From Chelsea's Desk: Why We Tried a 3PL and Why We Brought Everything Back In-House

We moved to a 3rd party logistics company and brought it back in-house within 6 months.

I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately. 

In Q4 2025, after more than 12 years of running our own warehouse, we decided to move to a 3PL, a third-party logistics partner. 

At the time, it felt like the right decision. Honestly, it felt like the decision you are supposed to make. We were growing, orders were increasing, and complexity was building. Outsourcing fulfillment is what most brands are told to do at that stage. It is framed as the upgrade. The thing that makes you more efficient, more scalable, more legitimate. 

And on paper, it checks every box. 

But in reality, it is far more fragile than people admit. 

What I did not fully understand until we were in it is this: fulfillment is not just an operational function. It is one of the purest expressions of your brand. And the second you hand it off, you introduce distance between you and the customer. That distance shows up everywhere. 

We are not a business that ships one type of order. We are fulfilling across e-commerce, large retail, distribution, and independent stores. Each channel has its own expectations, timing, and level of precision. A 3PL can follow a process, but they do not know your business. And that gap matters more than you think. 

There was a moment that really shifted things for me. After seeing the way our products were packed in boxes that arrived to customers, with little regard for how they looked or felt when opened, it forced a realization that is hard to ignore once you see it: no one will ever care about your product the way you do. 

That is not a knock on anyone. It is just the reality of handing something off. But if that is true, then you have to decide what parts of your business you are actually willing to let go of. 

Because packaging is not just packaging. It is the first physical interaction someone has with your brand. It is the moment your product either feels considered or forgettable. And that is not something we are willing to outsource. 

We also underestimated how much complexity a 3PL introduces behind the scenes. Adding another layer did not simplify things. It created friction. Systems became harder to manage, communication slowed down, and issues took longer to fix. What looked like efficiency on the surface started to feel like loss of control underneath. 

At a certain point, we had to be honest: not everything that scales well preserves what matters. 

So we made the decision to bring everything back in-house. 

Luckily, we never fully gave up our warehouse, which allowed us to move quickly. And we have a strong operations and shipping team, which made this possible. But more than anything, we made this decision because we care about the details. The way something is packed, the way it arrives, and the way it feels to open. Those are not small things. That is the brand. 

Running your own fulfillment is harder. It is messier and requires more attention than most people want to give it. But it also keeps you close to the thing that matters most, which is the customer experience. 

If there is one thing I would say to any brand thinking about making the same move, it is this: do not assume outsourcing is an upgrade. Test it. Move slowly. Pay attention to what changes that you cannot immediately measure. 

Because once you introduce distance between you and your customer, it is very easy to underestimate what you have actually lost. 

And for us, it was not worth it. 

We’re building thoughtfully and sharing as we go.