Footwear Fulfillment Solutions

Online footwear sales are in high demand, given the lack of availability of in-store options and the closure of many smaller independent shoe stores.

This growing market shows $23.3 billion in sales for 2022, with projected market growth of 8.7% each year.

These figures make footwear an excellent industry for eCommerce sales. Footwear fulfillment can pose significant challenges simply given the nature of the product.

Kable Product Service is a leading expert in the logistics of footwear fulfillment and can help your business meet the customer expectations of this growing market.

Challenges in footwear fulfillment

Shoe list

Managing footwear inventory

Footwear has many variables, including brand, material, size, style, and fit.

This industry may require more inventory than others, as shoe sales are based almost exclusively on personal preference and trending items.

In an effort to be inclusive, sellers must stock whole and half sizes and many other options to satisfy consumer demand.

Your eCommerce business must manage inventory in a way that’s intentional and seamless.

Shoes in box

Footwear storage

If you’re in the footwear market, you understand that a large amount of storage is required to satisfy inventory requirements.

Self-fulfillment can make this difficult, as items either need to be stored and organized in such a way that allows for adequate inventory management and fast fulfillment.

Every step of the order fulfillment process must be tracked to reflect accurate inventory numbers.

Additionally, the tracking process is essential when it comes to quickly locating items to pick and pack for footwear fulfillment. Inventory must be correct to reflect actual availability and ship times.

Returns

Processing footwear returns

While online orders as a whole are averaging 20.8% [SB1] in online returns, footwear has the highest return rate among those returns.

Internet-based footwear retailers have opened up options for consumers that were not previously available.

Consumers now have access to specialty shoe brands that may not have been locally available before the execution of online shoe stores.  Footwear can be a challenging market due to the variables involved. Ultimately, a customer can love everything about a footwear item in your inventory, but returns will happen based on poor fit (something out of your control as a supplier) or quality preferences.

These things can pose problems with reverse logistics, especially if you have a lot of items coming back to you at one time. Customers often order several pairs of shoes, only intending to keep the pair that fits the best. This process can create a problem with accurate inventory management and tracking.

Footwear fulfillment with Kable Product Services

Partnering with Kable Product Services for your footwear fulfillment elevates your business. We are here to help you off-load a time-consuming component of your eCommerce store so you can focus on other critical priorities for your business.

Once orders are received, our warehouse professionals work quickly to pick your order from the designated area of our warehouse.

After all the items in the order are picked, they transition into the packaging process.

Kable Product Services works diligently to pack items in a way that’s professional and exceeds your standards as an eCommerce operator.

We understand that presentation plays a vital role in fulfillment, and it’s our duty to help execute the process with a high degree of professionalism and precision.

Opening Shoe Box

We do not create or supply custom packaging, but if you choose to implement a branded packing experience for your customers, we will happily complete the fulfillment process with the packaging you provide.

You may consider custom boxes, filler, promotional and instructional inserts, or sample items included with the finished package.

After packaging is complete, your customer’s order will be handed off to one of our trusted shipping partners for delivery to its final destination. We can also rate shop outbound orders to ensure the best ship method is utilized for package delivery.

Kable Product Services’ warehouse is centrally located in Cincinnati, Ohio – positioning us within 600 miles of 60% of the United States zip codes.

As we mentioned, footwear is a frequently returned inventory item.

Just because an item is delivered successfully doesn’t mean that it’s the end of the fulfillment process for the customer, your eCommerce business, or Kable Product Services.

We’re your fulfillment partner for the duration of the transaction.

When items return to our warehouse, they proceed through inspection, and we will scan them into inventory once again. If items need to be refurbished or discarded, we also handle that piece.

Kable Product Services uses an intelligent inventory management system that provides total transparency through the ordering process.

Inventory updates and order status will show in your system immediately. Additionally, our system integrates with your sales platform and provides real-time results when you’re checking on your business from the backend.

Kable Product Services is ready and available to help with your footwear fulfillment needs.

We commit to helping you streamline your order fulfillment and deliver your brand experience.

By outsourcing your fulfillment and inventory management to a seasoned 3PL partner, you can reallocate your time to focusing on other areas of your business.

We would love to tell you more about the benefits we offer our valued footwear clients. Please contact us by calling (800) 596-0030 or filling out our contact form.