Fulfillment for Marketplaces - How Does It Work and Which Businesses Need It?

Storage, Packaging, Delivery – all of these tasks can be delegated. Fulfillment allows businesses to free themselves from routine processes and focus on growth, saving time and resources.

What is Fulfillment?Fulfillment is a set of services in logistics that includes storing, packaging, delivering goods, and processing returns. With its help, businesses are freed from the hassle of managing warehouses, packaging, delivery processes, and return issues. It is especially convenient for online stores, brands, and manufacturers who want to grow quickly without wasting time on routine work.

How does Fulfillment work?Using this system, the seller does not need to receive goods, find a warehouse, pack orders, or send them to buyers. All this is done by the fulfillment operator. The seller focuses on sales and business development.

Fulfillment is divided into two main types depending on where goods are stored:

• FBY (Fulfillment by Yocabè) – goods are stored in the marketplace warehouse. The marketplace manages storage, packaging, delivery, and returns.

• FBS (Fulfillment by Seller) – goods remain in the seller’s warehouse. The seller packs and transfers orders to the marketplace for delivery.
  

Sellers can combine both models. For example, new products can be tested using FBS, while popular items can be switched to FBY for faster delivery and scaling.

Which business needs Fulfillment?Fulfillment is aimed at businesses that value fast and convenient order processing, as well as reduced warehousing, packaging, and shipping costs. It helps companies scale, cut operating expenses, and ensure fast delivery—boosting customer loyalty to the brand.

Advantages of Fulfillment

• Maximum delivery speed

• Ability to combine different products from the marketplace into one order

• Increased customer interest due to fast service

• Minimal risks

• Accurate analytics based on sales for effective delivery
  

Fulfillment vs. Own Warehouse: Which is Better?Fulfillment is convenient when a business wants to outsource warehousing, packaging, and delivery to reduce logistics costs. Owning a warehouse provides more control but requires expenses for rent, personnel, and packaging.

• FBS is suitable for products that cannot be stored in marketplace warehouses (e.g., jewelry, medicines) or when testing demand.

• FBY is optimal for popular goods, sets (e.g., phone + case), and products with stable demand.

• Marketplaces often store fast-selling goods for free, but in other cases, the seller pays for storage.
  

How to Choose a Fulfillment Operator?

🔍 Where does the operator have warehouses?If buyers are mainly in big cities but the operator’s warehouse is far away, delivery will be slower and more expensive. Ideally, operators should have warehouses in multiple regions.

• Does the operator have warehouses in required regions?

• Can goods be distributed across different warehouses?
  

💵 How much does the service cost?Operators have different pricing structures—some charge low storage fees but high packaging costs, others the opposite.

• Are tariffs transparent, with no hidden fees?

• Can you pay only for actual services used?
  

🔗 How do they integrate with marketplaces and stores?Seamless integration ensures automatic order transfer and inventory updates.

• Is integration available with your sales platforms?

• Is stock information updated automatically?
  

🤏🏻 Is small-volume cooperation possible? Some operators work only with large sellers and require minimum monthly turnover.

• Are there restrictions on minimum quantities?

• Can volumes scale up as sales grow?
  

🚩 How is the return process managed?In sectors like clothing and footwear, return rates can reach 30%. Delays in processing returns can block cash flow.

• How quickly are returned goods checked and processed?

• Are there additional fees for return handling?