Flexport now provides all merchants with the option to select the packaging type in which their products ship to customers. There are three packaging options to choose from:
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Flexport Recommended: Likely to ship in a polybag or bubble mailer if possible. Heavier items will likely ship in a box.
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Fragile Protection: Ship in a box. Recommended for fragile items.
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Ready to Ship: Ship in own container with no additional packaging.
How to update packaging type
Navigate to the inventory detail page and scroll down to the Fulfillment Fees section.
Click on the edit icon and select your preferred packaging type for this product. Click Change packaging.
There is a surcharge for Fragile Protection. When Fragile Protection is selected, you will see the surcharge in the Fulfillment cost. The surcharge includes both the material cost and the incremental shipping cost for shipping the product in a box.
There is a discount for Ready to Ship. When Ready to Ship is selected, you will see the discount in the Packaging fulfillment cost.
If Flexport has determined that your product must ship in Fragile Protection in order to avoid damages, you will see the tooltip below. You will not be able to change your packaging type through Flexport Portal and must reach out to our Support Team. This is to help avoid damages to your products during the fulfillment process.
Additionally, Hazmat items must ship in boxes. When a product is designated as containing Lithium batteries during inbound, Flexport will automatically update the packaging type to Fragile Protection, and this cannot be changed without reaching out to the Flexport support team.
Note: Products that are oversized do not qualify for the Ready to Ship discount. A product is considered oversized if its shortest side is > 8" or its median side is > 14" or its longest side is > 18". Oversized products must be sent to Flexport as Ready to Ship (see #3 below).
Frequently asked questions:
1. I prefer my products to ship in a bubble mailer. How do I specify this?
Currently, we do not provide a bubble mailer packaging selection option in Flexport portal. When Flexport Recommended is selected, Flexport chooses the packaging type that makes the most sense for the product during fulfillment (polybag, bubble mailer, or box).
2. Some of my products were previously enrolled in the box-only program prior to this Flexport portal update. What happens to the packaging selection?
The packaging selection will be maintained: products enrolled in box-only prior to this feature release will have Fragile Protection selected in Flexport portal and the surcharge will be applied.
3. What are the requirements for Ready to Ship (ship in own container)?
At a minimum, the SIOC product needs to be able to fit a 4" x 6" shipping label. Additionally, items over 20 lbs or that do not fit into a box that is 18" x 14" x 8" MUST be sent to Flexport ready to ship. These oversized items do not qualify for the Ready to ship discount.
If we determine that the packaging you have sent your products is not suitable for ready to ship (e.g. if it leads to damaged products), we will follow up with you.
4. What happens if there is a multi-unit shipment for a product that is Ready to Ship? Will the units ship separately?
No, we will try to avoid multiple shipments. These units will likely be shipped together in a box, and no surcharge or discount will be applied.
5. Do oversized SKUs qualify for the Ready to Ship discount and the multi-unit discount?
No, there is no multi-unit discount or Ready to Ship discount for oversized items. However, oversized SKUs still count toward the overall quantity of items in the order e.g. if there is one oversized SIOC SKU and one standard sized SKU in an order, the order is treated as multi-unit and the standard size SKU gets the multi-unit fulfillment rate. The fulfillment rate for the oversized SIOC SKU in this scenario would be the same as the single unit fulfillment rate.
6. Is there a way to make packaging preference updates in bulk?
No, not at this time. We may offer this functionality in the future.