WFS (Walmart Fulfilled Shipping)
WHat IS WFS?
WFS is a service that Walmart offers to Walmart Marketplace sellers. Instead of shipping each order received on Walmart.com yourself, you can ship bulk quantities via a small package carrier or LTL to Walmart and have them warehouse and fulfill your product (for a fee). If you are familiar with Amazon’s FBA program, you could consider WFS to be Walmart’s competitive equivalent/alternative.
Does this apply to Walmart Vendors?
No, WFS is exclusively a Walmart Marketplace program. It’s certainly possible for a Walmart Supplier/Vendor to open a marketplace account and utilize WFS, but you cannot utilize WFS under a Walmart contract (which already specifies your required method of transportation).
Why?
Shipping individual orders can be very time consuming and expensive. Additionally, it is easy to fall behind on new orders, which can cause you to incur penalties in Walmart’s system and can lead to a risk of negative customer reviews.
Since Walmart is a very large company, they can get better rates on inbound and delivery freight. Another key advantage of the WFS program is that it allows you to have extremely fast ship times. Walmart also prioritizes WFS clients in their search results.
WFS is an optional program, not required by Walmart, but it definitely has key advantages over self-fulfillment.
Cost?
WFS, or Walmart Fulfilled Shipping, is a paid service. Sellers should expect to pay inbound shipping, packing/fulfillment charges, and warehousing costs. Additionally, sellers can pay to have Walmart label and bag their product. Items with a standard UPC do not need to be relabeled, since Walmart uses a standard UPC when picking inventory. On many products, the fulfillment fee is around $3-$4. This is in addition to the normal commission fee that Walmart assesses on all marketplace sales.
Sellers can calculate how much WFS will cost via the WFS Calculator: https://marketplace.walmart.com/walmart-fulfillment-services-pricing/
Are there alternatives?
Yes! There are third party alternatives, such as Deliverr. These services generally cost more, but can also fulfill orders from other retailers (such as Amazon).
How can OCM Help?
Setting up Walmart Marketplace can be time consuming and very confusing. Contact OCM today to get help with all things Walmart Marketplace.