This is probably one of the most common questions I hear right now: How do I ship my shipments from China to Amazon FBA?
While it's not terribly difficult to ship products from China to an Amazon warehouse, it's also slightly more complicated than requiring your supplier to put a UPS label on the product and send it to a single Amazon warehouse. In this article, I will discuss the different ways to send products to an Amazon FBA fulfillment center.
Your choice: Direct to FBA or with a third party logistics company (3PL)
Shipping your products to Amazon FBA really boils down to two options: you can ship your items directly from China to an Amazon FBA warehouse, or you can ship to yourself or a 3PL before shipping to Amazon FBA.
1. Shipping directly from China to Amazon FBA - Pros and Cons
Pros – China to Amazon FBA
- Faster shipping time. The time for the product to arrive at the warehouse is greatly reduced. The easier it is for your product to get to the warehouse, the faster you can start selling on Amazon.
- Save the middleman cost. You can save yourself the trouble of paying someone to check your product.
Weaknesses - Challenges
- Amazon requires products to be shipped to different warehouses rather than a centralized location.
- Shipping and duties must be paid to Amazon prior to arrival.
- Products must meet the shipping and packaging and shipping requirements and standards established by Amazon.
The biggest advantage of dropshipping from China to Amazon is that it is faster and cheaper. If you ship directly from China, you can usually save 1-2 weeks of shipping time. You'll also eliminate hundreds or thousands of dollars in 3PL costs per shipment, depending on size.
The most annoying thing about shipping directly to Amazon is that depending on your product type, there is a good chance that Amazon will require you to ship your items to multiple FCs (fulfillment centers). This is especially true for bulky items.
Why use multiple FCs and how to avoid it?
Amazon typically requires you to ship bulky items to multiple FCs and/or if you mix shipments with items that require/don't prep.
How can you avoid shipping to multiple FCs?
- Avoid combining oversized and standard-sized items
- Avoid merging shipments that require preparation and those that don't
- Turn on inventory placement
- Using Amazon Dragon Boat (Amazon Global Fulfillment)
Unfortunately, if you're shipping oversized items, you may be stuck with multiple FC shipments, and it's difficult to ship directly to Amazon without opening the inventory placement.
2. The product can be shipped directly from China to yourself or a third-party intermediary
The benefits of using a middleman
- Products are shipped from China in consolidated form.
- You can check to make sure the product meets the quality requirements
- Sales strategy still not disclosed to Chinese suppliers
- Shipments are less likely to be rejected by FBA
Disadvantages of using a middleman
- You have to pay someone to do it for you. or trouble doing it yourself
- Shipments take longer to reach FBA
- Need to do more with your product
You can simply ship the goods from China directly to yourself or use a third-party logistics company (3PL). 3PL will receive your shipment from China, then store it or ship it from you to Amazon. In addition to the other advantages of this shipping method, you can now use an Amazon-partnered carrier for small or less-than-truckload shipping, and it's very cheap.
In fact, using 3PL between the two is advantageous in almost every way, except time and money. These are all very important factors.
3PL may take 2-5 days to receive your inventory and prepare it. The shipping time from your 3PL to the designated Amazon FC also takes a few days. So more or less, using a middleman will add at least 1-2 weeks of delivery time to Amazon FBA.
When is there a middleman shipping?
In general, finding a middleman can be helpful in the following situations
- This is the first shipment from China. Or you're just running a business.
- Subscribe to FBA for the first time - China Amazon Fba
- Consolidated shipments from China can help save some money if you're on a tight budget
Checklist: Sellers and Suppliers
Make sure you don't forget anything important when shipping to Amazon FBA.
In this way, you can use the following two checklists made for sellers and suppliers.
Seller List:
- Check supplier's incoterms, unit price and MOQ (e.g. EXW, FOB, DDP, etc.)
- Check the quantity of the order (pieces, components, etc.)?
- Make sure you know the exact size and weight. Check with your supplier how many cartons there are and their total volume.
Which shipping method should you choose?
- Calculate the shipping cost per unit by dividing the quote you get by the number of units.
- Do you need storage services? (it will affect your unit cost)?
- Build your list (no optimization needed, just get started) to be able to download your FNSKU and make it available to your facility.
- Arrange a production date with the manufacturer. Sign a contract or agreement that mentions additional charges in case of delay.
- Arrange pre-shipment controls with the inspection company. Enter into a contract or agreement that includes additional costs in the event of control failure.
- Provide your suppliers with design samples for any desired customization of the product or its packaging. You may have previously received templates from suppliers.
- Provide your supplier with the appropriate care label, country of origin label, or any other required label that must be included on the package.
- Be sure to include carton markings. These are the text on the carton that mentions the country of origin, weight (lbs and kilograms), carton dimensions (cm and inches), number of units, and any safety
- information on one side. On the other hand, the following information must be displayed: company name, product type, general information and destination.
- Make sure you use the correct HS code to avoid hassles with customs.
Supplier list
- The size of the carton cannot exceed 63.5 cm.
- 6 kg is the maximum weight.
- A carton can contain up to 150 units (one unit: the item itself and all components in its final packaging).
- The FNSKU barcode must be on a white background.
- Arrange a date with the inspection company, a date for pre-shipment control. Failed controls can turn into penalties, such as re-inspection costs at the expense of the factory.
- Make sure any plastic bags carry a suffocation warning.
- Make sure any type of label is spelled correctly.
- Please provide the company with the exact production completion date. There may be some penalties for late completion.
- The packing list and any commercial invoice must be provided to the company as early as possible.
