Commerce operations
3PL (third-party logistics)
A 3PL is an external provider that stores inventory and picks, packs and ships orders on a brand's behalf.
Multi-3PL operations introduce a routing decision on every order: which location should fulfil it, given stock, destination and cost. Done well this reduces transit time and shipping spend simultaneously; done by static rules it does neither.
The recurring failure is inventory truth. When stock levels live in the 3PL and the storefront holds a synced copy, the lag between them is where overselling happens — and it widens exactly when volume spikes.