That’s not an insult. It’s the most useful thing anyone in this industry will tell you — and it’s the starting point for actually fixing things.
Without knowing anything about your brand, your history, or your 3PL — I am 99% confident that your distribution problems are primarily of your own making.
Here’s the thing about distribution: picking, packing, receiving, inventory control — the fundamentals haven’t changed much in decades. The warehouse management systems are the same. The order management systems are the same. The people working in these facilities move from warehouse to warehouse, change job titles, and the 3PLs themselves get bought and sold constantly — but the nuts and bolts of distribution are largely unchanged.
So if the industry is stable, why is your operation a mess? Keep reading.
These aren’t accusations. They’re patterns I’ve seen hundreds of times. If one of these sounds familiar, that’s where we start.
You’ve set cost targets that are impossible to hit without cutting corners, or service targets that would challenge a company ten times your size. Your 3PL is failing because you’ve defined failure as the only possible outcome.
You’ve made so many internal changes — product numbers, packaging, receiving methods, SKU structures — that have no benefit to your end customer but make it nearly impossible for your 3PL to operate consistently.
You let customers change orders at the last second. Every exception you allow teaches your customers that exceptions are normal — and destroys your 3PL’s ability to plan.
You’ve created a culture where your 3PL can’t make a single decision without your approval. You’ve micromanaged them into paralysis, then blamed them for being slow.
Your customers get next-day delivery from Amazon. You’re trying to match that with a $5M brand and a regional 3PL. That’s not a logistics problem — it’s a strategy problem.
New products, new packaging, new retail requirements, new carriers — introduced without warning, without lead time, without documentation. Your 3PL is always reacting, never prepared.
It sounds counterintuitive, but you absolutely need your 3PL to be cash flow positive. Not driving Porsches — but paying their rent, paying their people, and operating at a profit.
A 3PL under financial stress cuts corners. They lose good staff. They defer maintenance. They take on too many clients to cover a bad lease. When your 3PL is struggling financially, your freight is the last thing they’re focused on.
The goal isn’t to squeeze every last cent out of your 3PL contract. The goal is to find the equilibrium — where you’re paying a fair price for a stable, well-run operation that you can depend on. That’s what actually protects your business.
I come in without a side. I’ve spent 30 years on both sides of this relationship. I know what a well-run brand looks like to a 3PL, and I know what a well-run 3PL looks like to a brand. That perspective is what makes this work.
A free 30-minute call. Tell me what’s going on. I’ll tell you what I think is actually happening — and whether I can help.
Email Max