What determines the cost of fulfillment?

Fulfillment costs are determined by three factors: how many orders you ship, what those orders consist of, and where they’re going. There’s no fixed fee per package, because an order with one small item shipped to the Netherlands requires different handling than an order with eight items shipped to Belgium.

How the rate is calculated

At Cenfil, charges are calculated separately per order and per order line. The order fee covers the tasks associated with each shipment, while the order lines cover the additional work required for each item. Pick-and-pack services and standard packaging materials are included in these charges.

Dat tarief valt binnen een staffel die hoort bij het aantal zendingen per periode. Hoe hoger de staffel, hoe lager de prijs per pakket. Groeien werkt dus in je voordeel, zonder dat je daarvoor opnieuw hoeft te onderhandelen.

Other factors to consider

• the number of SKUs and the types of products in your product line
• special services, such as gift wrapping or an insert
• the destinations you're sending to
• the shipping services you want to offer your customers

The clearer that picture is from the outset, the better a proposal will align with what actually happens in practice. An estimate based solely on order volume doesn't tell us much.

Fulfillment and shipping are two categories

The fulfillment fee covers warehouse operations. Shipping itself is a separate charge, which depends on the destination, the weight, and the service your customer chooses. At Cenfil, shipping is handled by PostNL, DHL, and bpost, among others.

Keep those two items separate when comparing. A proposal that combines everything into a single amount per package makes it difficult to see where a difference comes from once you start shipping to more destinations.

What You Don't Pay

Er zijn geen opstartkosten en geen opslagkosten. Ook inslagkosten blijven weg, zolang je voorraad wordt aangeleverd volgens de aanleverinstructies met een scanbare barcode per artikel. Zo betaal je niet vooruit voor capaciteit die je nog niet gebruikt.

Wel geldt er een minimumfactuur per periode. Die werkt als een minimale afname en niet als een extra bedrag: wat je in dezelfde periode aan reguliere fulfilmentdiensten afneemt, wordt er volledig mee verrekend.

Compare it to your current situation

A proposal seems expensive as long as you compare it to zero. So be sure to factor in on your end what isn’t currently listed on an invoice: warehouse space, employee hours, packaging materials, your own shipping contracts, and the time spent handling exceptions. Only then are you comparing two complete pictures.