Honest answers about how we operate.

We price four things: receiving, storage, pick-and-pack, and outbound postage. Receiving runs free up to 20 cartons per inbound shipment. Storage runs $22 per pallet per month or $0.55 per cubic foot for shelved goods, billed on the 1st. Pick-and-pack starts at $1.05 per order plus $0.25 per additional unit. Postage is pass-through on our negotiated UPS, FedEx, USPS, Purolator, Canada Post, and DHL rates, no markup. We send a single invoice on the 1st of each month with every line itemized.

No. Onboarding, integration setup, SOP design, and first inbound receiving are all included. We charge for time after launch only if you ask us to rebuild integrations or rewrite SOPs.

No. We use service agreements, not contracts. You can pause, scale up or down, or move volume across our 26 city nodes without penalty. Termination is 60 days written notice in writing.

The base $1.05 includes the first pick, dunnage (kraft paper, void fill), a Vertex-branded box or your custom mailer if you supply it, the pack label, and tendering to the carrier. Each additional unit adds $0.25. Custom inserts, gift notes, and branded tissue paper run $0.10 to $0.25 per touch depending on complexity.

Custom packaging beyond standard mailer or box. FBA prep that needs polybagging, FNSKU labels, or bundling. Returns processing past the included 2 percent of monthly outbound. EDI 856/940/810 setup for retail compliance ($1,500 one-time per trading partner). Saturday cutoffs ($300 per month at typical volumes). Hazmat-fee surcharges from the carrier are pass-through. We list every potential add-on in the service agreement so nothing surprises you on the invoice.

We pass through the carrier surcharges (UPS, FedEx, and USPS publish their own peak schedules), and we do not stack a Vertex peak surcharge on top. The carrier peak windows usually run from the first Sunday of October through mid-January. We send you the exact published rate cards in September so you can model Q4 ahead.

Storage and pick-and-pack rates are locked in your service agreement for the first 12 months. After that, we pass through wage and carrier increases (typically 3 to 5 percent annually) with 60 days notice. We do not have escalators that compound automatically.

Yes, at three tiers: 2,500, 10,000, and 25,000 orders per month. Discounts apply to pick-and-pack and storage. Postage is already a pass-through, so volume there flows through your own carrier negotiation that we help you run.

Standard onboarding runs 1 to 2 weeks: discovery call (day 1), integration setup (days 2 to 4), SOP design (days 3 to 5), and first inbound receiving (days 6 to 10). Brands with clean SKU data and a single sales channel can launch in under a week. Complex onboardings (multi-channel, custom EDI, kitting BOMs) run 3 to 6 weeks.

Native: Shopify, Shopify Plus, WooCommerce, BigCommerce, Squarespace, Wix, TikTok Shop, Amazon Seller Central, Walmart Marketplace, Etsy, eBay. ERP: NetSuite, Oracle, QuickBooks via API or EDI. Order management: ShipStation, ShipHero, Linnworks, Skubana. If you run something custom, we connect via REST API or flat-file SFTP.

Datex Footprint paired with TechDynamics. The combination gives us real-time inventory sync to Shopify and Amazon (under 60-second lag), barcode scanning at every pick, lot and expiry tracking on the receiving line, and EDI-compliant retail outbound for B2B programs.

You send us a SKU master in CSV format with: SKU code, title, dimensions, weight, country of origin, HS code (for cross-border), barcode, and any kitting BOMs. We load it into Datex, validate every record against the live integration, and flag mismatches before the first inbound arrives. Clean SKU data is the single biggest predictor of a smooth launch.

Every unit needs a scannable GS1-128 or UPC barcode on the master pack and ideally on each inner. For FBA inbound, we apply FNSKU labels on our line if you do not pre-label at the factory. For retail compliance, we print and apply GS1-128 carton labels to routing guide spec. We send you the printer profile during onboarding.

Yes. We coordinate appointments with your forwarder or drayage carrier, receive the container or LTL freight at our dock, and clear it to a pickable location within 24 hours of arrival. We send you a receiving report with photos of any damage or count discrepancy on every inbound.

Yes. We work with your outgoing 3PL on a transfer schedule (usually 2 to 3 weeks), receive inventory in batches, and run a parallel-run period where both warehouses ship orders while we sync inventory counts. We document discrepancies and bill them back to the outgoing 3PL when their counts were wrong.

Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Phoenix, San Diego: 4 PM PT. Seattle, San Francisco, Portland, Vancouver: 4 PM PT. Denver, Calgary: 4 PM MT. Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Austin, San Antonio, Oklahoma City, Nashville: 5 PM CT. Atlanta, Charlotte, Miami, New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Detroit, Toronto, Montreal: 5 PM ET. Saturday cutoffs are available on request for high-volume DTC programs at $300 per month at typical volumes.

24 hours on clean inbound (labeled cartons, ASN sent in advance, no damage). For containers cleared from port drayage, 48 hours including the unload. We send a put-away confirmation report on every receipt with the location of each SKU.

99.97 percent measured monthly across every node. Every pick is barcode-scanned against the order line. Mis-picks get caught at the pack station scan-verification step. We publish the monthly accuracy number to you in your dashboard.

99.5 percent measured at the customer end (right items, right quantity, right ship-to, right packaging). If we miss it, we refund the pick-and-pack fee on that order and re-ship the correction at our cost. We track the root cause on every miss so the pattern stops.

We forecast with you 90 days out (early September call), pre-stage carrier capacity contracts at 130 percent of forecast, hire and train seasonal pickers 4 weeks before the peak, and run Saturday operations from the second weekend of November through December 23. Cutoff times stay locked. If your forecast lands above 150 percent of the contract baseline, we re-quote together and add capacity rather than letting orders slip.

For hurricane-exposed nodes (Miami, Tampa, Houston, Charleston, Savannah area), we pre-stage Q4 inventory inland by mid-August where the tariff math allows, hold 48-hour reroute capacity through Dallas or New Orleans, and write hurricane-season language into the onboarding agreement so you know the playbook before a named storm forms. For blizzard nodes (Minneapolis, Chicago, Toronto, Montreal), we coordinate with carriers on storm-day shipping holds and resume next-day. We do not promise same-day during declared weather events because the carriers cannot deliver it.

Yes, in 14 of our 26 cities, as an add-on at $300 per month at typical volumes. Saturday cutoffs run 1 PM local time. Pickup is by UPS Saturday Ground or USPS Saturday for residential. FedEx Home Delivery is built into the base service in those nodes.

We cycle-count 5 percent of locations every week and run a full physical count annually. Shrinkage above 0.5 percent of inventory value per year is on us, credited at COGS to your next invoice. Below 0.5 percent we count as the ordinary cost of running a warehouse. The annual count happens in February at every node.

United States (22): Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Seattle, Portland, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Denver, Dallas, Houston, Austin, San Antonio, Oklahoma City, Chicago, Detroit, Atlanta, Charlotte, Nashville, Miami, New York, Boston, Philadelphia. Canada (4): Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Montreal. Flagship facility is in Burnaby, BC. Every city node runs the same WMS, the same SLAs, and the same integrations.

Look at where your top 25 percent of orders ship. If your customer concentration is West Coast, Los Angeles for inbound from Asia and same-day reach to 13 million people, or Dallas for the single-node thesis (95 percent of the US in 2-day FedEx Ground). East Coast concentration: Atlanta for 75 percent of US population in 2-day reach via Mason Mega Rail intermodal from Savannah. Canada-only: Toronto (Mississauga) for the GTA and Eastern Canada. We model the choice with you using your actual order data on the discovery call.

Yes, and we run them on a single inventory pool. Pick any combination of our 26 cities, and the WMS routes each order to the node closest to the ship-to address. We rebalance inventory between nodes weekly based on demand patterns. Multi-node setup adds zero integration work on your end, you still see one Shopify or Amazon connection.

Dallas for US single-node, on rent ($7 to $9 per SF NNN in the South Dallas value corridor versus $20 in Inland Empire LA) and labor ($16 to $18 per hour for forklift versus $20 nationally). Atlanta is second-cheapest. For Canadian volume, Calgary runs below Toronto on rent and labor, though Toronto wins on inbound from Hamilton port and Pearson air cargo.

