How Brands Should Interview 3PLs: Introduction

by Nish George, CEO

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Dear Brand Owners: Choosing the Right 3PL Is About More Than Cost

Would you choose your spouse based on lowest dating cost? Or select a brain surgeon based on cost per pound?

Sounds crazy, right?

But that’s exactly how many e-commerce brand owners choose their 3PL — the operational heart and lungs of their business — purely based on price. And that’s what’s actually crazy.

The Cost of Choosing the Wrong Fulfillment Partner

The sad truth? Most brand owners don’t know how to properly evaluate a 3PL. Some take catastrophic losses because of it.

At Fetch Fulfillment, roughly half of our new clients are fleeing a previous 3PL that:

• Lost their inventory
• Took weeks to ship
• Sent massive, unexplained invoices
• Offered little to no accountability
• Blamed the brand for operational failures

If your 3PL can’t manage your inventory accurately, ship on time, or communicate clearly, your brand can fall apart — fast.

How to Choose the Right 3PL: The Interview Series

So, how do you know a 3PL is good before they have the chance to ruin your brand?

This series will walk you through exactly how to interview your next 3PL — and avoid costly mistakes.

The 6-Part "Interview Your 3PL" Framework:

1. The "Done It Before" Test
2. The "Won’t Lose Your Stuff" Test
3. The "Trust With Your Money" Test
4. (Coming Soon) The "Show Me the Late Orders" Test
5. (Coming Soon) The "How Do We Solve Problems" Test
6. (Coming Soon) The "Talk to Other Customers" Test

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About Fetch Fulfillment

Fetch Fulfillment is a New Jersey-based 3PL for brand owners who want direct-to-consumer fulfillment to be the least stressful part of their business. Most 3PLs are good at one thing, like shipping on-time, or having modern tech, or picking up the phone. What makes Fetch unique is that it's stellar at all 3: it provides high-end boutique-grade customer service -- as seen in its glowing reviews and +92 net promoter score -- combined with its real-time cutting-edge tech and well-managed operation, with 99.2% same-day shipping and 99.95% order fill-rate. The Fetch team lives by its motto: they are Your Brand's Best Friend.