We understand how important it can be to save money wherever you can, so that you can make sure your business is as profitable as possible. However, it’s important to be mindful about if the changes you envision will have the desired outcome. Whenever that is not the case, we are here to help.
One of our clients recently decided that in order to save on costs, they would switch from wholesale to carton forwarding.
We have been processing this client’s items for years now, and we know what to expect when it comes to receiving his units from his supplier. Therefore, we have perfected a process for working with his items, which are unique. We have learned how to prep, label, and pack his units efficiently and can do this job in our sleep.
So when our client decided he would ask his supplier to prep and label his items so he could become a carton forwarding client, we sent over instructions and best practices, because we know from experience that his supplier has not always handled his units with care.
When we received the first official cartons shipment, they were a wreck.
The boxes were broken open as the tape was weak, and the units were spilled out inside. The weights of the packages were marked incorrectly, and we could tell that the units may not be casepacked as we had instructed. We reached out to the client immediately with photos, solutions, and action plans for fixing the issues so he could still get his products to FBA for sale. We also provided the client with a breakdown of prospective charges so he had the full picture before agreeing to any changes. Ultimately, it is his inventory, his businesses, and his decision.
Once we had his approval, we forged forward with the plan, getting to work to quickly sort and count units, mend and replace poly-bags, and label any units that needed it. The client was thrilled with the outcome.
However, he was not thrilled that his original anticipated costs had doubled thanks to the supplier’s foibles. We completely understand, and will continue to work with the client and his supplier to help them prepare and case pack his units to Amazon’s standards. We love to see our clients transition business models and we always want to support them in the process.
Billing if the supplier did this correctly and it was just carton forwarding:
1 Pallet build-out fee at $28/ea = $28.00
54 Cartons received at $2.95/ea = $159.30
54 Cartons shipped at $2.95/ea = $159.30
Small Parcel Unload Fee – $92.00
Total: $438.60
Actual billing, including the rework we did to fix his supplier’s mistakes:
Processed/repaired 440 items at billable hours = $390.00
1 Pallet build-out fee at $28/ea = $28.00
54 Cartons received at $2.95/ea = $159.30
54 Cartons shipped at $2.95/ea = $159.30
Small Parcel Unload Fee – $92.00
Total: $828.60 (almost double the price!)
We understand that the transition will take time, and the client will likely have a few more bumps in the road before becoming a true carton forwarding client. We are happy to help along the way. However, it is possible that after a few more attempts, this client may need to decide, for the sake of his business, if he would like to move forward with us preparing his wholesale items, or with his supplier preparing the units for Amazon themselves. Whatever he decides, we are there to help.
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