How to choose the Best 3PL for Your Fashion Brand in 2024

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Is your growing fashion brand struggling to keep up with supply demands? If your current logistics setup feels overwhelmed or your 3PL partner is not meeting expectations, it might be time to rethink your approach. Managing logistics in-house may quickly become tough as you scale, making outsourcing your logistics a smarter choice. Outsourcing logistics is not a simple task, and choosing the right 3PL is crucial to ensuring your brand scales smoothly, while retail fulfillment and logistics stay under control.

What is a 3PL?

Third-party logistics (3PL) involves outsourcing a company's supply chain and logistics operations to ensure that products reach customers quickly and efficiently. Services that 3PLs focus on include receiving, storing, packaging, and shipping. In many cases, 3PLs also cover additional services such as inventory management, kitting and assembly, cross-docking, data analytics, and more, enabling businesses to streamline their operations and enhance overall operational efficiency.

3PL vs. in-house logistics management

Handling logistics in-house can be beneficial for your company, if done right. A few of the advantages of in-house logistics are having direct control over your inventory and warehouse operations, while also offering personalized services to your customers. Moreover, staff hiring and training is in your hands, and managing operations is done in a more controlled and hands-on environment. In certain cases, using a 3PL might end up being costly when not necessarily needed, especially if handling things in-house is still a feasible option for your brand.

While all the aforementioned benefits sound appealing, the reality is that not many fashion brands have the luxury to run in-house logistics. It requires considerable resources, infrastructure and valuable time being spent employing the right people and setting up a system that is suitable to your company’s needs. Contrarily, a 3PL takes care of all of this while also offering even more advanced services, like adapting to high customer demand or offering quick and streamlined shipping, among others. This also includes managing carrier agreements by leveraging large client volumes to negotiate better prices, ultimately saving you money. Such services can be invaluable to your fashion brand, especially as your customer base grows and logistics demands continue to rise, often leading to even higher operational costs that could impair your brand’s growth.

What to consider when choosing a 3PL?

If you came down to the conclusion that outsourcing logistics is the right solution for your brand, it then boils down to choosing the right partner. A reliable 3PL should be there to ease your concerns about supply chain management while also providing you with the appropriate resources and insights to help your brand with its growth.

Here are key factors to look out for when choosing the most suitable 3PL for your needs:

Strategic Warehouse Locations

It’s important for your 3PL to own warehouses close to your client base. Warehouses placed close to clients means lower shipping time to customers, increasing overall customer satisfaction, while also lowering shipping costs for the brand.

If your company is based in the UK, then a warehouse based in central UK would be a suitable option. However, should your long-term plan be to expand your business to the EU market, a warehouse with easy access to all EU countries (e.g. warehouses in Germany, Netherlands) might be the wiser option, as it will lead to lower shipping costs and delivery times. Ultimately, the 3PL you choose must geographically align with your brand's vision within the upcoming years, and be ready for the expansion to other markets.

Specialized in the vertical of your brand

If your brand sells items within a certain vertical, such as fashion, then collaborating with a 3PL that specializes in that same industry can be highly beneficial. Each vertical comes with specific requirements that require careful handling. For example, items in fashion have many specifications that need to be taken into consideration. From the type of items they are (e.g. footwear, garments, accessories), to what material they are made of (e.g. cotton, rubber, linen), these items may need a different approach in the way they are packaged or the way their return should be handled.  A few examples could be that clothing often needs to be steamed or have minor adjustments made, such as fixing a button or ensuring products are delivered in a presentable way.

In many cases, the unboxing experience in fashion is a highly valued aspect of delivery, and 3PLs should be able to cater to such needs by adapting their operations accordingly (e.g. by including magazines or perfumes in the boxes for special periods such as Christmas). Consequently, your fashion brand should make sure that the 3PL partner they choose to collaborate with is able to tackle all the unique aspects pertaining to these items.

Effective Returns management

Returns management is an often underestimated component of the supply chain. A 3PL with a good handle on returns or that integrates with a returns management platform (RMS) might really elevate your brand. By taking advantage of automated systems and integrations to speed up return processing, you’ll notice benefits such as significantly lower operational costs and efficiency in item restocking. You can also avoid the restocking of damaged items as well as enjoy putting items back-to-shelf quickly in order to resell these items as soon as possible. Ultimately, supply chain operations become smoother and shorter, decreasing workload from your team and allowing you to focus on other important matters at hand.

The aforementioned benefits also play a large role in fostering customer retention and loyalty. A negative return experience for the customer can be detrimental to your brand image, as high return times can be a really frustrating experience for customers. This means that a 3PL with a good handle on returns and that integrates with a RMS will significantly decrease overall return time and customer satisfaction will most definitely increase.

A crucial integration is with a Warehouse Management System (WMS). Warehouse management is a crucial component in returns while a poor WMS can be the reason why returns get delayed so much. A good WMS can create expected returns to save time on return handling, ultimately leading to swifter status update of returns to trigger exchanges or refunds as quickly as possible.

If you’re looking to work with a RMS, there are several 3PLs that do just that to ensure that their clients can enjoy hassle-free returns management. Here are 8 Returns Management Platforms to look out for.

Tech integrations

For 3PLs, offering plug & play integrations is crucial to reduce custom development costs and to be able to launch in a short time. When their WMS can connect directly with your OMS, ERP, CRMs and return management platforms, everything flows more smoothly. Orders get processed faster, inventory stays updated, and mix-ups are minimized along the way. This real-time connectivity helps 3PLs keep up with customer demands for quick and reliable delivery. Plus, the correct integrations can make it easier for clients to expand into new markets without making the fulfillment process more complicated.

Real-time data with a user-friendly interface

Having real-time data and a user-friendly interface is game-changing when it comes to 3PLs. Real-time data can help you keep track of your inventory levels, order statuses, and shipping updates, which can ultimately improve decision-making speed and avoid out-of-stock problems or shipment delays.

To make this happen, however, an intuitive interface making it easy to navigate all these insights is necessary. As such, a great 3PL will provide you with such data without getting held back by complicated tools, leading to more control and confidence when it comes to the retail fulfillment process.

Reliable and Responsive Customer Support

High-quality customer support cannot be underestimated. Fashion brands need reliable communication with their respective 3PLs, as issues need to be addressed immediately, especially during high volume periods such as Black Friday or Christmas holidays. A trustworthy 3PL will offer dedicated support channels and proactive communication, keeping disruption of operations to a minimum.

Scalability

When choosing a 3PL, it’s essential to make sure that their services align with both your current and future needs. Can they handle the current volume of orders and inventory levels? Do they have the necessary infrastructure to keep up with your company’s growth, even if that growth is exponential? Questions like these are the ones you should keep in mind when choosing your 3PL, ensuring flexibility in storage, staffing, and shipping to adapt without hiccups as you expand in the market.

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Now you know how to look for the perfect 3PL for your business. However, here at yayloh we thought we could make the process even easier for you, as we have compiled a list of the Top 12 3PLs in the Nordics, giving you a head start in that process.

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