Peak season advice from a 3PL founder: Edward Fuller, Ship321

A lot of peak season advice looks at fulfilment from the brand's side. We wanted to hear from the other side of the relationship: the people planning staff, space and carrier collections around the numbers brands give them.

So we spoke to Edward Fuller, founder of Ship321, a Third-Party Logistics (3PL) provider with warehouses in San Diego, Tijuana and Shenzhen. Edward has an unusual perspective; he previously ran an ecommerce brand that grew faster than he could fulfil, meaning he's also been the nervous customer handing over his stock to a warehouse. Below are his takes on peak, and what he wishes brands to know.

From brand owner to 3PL founder

Seven years ago, at 20, Edward launched an ecommerce brand selling phone cases that could stick to any flat, smooth surface. He built it on TikTok influencer marketing before most brands had caught on, sending free cases and discount codes to young creators.

It worked. The brand did 100,000 orders in its first six months, and its hashtag picked up around half a billion organic views in just over two years. At the start, Edward was fulfilling orders from home, with his sister helping out, until higher volumes eventually meant he had to outsource. This part of the operation, however, came with its own anxieties.

"When I was looking for a 3PL, I was worried. This is my baby. Who's going to take care of the brand like me?" — Edward Fuller, Founder, Ship321

Like many brand owners, he chose one of the world's largest 3PLs, reassured by a sales pitch that it was "too big to fail". The experience didn't live up to it. Support ran through tickets, with no one-to-one relationship, and the operation wasn't tailored to his brand, even though his process was simple.

That frustration led to Ship321. Edward and his uncle started the business four years ago with a bonded warehouse in Tijuana, just across the border from San Diego. It now runs around 130,000 square feet in Mexico, a San Diego warehouse for brands that prefer to stay in the US, and a Shenzhen operation that ships small items directly to customers worldwide.

His view of what brands want from a 3PL is shaped by that first experience:

"So many 3PLs out there, it's all the same stuff, to a degree. If you have your KPIs at 99.5%, that's one thing. But it's really having that connection and making the brand feel connected. The brand wants to know: I'm going to take care of you, everything is transparent. Just be an extension of your team."

1. Your forecast is your peak plan

Ask Edward for the single most important thing brands can do before peak, and the answer is immediate.

"Really, the best thing to do for brands is forecasting. We need to have very accurate forecasting with our customers. That's how we plan for peak. That's the most efficient."

For his larger customers, Ship321 works from monthly and weekly forecasts. One golf bag brand sells around 500 bags a day through 20 different retailers. When it tells Ship321 to expect roughly 3,500 orders in a week, Edward plans his warehouse staffing a month in advance to match.

That's the part of peak brands rarely see. A 3PL can't hire and train extra staff overnight. The number you give your 3PL weeks before Black Friday decides how many people will be on the floor when your orders arrive.

Our tips: give your 3PL a weekly forecast for peak, broken down by key dates and promotions, at least a month ahead. Update it as soon as your plans change. Our guide to inventory forecasting and safety stock explains how to build one.

2. Find out what’s actually guaranteed

For his largest customers, Edward puts his money where his mouth is. Ship321 guarantees 99.5% on-time shipping, and if it ever drops below that, the brand gets its shipping free.

"Our KPIs are so good, we're very confident and we never go below that."

That guarantee isn't offered to everyone, and the reason is worth understanding. It depends on the brand giving Ship321 an accurate forecast, so the team can staff for it. For smaller customers without reliable forecasts, Edward doesn't set formal KPIs at all.

"For our small customers, I don't guarantee KPIs with them. But my big brands, we have yearly agreements, we have minimums."

Our tips: ask your 3PL exactly what it guarantees during peak, what happens if it misses, and what it needs from you to make that guarantee work. A guarantee without a forecast behind it isn't worth much to either side. Our guide to 3PL service level agreements covers what to include.

