No. With dropshipping, your supplier holds the inventory and ships each order directly to your customer. With third-party fulfillment (3PL), you own the inventory and a partner picks, packs, and ships it from their warehouse to your customer. Whether shipments can go out under your brand depends on the provider and your contract. Ask if custom packaging is included. They are two different fulfillment models, not two names for the same thing.
A recent data exposure at a fulfillment vendor affected thousands of ecommerce customers' records. Four questions worth asking about data retention, access controls, breach notification, and subprocessors before you sign with a 3PL.
Apparel fulfillment is harder than standard ecommerce: size-and-color SKU matrices, high return rates, and poly-bag and hang-tag requirements. Here's what changes when you move clothing through a 3PL, what to ask before you sign, and how Simpl runs apparel programs, starting at $7/order.
3PL companies in Austin, TX for ecommerce brands, compared on location, services, and pricing transparency, starting with Austin-based Simpl Fulfillment.
