How to choose a 3PL near Washington, DC: 10 questions to ask

If your customers are mostly on the East Coast, a warehouse in the Washington, DC area puts your inventory within one or two days' ground shipping of a large share of them. That can mean cheaper labels and faster delivery dates at checkout. But location is only the first filter. Here's what to ask once you have a shortlist.

1. Where exactly is the warehouse, and can I visit?

You should know the street address your inventory will sit at, and a serious 3PL will let you tour it. If a provider won't say where your stock is, or routes it to a partner warehouse, ask why.

2. What's the same-day shipping cutoff?

This determines when your customers actually get their orders. Ask for the cutoff time and what happens to orders that come in after it. At our warehouse, orders received by 1 PM Eastern ship the same business day.

3. How long does ground shipping take to my customers?

Ask for transit times to the cities you sell to most. From Lorton, Virginia, UPS Ground typically reaches DC, Baltimore and Richmond in one business day, New York and Philadelphia in one to two, and Boston, Charlotte and Atlanta in two.

4. Does it connect to my sales channels?

Orders should flow in automatically from Shopify, Amazon, Walmart, eBay, TikTok Shop or wherever you sell, and tracking should flow back. Ask how inventory counts sync too, so you don't oversell.

5. Who do I talk to when something goes wrong?

A ticket queue and a named person are very different experiences during the holidays. Ask who your contact is and how quickly they reply.

6. Are prices published and locked in the contract?

Ask whether the rates on the quote are the rates you'll pay for the full contract term, and get them in writing.

7. Is there a minimum, and what happens if I miss it?

Many 3PLs have a monthly order minimum or minimum bill. Find out how it's measured and whether a slow month triggers a fee.

8. How are receiving discrepancies handled?

If your supplier ships 480 units instead of 500, you want to know the day it arrives, not when a customer order fails. Ask whether every carton is counted and how you'll be told about shortages or damage.

9. How are returns processed?

Ask what it costs per return, how quickly sellable units go back into stock and what happens to damaged ones.

10. Can I see my inventory and orders myself?

You should have your own login to check stock levels and order status without emailing anyone.

How we answer these

Global Prep Service is an owner-operated 3PL and FBA prep warehouse at 8538 Terminal Rd in Lorton, Virginia, just off I-95 and about 20 miles south of DC. Here's how we'd answer the questions above:

• Visits by appointment
• Same-day shipping on orders in by 1 PM ET
• Integrations with Shopify, Amazon, Walmart, eBay and TikTok Shop
• Published rates locked into your contract
• A 500-order monthly minimum averaged over the quarter
• Every carton counted on arrival
• Your own client portal login

If you'd like to see the warehouse or get a quote, get in touch.

More from the blog

• Amazon stopped doing FBA prep. Here's what sellers do now
• 3PL pricing explained: what you'll actually pay per order