Pick and Pack for E-commerce

The term “pick and pack” refers to a shipment model where items are picked from shelves according to purchase orders collected from a point of sale, packaged on site, labeled accordingly and sent to the consumer. We’ve talked about it before on our blog, you can find those links below. 

What is Pick and Pack, Plus How Will it Help Your Business

Different Kinds of Pick and Pack and What Can Work for You

There are a certain number of businesses, especially in retail, that have the ability to institute this themselves. Most don’t. To reap the benefits of this system, they partner with a 3PL specialist to fulfill their orders. 

So what is the actual process of the “Pick and Pack” shipment model? In theory, it’s simple and can be broken down into a few steps: 

Receiving the order. Every business has a number of channels they use to sell products. Whether it’s through a website, over the phone, social media, email campaigns, all of these orders are amalgamated into one system and sent to the warehouse for fulfillment. 

Picking the order. When the packing slip is received, warehouse workers are sent off to pick the order off the shelves. This is the most crucial step as this is often where mistakes can happen. Most 3PL partners have systems in place to make sure that this part of the process is as accurate and efficient as possible.

Packing the order. This is the final stage, where everything is packed and ready to ship. 

Now that we have clarified the process of “Pick and Pack”, we are going to discuss the challenges that e-commerce businesses face and how a 3PL partner can help them navigate the move away from the brick and mortar. 

Deciding Inventory. E-commerce businesses can have hundreds of SKUs, sometimes more. Each of these SKUs represent a physical product that is taking up storage space and costing money as it sits on a shelf. Using analytics from a 3PL provider, an e-commerce business can decide what stock is moving more efficiently and what they should probably drop from their store. 

Along with this, a 3PL fulfillment partner will be able to gauge when re-stocks should happen and ensure customer satisfaction by keeping customer favourites in stock. Getting ready for a busy season? Chances are your fulfillment partner is already aware of the cyclical nature of your business and has already anticipated the need to scale operations. 

That leads us into our next point. 

Scalability. Chances are, without a 3PL partner, space is limited in any given business’ storage space. This causes issues when a business experiences an increase in product demand, or an overall growth in their customer base. This can mean that orders won’t be going out on time leading to missed revenue and customer frustration. Having a 3PL partner means that you have the ability to scale warehouse operations and can meet the orders as they come in. This includes scaling warehouse space, staff and any other shipping supplies necessary. 

Packaging assistance. An e-commerce business doesn’t have the luxury of providing an in-store experience with a brick and mortar location. They depend on the memorable unboxing experience given to customers. We’ve written blogs about the importance of product packaging. If you’re interested in reading them you can find them here and here. 

Product packaging can change the perception of your business and ensure repeat customers who see your business as a high-value brand. Work with a 3PL provider who understands the importance of branded packaging that also keeps your products safe. 

Starting out as an e-commerce based business, you’re likely used to doing everything on your own. However, working with a 3PL partner that has the ability to scale your business and understand the D2C needs of your business will have untold benefits moving forward. Contact CRWS 3PL Warehousing Solutions & Logistics today to see how we provide you with a flexible solution for your business.