Beauty & Cosmetics Fulfillment

As a beauty and cosmetics 3PL provider, we’ve handled various products in these categories. Use our experience to your advantage to grow your beauty brand.

Fragrances, nail items, hair extensions, lash extensions, and more.

Track & manage lot numbers and expiration dates with ease.

Fulfill subscription box orders with ease and precision.

Prioritize fulfillment by first in first out or first expired first out.

Support for special packing instructions and fragile wrapping.

D2C and B2B order fulfillment capabilities under one roof.

Ship internationally to 220+ destinations with DDP or DDU.

Integrate with major carts and platforms like Shopify and Amazon.

No management fees & industry leading shipping rates.

On-Time Shipment

The beauty industry moves fast, and your fulfillment strategy needs to keep up. Whether you’re launching a specialty skincare brand, scaling a cosmetics company, or in need of a fulfillment company to assemble and ship PR / influencer boxes. Choosing the right beauty and cosmetics fulfillment partner can make or break your customer experience.

Interested to know what beauty and cosmetics fulfillment actually is, along with best practices and things to look for? Let’s break it down for you.

What is Beauty & Cosmetics Fulfillment

Beauty and cosmetics fulfillment also known as third party logistics (3PL) is the process of storing your products, picking, packing, and getting them to your customers doorsteps. However, in the beauty world, fulfillment goes far beyond the standard pick pack and is far more customizable to deliver unique branded experiences and ensure your items arrive to your customers as they expect.

Beauty and cosmetic products are often fragile or require specific packing instructions, are shelf life sensitive, and come specially packaged; which is why beauty product fulfillment requires extra care and precision.

Beauty products may require additional services like batch/expiration tracking, custom labeling, kitting or bundling, and even custom assembly for curated gift boxes or influencer marketing campaigns.

How Fulfillment for Beauty Products Works

The process of getting your products in and out of a cosmetic fulfillment center consists of inventory intake, storage, shipping, and the use of value added services for special projects. Lets go over the steps ShipZag follows for each order below.

Receiving

When the warehouse first receives your products either on pallets or cartons, they are entered into the system and scanned by barcode scanners for accuracy.

Prior to sending the items, you ‘ll need to upload a purchase order so your 3PL partner can receive the goods against your PO. This gives you the ability to compare the items received to the items ordered to make sure your supplier sent all of the inventory you were promised.

During receiving, the warehouse team enters your lot numbers and expiration dates into the system so you have full visibility and orders can be fulfilled by prioritizing first to expire inventory.

Putaway

Once received into the system, the warehouse staff then proceeds to put the items away into dedicated storage positions like pallets, shelves, and storage bins.

Picking

When your orders come in, they’re sent to the warehouse picking staff. The team proceeds to the storage locations assigned to your items and picks the quantity of items requested. Barcode scanners are used to maintain accuracy. Once all items are picked, the products get sent down to the packing station to be packed into boxes.

Packing

Once at the packing station, the correct box is chosen by the packer and your items are packed into the box according to your requirements. This is where items are bubble wrapped if required and any additional order packing specifications are completed. Items are barcode scanned once more in this phase to ensure your customers are getting exactly what they ordered.

Shipping

After completion of the packing process, the box is then weighed on a shipping scale and a shipping label is generated to get the package to your customer in the promised timeframe. The shipping scale also compares the weight of the package to the contents to make sure the correct products were packed.

Reverse Logistics & Returns

When the need arrises for a return or exchange, you or your support staff can generate a return shipping label or RMA slip online. Once the items arrive back, they’re inspected and if everything looks good, your items are placed back to stock.

Why fulfillment matters so much for beauty brands

With the beauty industry being driven by aesthetics, results, and customer satisfaction; fulfillment has become more than just shipping. Its an extension of the experience your brand provides.

First Impressions Matter

Your customers first order experience is a part of your product. Making sure items arrive without delays and damage can influence purchases later down the line.

Delicate Products

Most beauty and cosmetic products are fragile due to their packaging and are prone to leaks. When handled properly, your products can arrive in perfect condition which essentially saves you money and reduces waste.

Brand Experiences Count

From influencer mailers to subscription boxes, custom branded unboxing experiences can help you generate a buzz on social media and increase customer loyalty.

What to look for in a Beauty & Cosmetics Fulfillment Company

Not all 3PLs are created equal. Beauty brands need a fulfillment partner they can rely on. Find a partner who understands the unique demands of the cosmetic and beauty industry. Here are a few things to look for.

Beauty & Cosmetic Expertise

Expertise in the beauty field can save you a lot of money and even more headaches. A 3PL partner who understands the complexities of shipping beauty items can help you reduce waste and improve customer experiences.

For example, if shipping a liquid product together with a dry product, we know to always bag the liquid just incase it leaks in transit. This way if it does leak, at least your dry product arrives in tact and is free from damage.

This is just one example of how a fulfillment partner with experience is far more beneficial than just going with any ecommerce fulfillment company whose never shipped a beauty product before.

Lot & Expiration Tracking

Managing product shelf life is essential, not only to reduce waste but to make sure your customer is satisfied and never receives an expired item. Look to find a partner who has lot and expiration tracking capabilities with the option to set inventory priority to first-expired-first-out (FEFO).

Custom Packaging & Other Customizations

Fulfillment 3PLs are often limited in customizations and their ability to use custom packaging. Ensure your pick offers custom packaging services and other customizations you may need so you never feel like you’re stuck trying to achieve what you’ve always envisioned.

Fast Accurate Shipping

Customers expect speed and accuracy when they order your products online, so it’s your responsibility to deliver on that expectation. Find a fulfillment partner with a proven track record that offers same day shipping so your customers don’t have to wait around too long before their order is dispatched. Additionally, make sure they use some kind of barcode scanning technology to make sure every order is accurate.

Platform

Make sure to demo your beauty and cosmetics fulfillment companies platform to make sure you won’t have a hard time using it. A good 3PLs online system should give you clear visibility into your inventory with detailed lot/expiration reports and give you full access into editing, holding, and adjusting orders that come in.

Ecommerce & Retail Integrations

In today’s ecommerce landscape, you need to make sure your products are everywhere your customers are searching. Finding a fulfillment partner that offers integrations with major carts like Shopify and Woocommerce as well as online marketplaces like Amazon or Walmart is essential to growing your cosmetic or beauty brand.

Final Thoughts

At the end of the day, beauty and cosmetics fulfillment isn’t just about logistics, it’s all about protecting your brand and delivering consistent customer experiences.

If you’re ready to scale your operation without sacrificing quality and giving up control, partnering with a fulfillment company who knows the beauty space can make the biggest difference.