Ecommerce Fulfillment Guide

A good rule is to look at each product and market separately. Fast-selling products with steady demand are usually better to stock locally, especially if customers expect faster delivery. New products, slower-moving SKUs, seasonal items, or products with unpredictable demand can often stay in China for more flexibility. You should also consider product size, weight, margins, storage costs, shipping costs, and how quickly you can restock.

We support custom packaging, kitting, and assembly at our China warehouse. Packaging can be tailored to match your brand identity, including more eco-friendly options. For bundles, subscription boxes, promotional sets, or other multi-item orders, our team can sort, assemble, and pack products together before fulfillment to ensure consistent presentation and accurate order preparation.

It depends on the product, order volume, and destination. Fulfilling from China may have higher international shipping costs, but it can reduce expenses such as bulk freight, local receiving, storage, and excess inventory. Local fulfillment usually offers lower domestic shipping rates, but you also need to account for importing, duties, storage, and inventory carrying costs. So, the cheapest shipping rate is not always the cheapest option overall. The better comparison is the total fulfillment cost per order.

When you move inventory overseas, you’re paying for it before it starts generating sales. On top of manufacturing, you may also need to cover bulk shipping, duties, receiving, and storage costs upfront. If those products sell slowly, more of your cash stays tied up in inventory for longer and storage costs can continue to build. That’s why sales velocity matters. Fast-moving products are usually easier to justify stocking locally, while slower or less predictable products can put more pressure on cash flow.

You don’t need a Chinese bank account to pay for shipping. We support several international payment options, including credit card, debit card, bank transfer, PayPal, and Payoneer. Payments can be made in major currencies such as USD, EUR, GBP, AUD, and CAD. Depending on the payment method, processing may take one or a few business days. Once the payment is received and verified, your account balance will be updated automatically.

It depends on how quickly each product sells, how much stock you have left, and how long replenishment takes. Fast-moving products may need more frequent restocking, while products with steady demand can often be replenished in larger, planned shipments.

It’s also important to review sales performance regularly and adjust your replenishment plan as demand changes. The goal is to keep enough stock available without overstocking.

Stock each warehouse based on where each product is actually selling, rather than splitting inventory evenly. Track sales by SKU and location, inventory levels, and replenishment times, then adjust future shipments as demand changes.

A hybrid fulfillment setup can also help by keeping some inventory centralized in China while proven, faster-moving products are stocked locally. This gives you more flexibility to replenish local warehouses without committing too much inventory too early.

Before sending inventory, simply set up your OMS account and add the relevant product details. You’ll also need to create a receiving order so the warehouse knows what is arriving and can prepare to receive it.

Our support team will guide you through the required steps.

Customs duties and import taxes can add cost whether you ship directly from China or stock inventory locally. With China fulfillment, duties and taxes may apply to individual international orders. With local fulfillment, they are usually paid when inventory is imported in bulk and become part of the product’s landed cost. The best way to compare options is to look at the full landed and fulfillment cost, not duties alone. Costs can also vary by product, destination, declared value, and local import rules.

Local fulfillment is usually faster because the products are already stored in the destination market and can ship through domestic delivery networks. China fulfillment takes longer because orders travel internationally and may need to pass through customs before local delivery. Actual delivery times depend on the destination, shipping method, customs processing, product type, and carrier. Speed is important, but it should also be balanced against cost and inventory risk, especially for products that do not need the fastest possible delivery.

Orders and inventory should be managed through one connected system, so you can see where each SKU is stored and how much stock is available at each location. Orders can then be routed based on factors like customer location, product availability, delivery speed, shipping cost, and inventory levels. This makes it easier to manage multiple warehouses as one network and adjust inventory or routing as demand changes.

A China warehouse can be a good fit if your supply chain is based in China and you want more control before products ship to customers. It can simplify supplier coordination, product checks, consolidation, pre-packaging, kitting, and bundling. It also supports branding through custom packaging, marketing inserts, thank-you cards, and other branded materials, helping you create a more consistent customer experience.