Amazon FBM 3PL Partner: Keeping Control While You Scale on Amazon

Why Brands Go Looking for an Amazon FBM 3PL Partner

When you start searching for an Amazon FBM 3PL partner, it is usually not because you love acronyms. It is because your brand has grown past the stage where boxes can be shipped from a garage, but you are not ready to hand total control to FBA. Maybe your catalog includes heavier items that get punished by FBA fees. Maybe you want to control packaging and unboxing experiences. Maybe you are tired of storage surprises or restock limits landing out of nowhere. Whatever the reason, you are looking for a way to stay competitive on Amazon without turning your entire operation over to someone else.

That is what makes the combination of FBM and 3PL so interesting. Fulfilled by Merchant keeps ownership of the fulfillment process with you and your partner. A strong 3PL adds nationwide infrastructure, carrier relationships, and systems you do not have to build yourself. When those two pieces line up, you can ship like a much bigger company while still steering the decisions that matter for your brand.

Beyond a Simple Prep or Ship Vendor

The search for an Amazon FBM 3PL partner is really a search for leverage. You want a team that understands Amazon, but also understands what you are trying to build. Matt Bradbury described the kind of brand that needs this level of support. He said, "A larger customer would have a strong direct to consumer presence, driving back to their organic store. So either its a Shopify or a WooCommerce platform. They might have some presence on Amazon, but they have grown enough brand recognition in the D2C space that the majority of their customers and month over month orders are going to their store." That is the profile of a company that has moved past shipping out of the basement, but still cares deeply about how orders get out the door.

At that point, the choice of partner becomes part of your growth strategy. The wrong 3PL can slow you down. The right one can remove entire categories of headache from your weekly schedule.

FBM Demands the Same Accuracy Amazon Expects of Itself

Switching from FBA to FBM does not mean the rules go away. It means more of those rules land directly on you and your partner. Amazon still expects fast shipping, clean tracking, correct labels, and cartons that match the specs. Buyers do not care who put the label on the box. They just want it on time and in good condition. If your FBM setup cannot hit those expectations, the platform will quietly push your listings behind sellers who can.

That is why experience with Amazon matters so much when you are choosing a 3PL. John Pistone explained just how unforgiving the details can be. He said, "Amazon is very strict about how those show up with the ASIN label, all of that. It has to be perfect or else you get chargebacks." Those chargebacks do not shrink just because fulfillment is happening through FBM instead of FBA. They simply change which step in your operation is responsible when something goes wrong.

System Strength Makes or Breaks FBM

To run FBM at any kind of scale, you need more than a warehouse with good intentions. You need systems that know exactly where your inventory is, how each order should be packed, which routing rules apply, and when each shipment needs to leave to keep your metrics clean. A 3PL that is guessing or using partial tracking will look fine until volumes spike. Then the cracks appear exactly when it hurts most.

Bryan Wright described the difference between a weak system and a strong one. He said, "A bad WMS system will not track inventory 100 percent, as it should. A good WMS tracks inventory through the warehouse at every point that you touch it." He went even further: "At any point in time, I know that Bobby has this product on fork 10 right now, and if I needed to go find that product, I just got to go find Bobby on fork 10." That level of detail is what lets an FBM operation stay reliable during Prime like surges instead of falling behind.

Why FBM 3PL Partners Need True Omnichannel Capability

Most brands that are ready for an Amazon FBM 3PL partner are not only selling on Amazon. They are also running a D2C storefront, experimenting with marketplaces, or shipping into retailers. If your 3PL can only handle cartons headed to Amazon buyers, you will eventually find yourself duplicating inventory, splitting systems, and managing multiple providers just to keep up.

Joel Malmquist described the value of tying channels together. He said, "With an up and coming business, Im going to ask you questions. What channels are you trying to get into? How do you see your business growing? How can we help you get there?" For a brand that is plugging into Amazon FBM, that kind of conversation matters. It means your 3PL is thinking about your entire channel mix, not just the one that happens to be in front of them today.

