{"id":1404,"date":"2021-01-18T17:24:05","date_gmt":"2021-01-18T17:24:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shipbob.com\/uk\/flexible-fulfillment\/"},"modified":"2025-09-26T16:50:41","modified_gmt":"2025-09-26T16:50:41","slug":"flexible-fulfillment","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.shipbob.com\/uk\/flexible-fulfillment\/","title":{"rendered":"Flexible Fulfilment"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Flexible Fulfilment Services Alternative<\/strong><\/h1>\n

Flexible fulfilment has a lot of different meanings. You can look at it as the ability to offer flexibility in a fulfilment solution, or it can refer to the use of physical storefronts as fulfilment spaces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re looking for flexibility in your fulfilment strategy, you\u2019ll want to consider warehouse options and locations, agile technology, and other solutions to meet your needs. Read on to learn more about flexible fulfilment, and how a fulfilment provider like ShipBob can provide flexibility for growing ecommerce brands.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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What is flexible fulfilment?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Flexible fulfilment relates to when a brick-and-mortar retailer transform their physical store into distribution space capable of fulfilling orders. This includes picking, packing, and shipping orders to customers, or preparing orders to have it picked up in store.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why flexible fulfilment may not be the best option for online shops<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Also known as a dark store<\/a>, flexible fulfilment have been highly beneficial for retailers of all sizes during the COVID-19 pandemic, it might not be the best option for online shops. Flexible fulfilment is ideal for stores that have several physical locations and have already invested in space that they can use to fulfil orders rather than displaying products. Here are some of the other reasons why flexible fulfilment may not be the best option.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Lack of storage space<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

To efficiently fulfil orders quickly, you will need room to store inventory as well room to fulfil orders. If you don\u2019t have enough room to store inventory<\/a>, then it can slow down the fulfilment process if you don\u2019t have enough space to fill monthly order demand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Lack of packing and processing space<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Flexible fulfilment only works if there is enough space to take care of the entire fulfilment process, from receiving inventory to picking, packing, and shipping boxes. If you don\u2019t have the space available to be efficient, then flexible fulfilment might not be the best option.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Higher order inaccuracy<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Flexible fulfilment gives you a lot of room to create a space to store inventory and fulfil orders, but not having oversight on how to properly manage a \u201cwarehousing\u201d space, then it can lead to inefficiencies and disorganization. It\u2019s always best to make sure that you have the right people with the expertise to help you set up a fulfilment space that is efficient and improves order accuracy<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why distributed fulfilment could be a better option<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Distributed fulfilment is a solution provided by third-party logistics (3PL) companies like ShipBob. 3PLs offer a full suite of fulfilment services, including multiple fulfilment centre locations, technology, and expertise. Here are reasons why distributed fulfilment might be a better option.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Professional picking\/packing<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Pick and pack fulfilment must be streamlined to reduce the cost of ecommerce fulfilment<\/a>. For picking, this means reducing the labour required to choose the right products for an order. Warehouses that do pick and pack fulfilment have a few different ways to do this: piece picking, batch picking<\/a>, zone picking, and wave picking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Higher order accuracy<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Distributed fulfilment allows for quick fulfilment turnaround without compromising a high accuracy rate. 3PLs that specialize in distributed fulfilment have processes in place to  quality control, and eases the shipping process to maintain high customer satisfaction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Multiple warehouses<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Multiple warehouses allows for more flexibility. You can start off in one warehouse location based on where your customers are. As you grow, you have the option to split inventory across multiple warehouse locations to expand your customer reach. This is also known as distributed inventory, and it allows for brands to track inventory and order fulfilment all from one dashboard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Faster shipping and processing<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

A distributed fulfilment provider uses a propriety warehouse management software (WMS)<\/a> across its fulfilment network and same-day fulfilment for B2C orders imported into the ShipBob dashboard by the time of the outbound fulfilment SLA (ranging from noon to 6pm local time of the fulfilment centre fulfilling it, depending on the location), you can have orders processed<\/a> quickly and automatically from the fulfilment centre<\/a> closest to the end customer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As soon as a customer places an order on your online store, the fulfilment platform processes it and you can stay up-to-date as it gets picked, packed, and shipped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With ShipBob, you get more than just shipping<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

ShipBob is a best-in-class logistics and fulfilment solution that offers more than storage, picking and packing, and shipping. Here is how ShipBob can help you streamline your fulfilment strategy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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