B2B Fulfillment
B2B fulfillment is the fulfillment of orders for business customers such as retailers, wholesalers, or distributors, typically shipped in cases or pallets with retailer-specific labels, documents, and delivery appointments.
Why it matters for ecommerce brands
Getting B2B fulfillment right protects wholesale margins, because retailer compliance mistakes come back as chargebacks deducted from your invoices. Retail orders ship in cases or pallets under each retailer's routing guide, with EDI orders, ASNs, carton labels, and scheduled LTL or truckload appointments. A 3PL that handles DTC parcels well may not be set up for any of this. For example, a retailer that charges $250 per noncompliant shipment plus 2% of invoice value turns one mislabeled $20,000 order into $650 of deductions. Ask a 3PL which retailers it already ships to.
Common questions
- How is B2B fulfillment different from B2C fulfillment?
- B2C fulfillment ships small parcel orders of a few units to consumers, while B2B fulfillment ships larger case or pallet orders to businesses under retailer compliance rules. B2B usually requires EDI, ASNs, carton labeling, and freight shipping.
- What is a retailer routing guide?
- It is the retailer's rulebook for how suppliers must ship, covering carriers, appointment booking, carton labels, pallet build, ASN timing, and paperwork. Breaking it usually leads to chargebacks deducted from your payments.
- Can one 3PL handle both B2B and DTC orders?
- Yes, many do, often from one shared inventory pool. Check that the 3PL has EDI capability, case and pallet picking, GS1-128 carton labeling, and experience with your specific retailers before relying on it for wholesale.