Inventory Management

Control Inventory to Control Costs!

Every 3PL, or order fulfillment operation, has its own method and payment schedule. Some fulfillment warehouses charge fees based upon the selling price of the book. Others like us, charge based upon the activities actually preformed. We believe activity-based fees are more fair because you only pay for the service rendered. The labor cost to pick a book retailing for $65 is the same as a book retailing for $25. Remember, when you choose a fulfillment partner, regardless of their methodology, you are paying for two things - space and activity. So, one of the best ways to control costs is by controlling your inventory.

Ware-Pak provides a number of solutions to help control your product inventory and improve your bottom line:

• Right Sizing Inventory Levels
• Reorder Notification
• Receiving Against Purchase Order
• Bin on Demand
• Short Run Printing

With the growing popularity of e-books and the changes in physical inventory, publishers need to learn how to adjust and maintain their business with a smaller inventory of physical books. Choosing a fulfillment partner who can help you navigate these challenges have never been more important.

Here are some tips to help you choose a fulfillment partner and navigate the various methods for computing rates.

• Make sure your warehousing and fulfillment vendor has listed ALL costs
• Beware of monthly minimum charges
• Determine all monthly fixed recurring charges
• Ask if the vendor makes margin on freight charges and UPS discounts
• Double check move-out charges - some warehouse operations add huge penalties for move-out fees
• Ask for referrals from current customers to ensure that costs don't change after signup
• Check the vendor's BBB rating
• Make sure that everything is documented in a contract
• Ask what the setup fees are and what they include

To obtain a free quote from Ware-Pak, click to contact us today or call Matt Kurtis at (708) 587-4130.