Yes, it is a core specialty. Northbound (US to Canada): we handle DDP and DDU shipping via UPS, FedEx, Purolator, and Canada Post, and we file customs paperwork in one workflow. Southbound (Canada to US): on August 29, 2025, US Customs suspended Section 321 de minimis on all commercial shipments from Canada, and on February 22, 2026 the Section 122 import surcharge jumped to 15 percent on non-CUSMA goods. The credible 2026 play is dual-country: bulk-import US-bound volume into a US sister facility and fulfill domestic. We run that model from Mississauga paired with any of our US nodes.

For Canada-origin commercial shipments to the US, yes (suspended August 29, 2025). It is still available for some non-Canada origins, but the CBP enforcement environment makes us cautious about marketing Section 321 as a primary US fulfillment strategy. We tell brands the honest math on the discovery call and route them to the dual-country model when it pencils.

Our flagship facility in Delta, BC is wholly owned. Several US nodes (Los Angeles area, Dallas, Atlanta, Houston) run from operating partners we vetted, contracted, and pre-integrated with our WMS. The WMS, the SOPs, the cutoff times, and the SLAs are identical across owned and partner nodes. You sign one service agreement with Vertex.

Under 60 seconds. We push inventory deltas via the Shopify Admin API on every pick, pack, receive, and adjustment. You see the updated count in your Shopify admin before the picker is back at the pack station. We use buffer logic on hot SKUs so two near-simultaneous orders cannot both close the inventory below zero.

Yes. Common Flow setups we wire up during onboarding: tag B2B orders with "wholesale" to trigger a different pack profile, route high-value orders ($500+) to a manual review queue, hold orders with a customer note for 30 minutes so customer service can intervene, and split shipments when a single order has both pre-order and in-stock SKUs.

Yes. We use the Shopify-native returns flow plus Loop Returns or AfterShip Returns if you have either installed. Returns arrive at our dock, get inspected against your disposition rules (restock, refurbish, scrap), and the result writes back to your inventory in real time. You get a daily returns report with photos of any items that fail QC.

Yes. We support Shopify B2B (price lists, payment terms, draft orders), pallet picking, custom pack-out (per-customer packing slips, retailer-specific labeling), and EDI 856 ship notices for B2B customers who need them. Setup runs $1,500 one-time per trading partner.

Yes, with Recharge, Bold, Loop, Skio, Stay AI, and Shopify-native subscriptions. We get the recurring orders the same way we get one-time orders (the Shopify order webhook), so no extra integration on top of your subscription app. We hold a 14-day buffer of subscription inventory at each node so churn-related forecast swings do not cause stockouts.

Yes. Launchpad scheduled drops route to a pre-staged inventory pool with overnight staffing. Shopify Functions (the replacement for Scripts in 2025) for things like shipping-rate logic or discount stacking get tested in your dev store with us before going live.

Yes. Polybagging, FNSKU label application, bundling, dunnage for fragile goods, expiry-date stickers, suffocation warnings on polybags. We route inbound shipments to the FBA centers Amazon assigns through the inbound plan and re-validate FNSKUs weekly so spec changes do not cause inbound rejections.

Yes, where it makes sense. AWD trades a lower per-cubic-foot storage rate for less flexibility on which FBA centers your inventory ends up in. We model the trade for you using your actual sell-through data. The break-even usually sits around 60 days of forward cover.

Yes, and this is one of the most common reasons brands move from pure-FBA to a 3PL. We fulfill your Shopify, BigCommerce, and DTC orders from the same inventory pool that feeds FBA, with 2-day and Saturday delivery options. We map your products in Datex so a unit can ship as DTC or get re-prepped for FBA inbound without re-keying.

Removal orders arrive at our dock, get inspected against your disposition rules, and the result writes back to your inventory in Datex. Sellable units go back into the DTC pool. Refurb-eligible units flow through a touch-up line (re-poly, re-label, repack). Damaged units flow to your written scrap or B-stock channel. We handle Amazon Reimbursement claims on your behalf at 12 percent of recovered value, capped at $5,000 per claim.

Yes. Small and Light (now called Amazon Low-Cost Fulfillment in some marketplaces) needs specific packaging and labeling. We hold the spec sheets and run a separate prep line for it so the lower-margin units do not bottleneck regular FBA prep.

Yes, but be careful. North American Remote Fulfillment lets you fulfill Canadian Amazon orders from US FBA inventory, but the customer waits 7 to 12 days and pays Canadian duty visibly at checkout. For most Canadian DTC volume you will convert more by stocking real Amazon CA inventory through one of our Canadian nodes. We model the trade on the discovery call.

