Scale with Beyond Warehousing

Beyond Warehousing is a full-service 3PL warehouse in the Kansas City Metro. With our sister companies, we provide an end-to-end supply chain solution. We have partners in real estate, transportation, data analysis, and more to ensure our clients have every service and tool needed to fully optimize their supply chain. Beyond Warehousing helps businesses create scalability in their e-fulfillment strategy by providing them with flexible and customizable services based on their specific needs. To learn more about e-commerce fulfillment or our other 3PL services, contact the Beyond team today!