New York, NY, is the largest city in the United States and one of the biggest markets in the world. The city is home to 8.4 million people, and another million workers commute into the city for work. The larger New York metro region is home to more than 20 million people, part of the densely populated Eastern Seaboard. So, a New York 3PL might seem logical for an up-and-coming eCommerce company.
But eCommerce fulfillment based in New York City isn’t always the best choice, even if you ship many orders into the five boroughs. Here’s how to make that decision.
Reasons to use New York fulfillment services
A fulfillment center based in or near New York City can be an excellent choice. Here are a few benefits of using a New York 3PL.
8 million people
New York is the most densely populated city in the U.S., with almost 28,000 residents per square mile. That’s a lot of people who might want to order your products, and a New York 3PL puts them within easy reach.
Shorter delivery times in New York City and the surrounding area
New Yorkers move fast, and they expect fast delivery. A local fulfillment center can give you the option to offer next-day or even same-day delivery, making your products more competitive. Because the city is so compact, you can have economies of scale on deliveries.
Save on shipping
The closer you are to your customers, the less you (or they) will pay for shipping. If you have an extensive customer base in NYC, a New York 3PL can save on shipping costs. You might even be able to partner with a local delivery service rather than a major carrier for faster and more personalized service.
Meet demand in a top market
For eCommerce entrepreneurs that specialize in luxury goods, New York is a market like no other. The city is home to around 100 billionaires and over 300,000 millionaires, not counting the many wealthy overseas visitors who spend time in the Big Apple. If you sell high-end merchandise to the rich and famous, a New York 3PL can position you to provide the white-glove delivery service your clientele expects.
But most online stores don’t sell wildly expensive products to a small, exclusive market. If your eCommerce business is more typical, you probably need to reach a mass audience and, therefore, may want to look beyond New York for your fulfillment.
Are national third-party logistics a better choice?
A national fulfillment partner will have one or more warehouses in central locations that can quickly reach a wide swath of the country. That allows you to offer consistent shipping costs and delivery times to customers in all regions. So even if you ship a lot of orders to the New York metro area, there are excellent reasons to look beyond New York for your third-party logistics.
Lower fulfillment costs
New York real estate is some of the country’s most expensive, and the area’s cost of living is also high, so employers need to pay higher wages. A New York City 3PL will have high operating costs, and you’ll see those costs reflected in your pick and pack fulfillment fees. Many national fulfillment companies site their warehouses in cities where operating costs are lower, and that can save you money.
Meet national demand without sacrificing fast delivery to big markets
You don’t have to use a third-party logistics provider in New York City to reach your local customers quickly. For example, a warehouse in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, or the central U.S. might have significantly lower overhead but still be able to ship orders quickly to NYC.
Red Stag Fulfillment’s East Coast fulfillment services in Knoxville, TN, can ship to almost the entire East Coast in two days or less, from Florida to Connecticut, including New York City.
If you put all your apples into one basket by using only a Big Apple fulfillment center, West Coast orders will take four to five days to reach your customers. If your eCommerce business sells across the U.S., your fulfillment strategy should be national too.
Improved supply chain management
Managing your entire consumer-facing logistics from a single warehouse can be challenging as your business grows and scales. But funneling your whole supply chain through a New York 3PL could be a logistical nightmare. The city is famous for jammed roadways and narrow streets that can complicate inbound freight deliveries.
And the busiest ports receiving goods from China are on the West Coast. So, cross-country delivery could add to your freight costs and transit times. A national fulfillment partner can work with you to improve your supply chain management and get your merchandise to market more efficiently. That means distribution points closer to the inbound location, plus experts that can help you add East Coast ports to the mix to control other costs.
Of course, you can have a New York 3PL and fulfillment centers in other areas. Some eCommerce companies use multiple fulfillment partners to provide warehousing and order fulfillment for different regions.
How to decide if a New York 3PL is right for your business
A New York City 3PL could be a good choice for your business if:
- Most of your market lives in and around the city’s boroughs.
- You sell high-value products with a significant markup to New Yorkers who demand same-day delivery. A New York 3PL could be a good investment if your profit margins support it.
However, national fulfillment is a better choice if:
- You want to keep fulfillment costs low to make or maximize profit.
- Your customer base lives beyond the New York metro area.
- Your customers are willing to wait more than a day and want to keep their shipping costs low.
- You sell large or heavy items that require significant warehouse space — which has a premium cost at many New York 3PLs.
Typically, a New York 3PL isn’t the best option for most eCommerce companies. You can better serve East Coast and Central U.S. customers with regional fulfillment and distribution services from a hub outside the most concentrated population centers.
Red Stag Fulfillment has New York logistics solutions
Red Stag Fulfillment doesn’t have a warehouse in New York City, but we are well-positioned to be your New York 3PL. Here are some of the reasons our national fulfillment services help our partners thrive:
- Red Stag Fulfillment guarantees mean that we pay you $50 any time we make a mistake. But we rarely make mistakes, and our excellent fulfillment increases your client satisfaction.
- Our warehouses in Salt Lake City, UT, and Knoxville can ship to 96% of U.S. addresses in two days or less. That allows you to simplify supply chain management without sacrificing speed. And, with our same-day fulfillment service levels, most packages ship within 24 hours of the customer placing the order.
- We lead the industry in heavy and high-value fulfillment services. Red Stag Fulfillment consistently wins awards, and we are experts at safely handling oversized merchandise and reducing dimensional weight charges.
- Red Stag Fulfillment has negotiated rates with the major carriers so that we can save you money on shipping.
- Our zero shrinkage guarantee means you never have to worry about losing inventory again. And, because of our near-perfect inventory accuracy report card, you’ll always know what you have in stock. That makes inventory management easy.
If you need superior third-party logistics for your New York customers, choose Red Stag Fulfillment for fast, error-free logistics you can rely on.
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