Yes. FBM orders flow through the same pick line as your other DTC orders, with Amazon-compliant tracking-upload windows. We hit Amazon Seller-Fulfilled Prime SLA where you qualify for the program. Same accuracy SLA, same cutoff times.

48 hours from dock receipt to inventory write-back. You see the disposition (restock, refurbish, scrap, B-stock) in your dashboard before the customer sees a refund processed, if your return policy issues refunds on inspection rather than on receipt.

On inspection is the right default for most brands. On receipt creates fraud exposure (customer ships back an empty box). On restock can hurt your CSAT because the customer waits 3 to 5 extra days. We default new clients to on inspection unless you have a reason to choose otherwise.

We do not charge restocking fees ourselves. If you charge your customers a restocking fee, we apply it on the return processing report so your customer service team has a single source of truth. The fee logic gets configured during onboarding.

Refurb-eligible returns flow to a separate touch-up line at the warehouse. Common steps: re-poly, replace dunnage, re-label, swap damaged outer packaging, run a fresh QC check. We bill refurb at $0.85 to $2.10 per unit depending on touch complexity. Units that pass refurb go back to your DTC pool. Units that fail flow to your written B-stock channel.

You pick the channel during onboarding. Common options: Liquidation.com, BULQ, Direct Liquidation, a written-off pallet scrap (we coordinate with a local liquidator), or hold-for-sample for your marketing team. We can also drop-ship B-stock direct to a third-party buyer if you have one lined up.

Returns up to 2 percent of monthly outbound volume are included. Returns above 2 percent run $2.50 per unit for standard inspection and write-back. The 2 percent baseline covers most healthy DTC brands. If your return rate runs higher (apparel typically 15 to 25 percent), we quote a category-specific rate during onboarding.

No. We do not hold a hazmat license, and we do not ship anything classified UN-numbered (lithium batteries above the consumer-electronics quantity exemption, flammables, oxidizers, corrosives, aerosols above 8 oz). Common exemptions we can still ship: lithium-ion batteries inside or packed with consumer electronics within UN3481 quantity limits, fragrances under aerosol exemption, small alcohol-based products under USPS HazMat ground exemption. Anything bulk hazmat needs a hazmat-licensed 3PL like ShipBob hazmat-certified or a specialist like ODFL.

No. Our facilities run ambient temperature only. For refrigerated 2 to 8 degrees Celsius pharma, or frozen below minus 18 degrees Celsius food, you need a cold-chain 3PL. We refer brands to ColdChain3PL, Pelican BioThermal partners, or the cold-chain divisions at Lineage Logistics.

No. We are not a designated FTZ. For brands where direct duty deferral inside an FTZ is the right answer (typically high-tariff inbound or high working-capital sensitivity, 7-figure annual duty exposure), we route you to FTZ #84 operators in Houston, FTZ #39 operators at DFW, or FTZ #243 at LAX. For most ecommerce brands, the FTZ overhead does not pay back, and we save you the diligence cycle.

No. Class I, II, and III medical devices and prescription pharmaceuticals need FDA registration as a medical device or pharma distributor, plus state-level Verified-Accredited Wholesale Distributor (VAWD) accreditation. We do not hold those. We refer to Cardinal Health or Aspen Healthcare Logistics for those programs.

Shelf-stable, ambient-temp packaged food only, and only if you can attest the product is properly sealed and not subject to FSMA preventive-controls rules that we cannot meet. We do not hold full FDA food-facility registration with HACCP at every node. If you sell anything that needs HACCP, traceability under FSMA 204, or refrigerated storage, you need a food-grade 3PL.

No. PACT Act compliance, age-verification at delivery, state-by-state shipping bans, and excise tax filings are a specialist program. We refer to vape-specific 3PLs that hold the PACT Act registration.

Hemp-derived CBD only, and only when the product carries a Certificate of Analysis confirming under 0.3 percent THC dry weight and meets DEA and state-of-destination rules. We do not ship marijuana products in any form. CBD with full COA documentation, we handle in select nodes (Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Denver) where state law and carrier policy permits.

No. Federal Firearms License (FFL) operations need a specialist 3PL. Same answer for ITAR-controlled goods and any product on the US Munitions List.