3. Your forecast sets your price

Edward's larger contracts tie pricing to the forecast. If a brand says it'll do 5,000 orders in a month, Ship321 allows a 15% variance either way. Above that, the extra orders are still fulfilled, but at an overtime rate of double the usual charge. Below it, the brand pays a minimum.

It can sound harsh from the brand's side, but Edward's reasoning is simple. If his team staffs up to guarantee your orders go out on time, it can't absorb the cost when the volume doesn't arrive.

"You tell me you're going to do this much, I'll guarantee they go out. But also, if you're super underneath, I can’t lose money."

Other 3PLs handle peak pricing differently. Edward says many add a peak surcharge for the busiest weeks. Ship321 doesn't, but it's one of the first things to check with any provider.

Our tips: before peak, ask your 3PL how its pricing works if your volumes come in above or below forecast, and whether any peak surcharges apply. Agree it in writing, so there are no surprises on the January invoice.

4. Treat your 3PL as part of your team

The word Edward uses most is transparency; in both directions. He still remembers Ship321's own first peak, in a 20,000 square foot warehouse with no racking rows, packed with pallet-sized dog crates weighing around 40 pounds each.

"I climbed up on a pallet and there were thousands of dog beds everywhere. And the clients like, we're going to send you another 15 containers. Can you accept them?"

What got them through was honest communication. Edward's rule for his team is never to hide a mistake from a brand.

"As soon as you hide something, the brand figures it out and then the relationship goes sour, even if you've worked with them for years. So the most important thing is good communication with the brands, and think of it more like a partnership."

He's seen what happens when that relationship breaks down. Several brands have moved their volume to larger 3PLs, usually for reasons such as tariffs or investor pressure, and almost all of them have come back. One spent heavily moving stock across the country, to then come back again.

Partnership works both ways. Edward once turned down a prospect who told him it was entirely his responsibility to make sure every order went out, whatever volumes arrived. A 3PL can only plan for what it's told.

Our tips: agree how you and your 3PL will share challenges during peak, who calls whom, and how quickly. Then hold both sides to it. Our Black Friday checklist covers what to agree on.

5. Ask how many orders they can handle

For smaller brands with steady volumes, peak planning can be simple. Edward has customers who've told him for four years running that peak will look much like last year, perhaps a little busier. For them, the answer is usually one extra person on the account.

But if you're not sure what's coming, the most useful thing you can do is ask your 3PL about its capacity.

"It really comes down to having a transparent conversation with your 3PL. Hey, I have no idea what I'm doing. I don't know what my forecast is. What is your current capacity? What can I expect?"

At Ship321, each account has a dedicated person, and that person can only pick and pack so many orders. Once you know the limit, you can decide whether it's enough, tell your customers what to expect, or ask what it would take to go further.

"What if I might be doing 100 a day? Can I pay a little bit extra to make sure you can guarantee that? Okay, yeah, we can do that."

Our tips: ask your 3PL how many orders a day it can dispatch for you during peak, and what it would cost to guarantee more. Then plan your promotions around the answer.

6. Pull your Christmas cut-offs forward

One of Edward's most practical tips is to set a clear order cut-off and give yourself more room than you think you need.

"Have a good cut-off date: if you place your order by this date, it'll be shipped out by this date. Let's put it like three days ahead of time. Let's not even mess around with this, because sometimes the carriers get delayed."

He goes further for Christmas. Instead of promising delivery right up to the carrier's last date, build in a buffer of a couple of days and say so clearly.

Our tips: agree dispatch cut-offs with your 3PL, add a buffer of two or three days, and publish the dates on your website, emails and checkout well before December.

7. Find out who’s packing your orders

Extra volume means extra people, and how a 3PL hires and trains them affects your accuracy. Ship321 brings in temporary workers of one to three months, so they're trained and settled before the busiest weeks. Managers take them through the standard operating procedures for each brand.

Edward's team also cross-trains staff across several brands, which protects customers when demand is unpredictable.

