What is a fulfillment center?

The terms warehouse and fulfillment center (or distribution center) are often used interchangeably but can have very different connotations. Both are large buildings that hold inventory for businesses that sell goods; however, the use cases and services provided are often quite other. Let’s break down each option to a better idea of the best eCommerce shipping solution for your business.

Fulfillment centers in North America

Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA)

Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) is a storage and shipping service that Amazon offers to help business owners sell their products. Businesses ship their products to Amazon’s fulfillment centers, which are designed explicitly for FBA services. Amazon then handles receiving, picking, and packing the products in the center before shipping them to the customer.

FBA locations in the US:

Arizona

PHX3, PHX5, PHX6, PHX7, TFC1

California

ONT2, OAK3, OAK4, ONT6/ONT8, ONT9

Connecticut

BDL1

Delaware

PHL1, PHL3, PHL7, PHL8

Florida

LAL1, TPA1

Indiana

XUSE, IND1. IND2, IND3, IND4, IND5, IND6, SDF8

Kansas

TUL1, MCI1

Kentucky

SDF1, SDF2, CVG1, CVG2, CVG3, LEX1, LEX2, SDF4, SDF6, SDF7, SDF9

Maryland

BWI2

Massachusetts

BOS5

Nevada

RNO2, LAS2

New Hampshire

BOS1

New Jersey

EWR4, EWR5

Pennsylvania

AVP1, ABE2, ABE3, ABE5, PHL4, PHL5, PHL6, XUSC, VUBA, VUGA

South Carolina

CAE1, GSP1

Tennessee

BNA1, BNA2, BNA3, BNA4, CHA1, CHA2

Texas

DFW1, DFW6, DFW7, SAT1, XUSB

Virginia

RIC1. RIC2

Washington

BFI1, BFI3

Wisconsin

MKE1

FBA locations in Canada

YVR2, YYZ1, YYZ2, YYZ3, PRTO

Pros

• Eligible for Amazon Prime shipping solution
• Amazon customer service and returns
• Benefits for Amazon sellers

Cons

• The extra cost compares with others

Long-term storage fees, unplanned service fees, Removal order fees

• Difficult for arranging to ship to FBA

Too many FBAs in the US, merchants’ inventory may split into different FBA warehouses and increase incoming shipping difficulty.

• Not friendly for non-Amazon sellers

Rakuten Super Logistics (RSL)

RSL’s nationwide network of fulfillment centers allows leading eCommerce retailers to reduce shipping costs, improve order accuracy, decrease shipping times, and increase customer satisfaction.

Locations in US

Services of RSL

Order fulfillment, return management, kitting, freight

Pros

• Multiple shipping solutions for merchants
• Collaborate with celebrate companies
• Good for matured eCommerce sellers

Cons

• High fulfillment cost and storage fees
• Order integration needs the IT team to involve
• Not friendly for beginning eCommerce sellers

Red Stag Fulfillment

A fulfillment company that approaches things a little differently. Simply put, our company exists to be the successful extension of your business.

Locations in the US

Services of Red Stag

eCommerce fulfillment, order fulfillment, B2B fulfillment, 3PL service, warehouse services

Pros

• Order management integrates with majors eCommerce platform
• Relationship with most 3PLs
• 30 days trial

Cons

• The service isn’t ideal for sellers with small, lightweight products that sell at low prices.
• Less shipping solution for international orders
• No international warehousing options

Fulfillment centers in Europe

FBA in UK

BHX1, BHX2, CWL1, EDI4, EUK5, GLA1, LBA1, LBA2. LBA3, LCY1, LCY2, LTN1, LTN2, LTN4, MAN1, MAN2, XUKA, XUKC, XUKD, XUKK

FBA in Germany

BER3, BER6, CGN1, DTM1, DTM2, DUS2, EDE4, EDE5, FRA1, FRA3, HAM2, LEJ1, LEJ2, MUC3, STR1, XDEB, XDEH, XDEI, XDEJ, XDES, XDET, XDEU

FBA in Spain

BCN1, BCN2, BCN3, MAD4, MAD5, XESA, XESB, XESC

FBA in France

ORY1, MRS1, LYS1, LIL1, BVA1, XFRE, XFRF, XFRG, XFRH

FBA in Italy

FCO1, MXP3, MXP5, XITC, XITD

FBA in Poland

KTW1, POZ1, PRG2, SZZ1, WRO1, WRO2, WRO3

FBA in Czech Republic

PRG1, PRG2

Pros

• Eligible for Amazon Prime shipping solution
• Amazon customer service and returns
• Benefits for Amazon sellers

Cons

• Extra cost compares with others

Long-term storage fees, unplanned service fees, Removal order fees

• Difficult for arranging shipping to FBA

Too many FBAs in US, merchants’ inventory may split into different FBA warehouse, and increasing the difficulty of incoming shipping.

• Not friendly for non-Amazon sellers

The fulfillment center in China

eComhub.net

We are a hub to offer an intelligent supply chain management solution that enables our eCommerce merchants and sellers to extend and scale their business.

eComhub helps sellers and merchants unleash product sourcing, daily order fulfillment, and logistics optimization.

Services of eComhub.net

• Product sourcing
• Niche product supply
• Shipping solution with the discount shipping rate
• Order fulfillment

eComhub global fulfillment center network

Asia Pacific: China, Japan, and Australia

North America: United States

Latin America: Uruguay

Europe: Estonia

Pros

• Order management integrates with Shopify, Woocoomerce, Etsy, Magento, and other platforms.
• Low shipping rate with high shipping performance
• 99.9% accurate order fulfillment five years in a row
• International warehouse options
• Excellent customer service, account managers are expert for sourcing, order fulfillment, and shipping optimization

Cons

• Only two warehouses in the US. If same-day delivery is crucial, this isn’t achievable for everyone.
• The order management system needs to improve more vision and user-friendly.