One Inventory, Many Channels

From a practical standpoint, a good Amazon FBM 3PL partner should be able to manage B2B and D2C flows out of the same operational backbone. That allows you to ship individual orders to Amazon customers, pallets into big box retailers, and cartons to boutique partners without reinventing your warehouse each time. When the underlying system is built for both, you gain options instead of constraints.

Matt Bradbury pointed this out clearly when he said, "Our system is built to be a B2B system as well as D2C, right? So we have the ability to do the routing guidelines, the retail compliance, the EDI exchange with all major retailers. We can do serial scans as well." For an FBM seller, that flexibility means you do not have to bolt on new providers every time an opportunity appears. You can grow into them with the same 3PL.

Handling Complexity: From Retail Compliance to Hazmat

An Amazon FBM 3PL partner is tested not by simple orders, but by complex ones. Retail routing guides, carton and pallet rules, strict labeling requirements, and chargeback happy partners all raise the stakes. A provider that is only comfortable with basic direct to consumer shipping may be fine for a while, but they will hit a ceiling as your account matures.

On the retail side, Joel Malmquist has seen how high the bar really is. He said, "Ensuring retail compliance can be involved. Walmarts pretty intense with their labeling rules. Dicks Sporting Goods is the same; if you dont do it right, you get those massive chargeback." The habits and processes that protect you from those chargebacks also show up in how an FBM 3PL manages Amazon orders. Precision is a culture, not a one off project.

When Products Get Regulated

Complexity jumps again if your catalog includes regulated products. Power stations, lithium batteries, flammables, and other HAZMAT classified items bring in a whole different rulebook. Many warehouses simply say no to this entire category, even if the products are a core part of your brand. That is a problem if your growth is tied to categories the average provider will not touch.

Kay Hillmann explained what it takes to do this work correctly. She said, "In order to ship any hazardous material, you need to be certified in that classification of material. FedEx and UPS, they have a certification that you can go through. But I would argue that thats not even close to being enough. Theres a book (its almost four inches thick) of the rules and regulations that the DOT requires for you to label, ship, and store hazardous materials." She also pointed out the stakes: "Youre liable, as the shipper, to make sure its packaged correctly. If you dont, there are fines that can be involved." That is exactly the kind of risk you want a truly capable 3PL to absorb and manage on your behalf.

Trust, Transparency, and Day to Day Support

Beyond systems and certifications, there is a softer but equally important part of choosing an Amazon FBM 3PL partner. It is how issues get handled when something does not go to plan. Peak season spikes, carrier delays, late inbounds, and retailer fire drills will all happen sooner or later. When they do, you need access to people who know your account, not a generic ticket queue where you explain your brand from scratch every time.

Joel Malmquist described the support experience this way: "If youre working with G10, your experience for getting help is that you can either email or call your direct point of contact. Its that simple." That kind of direct line is especially important when Amazon is watching your on time shipping rates, and one missed truck could impact your metrics across a large number of orders.

Consulting, Not Just Cartons

Founders who are serious about Amazon often want more than someone who will simply do what they are told. They want a partner who can help them avoid expensive mistakes and make better use of the options Amazon and other channels offer. That is where experience on both the technology and operations side becomes a real advantage.

Bryan Wright summed up that role when he said, "We are able to consult with customers, and get them comfortable that we are the experts in this business." For an FBM brand, that expertise is part of the value you are paying for. It shows up when your 3PL suggests better ways to route orders, structure inventory, or plug into a new retailer without blowing up your existing workflows.

Choosing the Right Amazon FBM 3PL Partner

The right Amazon FBM 3PL partner gives you something FBA never will, which is long term control over how your brand operates while still competing on speed. You should expect strong systems, omnichannel capability, comfort with complexity, clear communication, and pricing that reflects real value instead of short term shortcuts. When those pieces line up, FBM stops being a backup plan and starts becoming one of your core strengths.

If youre ready to treat FBM as part of a larger strategy instead of a last resort, it may be time to work with a 3PL that lives in this world every day. Reach out and see how G10 can help you ship fast, stay flexible, and keep your hands on the controls as your Amazon presence grows.