"This person knows how to fulfil for this brand, and vice versa. So in case a brand gets a crazy spike, or a video goes viral, we're able to pull staff over."

Our tips: ask your 3PL when temporary staff start, how they're trained on your products, and how many people can step in if your orders spike.

8. Plan for missing scans

Even a well-run warehouse can't control everything after the parcel leaves. Edward's biggest peak headache is carriers taking longer to scan parcels in. Trailers can take days to be processed, or get routed to a different hub, so orders look as though they haven't moved.

Ship321 keeps a packing list for every pallet it hands over, so when a customer asks where an order is, the team can check whether the whole pallet has moved or just one parcel is stuck.

Our tips: ask your 3PL how it records handovers to carriers and how it investigates missing scans. Warn customers that tracking updates may be slower during peak, so a delayed scan doesn't turn into a complaint.

9. Pick a partner, not a logo

Edward's own experience as a brand owner taught him that size and service aren't the same thing. The largest provider he spoke to had the most convincing pitch, but the day-to-day relationship ran through support tickets instead of a named person who knew his brand.

He's honest that this makes choosing hard, because every 3PL makes the same promises in a sales call.

"It's kind of hard to convince brands at first, because every single guy that you talk to is going to tell you the same thing."

The test comes during peak, when volumes rise and issues can surface. That's when a dedicated contact, clear communication and a team that knows your products matter most.

Our tips: when you compare 3PLs, ask who your day-to-day contact will be, how support works during peak and whether you can speak to existing customers of a similar size. Our guide to choosing the right type of 3PL covers the trade-offs.

10. Put your stock in the right place

Ship321's own model shows how much location can change the economics of fulfilment. The business started by holding stock for US brands in a bonded warehouse in Mexico, minutes from the border. Brands paid import duties only on the stock that crossed into the US each day, instead of on a whole container on arrival.

The US has since suspended the low-value import exemption that model originally relied on, but Edward says the Mexican site still offers two big advantages: deferring duty until goods are sold, and lower labour costs for work-heavy services such as kitting, customisation and embroidery. Ship321 also runs a San Diego warehouse for brands that prefer to stay in the US, and a Shenzhen operation that ships small, light items directly to customers worldwide with duties handled upfront.

That range lets Edward fit the setup to the brand. For a crowdfunding brand that's just sold thousands of units, shipping straight from the factory region might make the most sense. For a brand with high duty costs, holding stock in bond and paying as it sells might be better.

Our tips: before peak, look at where your stock is held and whether it still suits your sales. Shipping from the wrong place can add cost and days to every order. Our guides to crowdfunding fulfilment and managing a multi-3PL network cover the options.

Your first peak: don’t panic

We asked Edward what he'd tell a brand facing its first peak. His answer was refreshingly honest.

"There's really no way to prepare for your first one. You learn from it, and then the second one you'll kind of know what to do."

That doesn't mean doing nothing. Edward's advice for a first peak comes down to a few basics:

• Make sure your stock is ready: have enough good inventory in the warehouse before demand arrives.

• Give the best forecast you can: even a rough estimate helps your 3PL plan staff.

• Ask about capacity: find out how many orders a day your 3PL can handle for you, and what it would take to do more.

• Set your dates early: publish order cut-offs with a buffer of a couple of days, instead of promising delivery up to the last possible moment.

• Keep talking to your 3PL: share changes as they happen, and expect the same in return.

Above all, he wants brands to see peak as an opportunity.

"I would say it's the best time of the year. Don't be scared. Just have good communication with your 3PL and try to sell as much as possible."

After your first peak, write down what went well and what didn't, while it's fresh. That record becomes the starting point for next year's forecast.

Find a 3PL that's ready for your peak

From the 3PL side, a smooth peak comes down to accurate forecasts, honest conversations about capacity and a relationship where both sides share issues early. Compare 3PLs on fulfilment.com and get quotes from providers that will plan your peak with you.