If you’ve heard or come across the term “3PL” or “California 3PL warehouse” quite often, but you’re not sure why it seems like every prominent business is talking about it, then you’ve come to the right blog.
So, what’s so special about California 3PL warehouses?
Why are businesses eager to acquire 3PL e-commerce fulfillment services?
Why can’t you shake off the feeling of being left out if ever your e-commerce, retail, or manufacturing business has not integrated with this yet?
Well, let’s first get to know the recent statistics about the 3PL industry:
- A 3PL is used by 90% of Fortune 500 companies (Armstrong & Associates, Inc.).
- In 2020, 3PL’s global revenue was 961.8 billion US dollars (Statista, 2022).
- By the end of the market forecast period, the 3PL logistics market will be worth USD 1993.72 billion (Market Research Future).
- During the forecast period of 2021-2028, the market will grow at an 8.7% CAGR (Market Research Future).
Let’s be honest, every year, your business becomes more complex than ever, making it extremely difficult and time-consuming to immediately gain expertise in every sector of your business operations.
Hiring a third-party logistics firm (3PL) means you can do away with all those complex issues and headaches (like using excess capital, investment, and other assets to maintain and manage logistics operations) and concentrate on the core competency of your resources, energy, and time of your business.
There are numerous reasons why businesses consider using 3PL logistics and warehousing services in California. It could be to expand into new markets or to improve customer experiences but let’s not forget how transportation and logistics are one of the most complicated parts of your business so here are 7 benefits of partnering with a California 3PL warehouse provider instead.
7 Benefits of Partnering with a California 3PL Warehouse
1. Scale your business sustainably
Your 3PL fulfillment service provider will provide both flexibility and scalability. During a peak sales period, you may need to onboard new employees to ship orders and provide extra customer support. Hiring, training, and onboarding these new employees would be too costly and time-consuming but depending on your current business needs, 3PL warehouse providers can efficiently perform these for you. You won’t have to worry about hiring new employees or feel guilty about letting them once things start to slow down.
2. More time and cost savings for you
A California 3PL warehouse specializes in logistics and, as a result, has a larger network than your company’s own supply chain function. They have exclusive relationships in the logistics sector and can wield more leverage during negotiations and assist you in getting larger volume discounts which greatly aids in reducing overhead costs.
You can also save money on infrastructure by partnering with a 3PL supply chain management firm, which can provide transportation, warehouse space, staff, and tracking technology, among other things.
3. All transportation and logistics services under one roof
Receiving all of your freight and logistics services under one roof improves your company’s control and visibility aside from saving you time and money as well. 3PL warehouses provide all the necessary services under one roof so you won’t need to worry about establishing in-house logistics and distribution. You can rely on a professional third-party logistics provider to handle your business’s warehousing, value-added services, customs clearance, international freight forwarding, domestic transportation, and IT support needs. We can’t stress enough the amount of time, energy, and money you can save by outsourcing.
4. Improve your profit margins
3PL providers have a large number of customers and order volume to negotiate better prices with warehouse owners, airlines, shipping lines, and domestic transport providers. A California 3PL warehouse also has valuable information on current market conditions, such as cost and space availability.
5. Seamless business growth and expansion
Third-party logistics’ role in supply chain management is to drive business growth by providing companies with access to markets where they do not have a strong presence. Being able to manage inventory in a new market without spending money on warehousing, equipment, and labor can save money as well as the time spent learning the logistical nuances of a new market.
6. Access to seasoned expert talents
It is difficult to anticipate and accommodate internal expertise in all capacities and regions required in today’s complex global market landscape. A 3PL service provider is knowledgeable and experienced in areas like transportation, documentation, import and export, international compliance, Amazon FBA prep compliance, and economic rules. Businesses wishing to grow into foreign markets can benefit from their partner’s logistics expertise and know-how, avoiding costly delays, shortening the cycle time, and making entry into a new region easier.
7. Improve your customer satisfaction and retention rates
The aforementioned 3PL advantages will result in enhanced services and response times, on-time delivery, and increased brand reliability and authority. This translates to happy and loyal clients, which is the ultimate goal of all businesses like yours.
Today’s market leaders demand smarter solutions and faster business processes.
Unless you don’t mind going through all the hassle, trial, and error in setting up your own in-house logistics, take it from us and the 90% of the Fortune 500 companies out there — Start investing and integrating with a California 3PL warehouse provider today like Fulfillment & Warehousing Solutions Inc. who have been seasoned experts for more than 30 years in the industry.
Let the experts do all the leg work for you so you can focus on your core business processes.