Fulfilling product to the retail market is a complicated endeavor fraught with IT complexities and retailer-specific operational nuances, all of which must be flawlessly executed to remain successful and profitable. SPF has the IT and operational experience to accomplish the task and support our clients multi-channel business requirements. Whether shipping to national big-box retailers, HSN or QVC, wholesale marketplaces, mid-level brick & mortar retail chains or mom & pop stores throughout the country, we can assist in complying with all the varied compliance requirements. We support our client’s retail fulfillment programs by providing:

• EDI services – from 850 POs to 856 ASNs, we can integrate directly with our client’s host system or provide a web-based portal for EDI visibility & management
• UCC-128 / GS1-128 label printing with integrated ASNs
• Vendor compliance management – compliance with packaging & routing guides, labeling content and placement, product and carton marking, palletization specifications & pallet types, weight-based routing etc.
• Selling Unit-of-Measure Picking – Full pallet, full carton and individual unit pick & pack fulfillment
• Scheduling – release of orders to control delivery between retailer mandated delivery windows (start ship & cancel dates), factoring in time-in-transit for both LTL truck and UPS/Fedex shipping to each retailer distribution center
• Trucking – routing guide compliance for mode and carrier selection, delivery appointment scheduling, Bill of Lading data content compliance….we also work closely with our freight broker to provide consolidation for selected retailers which offers considerable savings for prepaid trucking agreements and facilitates delivery scheduling
• Support for all Program Types – product introduction & rollout, replenishment programs, cross-dock programs
• POP Displays – construction, filling and distribution of point-of-purchase displays both direct-to-store and to retail DCs
• Multi-Channel selling – whether selling a blend of direct response television (DRTV) and big box retail, e-commerce direct-to-consumer and small to mid-level retail mom & pops, or any combination we facilitate fulfillment across all of our clients sales channels by providing a single source for inventory management & order fulfillment with expertise & fulfillment support for all channels

The services first provided by SPF in 1986 consisted of shipping mass quantities of similar or identical packages assembled/packaged by SPF to lists of addresses provided by clients. To this day we continue to provide this service for many different types of customers and products and ship hundreds of thousands of packages per year via the USPS, USPS postal consolidators, UPS and Fedex.

Kit Assembly

Most projects consist of receiving bulk quantities of merchandise from our clients and warehousing the inventory on a temporary basis, once all items are received complete we setup production lines and assemble kits into mailers, receive lists from our clients and process shipments and provide consolidated tracking files following distributions. We consistently work on various kinds of promotions & clients including:

• Subscription / Continuity Boxes – assembly of themed products with varying contents in each new box, supporting e-commerce marketers with scheduled distributions based on their specific continuity program parameters, we also offer integrated order fulfillment for the non-list distributed orders from shared inventory
• Marketing & Advertising Agency Clients – we typically work with agencies that manage kit assembly & fulfillment outsourcing as part of a larger program…..brand supplied product being shipped to a member community managed or controlled by the agency, sampling programs to promote a new product, social media marketing related programs, prize redemption programs, etc.
• Pharmaceutical Product Launches – we work with agencies or directly with pharmaceuticals for new product launches and assemble kits often containing product literature, marketing materials, branded premiums and various gadgets
• Flash Sales – typically related to our pick & pack order fulfillment clients, these programs usually involve short term and time-sensitive sales of a fixed number of products and require order & tracking file compliance, custom document printing and quick turnaround
• Event Fulfillment & Registrant Packets – when event organizers need materials delivered on-site immediately before the start of an event (i.e. a non-profit walk/run) or registration packages assembled and shipped to participants in advance of an event, they turn to the experts at SPF to help organize, assemble and distribute the materials on time and within budget
• Sampling Programs – assembly and shipping of new products to create market awareness - Dealer Sample Distributions – these projects often involve repackaging of new items sold in retail/wholesale to be distributed to a network of dealers or resellers to promote sales

Returned orders are a reality and necessary evil for all product marketers, particularly those selling direct-to-consumer. Replicating the in-store retail experience from a home computer is only supported by allowing customers to return products without too much of a hassle. Often the approach toward the relative ease with which our clients allow their customers to make returns has a direct correlation to the type of product, value of the product and whether it can be resold if it is returned. We work with customers to identify that optimal mix of how easy to make returns and assist in implementing those policies through customized packing slip or insert card policy language, prepaid returns labels, RMA’s, and returns reporting for policy enforcement.

We manage product returns for most of our clients. Returns for some are very minimal while others can get receive as much as 25% of the outbound product and need to factor in that returns rate into their supply chain calculations when purchasing inventory. We ask our clients for a statement of their returns policy, criteria for inspection of product for decision on whether items should be disposed, quarantined or restocked, and reporting requirements to facilitate crediting and subsequent customer service actions. We also offer varying levels of product inspection and refurbishing/repair to maximize the number of items that can be restocked and resold, including re-packing, re-tagging, shrink-wrapping and garment steaming & cleaning.