When you think of supplements and vitamins, you might immediately picture the large-scale retail stores such as Vitamin Shoppe or GNC, or even smaller supplement and nutrition stores. You may have even started to notice the industry take off in the last few years due to social media and the push for individuals to make better health choices in their day-to-day.

This upward profitability in the supplement industry may even have you become curious as to how you can start your own supplement company—even if you are new to the industry. The answer is in using supplement fulfillment services.

The only question is, who is your ideal customer? Consumers or other businesses?

Today, we are going to go over some of the main differences between business-to-business (B2B) fulfillment vs. business-to-consumer (B2C) fulfillment to help you decide which distribution model is best for your supplement business in the long haul.

What is B2B Supplement Fulfillment?

B2B supplement fulfillment is a business model where your focus will be on the distribution and sale of supplements to other businesses. (It is also known as Wholesale Order Fulfillment or Wholesale Distribution.)

A typical B2B order involves multiple items and has a shipping destination at a business or commercial address. B2B selling is generally sold in larger quantities and at a lower rate per item than if you were to sell the product directly to the consumer.

A full-service B2B supplement fulfillment company, like Equinox Nutra, provides services that range from R&D to storage and distribution to packaging and shipping. With our B2B supplement fulfillment, we can help you out as you begin your journey stocking shelves with your branded supplement products!

Next, we are going to discuss some of the benefits of B2B fulfillment services to lay out some of the pros to choosing a fulfillment service over-performing fulfillment in-house.

The Benefits of B2B Fulfillment

Supplements are a popular choice for many health-conscious individuals. However, selling supplements can be challenging, especially when you are just starting out. That is why more and more supplement brands choose to outsource their B2B order fulfillment needs to a third-party logistics provider (3PL) like Equinox Nutra.

Some of the key benefits of B2B fulfillment services include:

1. Cost:  The biggest benefit of hiring fulfillment companies is that it will help you in reducing your expenses. You don’t need to hire employees to manage your inventory and ship products. And you also don’t need to hire a customer service team to handle returns, complaints, or other inquiries. By choosing the right fulfillment service, they can handle all of the heavy lifting for you!
2. Time: Warehousing and order fulfillment services can take up a lot of time and effort. If you don’t want to waste your time or put effort into these tasks, then you should consider outsourcing them. The best part about outsourcing these tasks is that you can focus on other important aspects of your business like marketing and sales.
3. Flexibility and Scalability: When working with a third party, you only pay for what you need—when you need it. For example, during periods of high demand or peak seasons, fulfillment needs to increase, so you can increase the number of orders shipped out each day and reduce this number as needed. A third party is able to fulfill orders based on your individual needs, saving you resources in the long run.

What is B2C Supplement Fulfillment?

B2C fulfillment means that the supplement fulfillment center is shipping orders to consumers. It is also known as Direct to Consumer (DTC) fulfillment.

A typical B2C order involves one item and has a shipping destination at a residential address. Unlike B2B fulfillment, these orders are generally in smaller quantities and sold at full price to the consumer.

At Equinox Nutra, we offer both dropshipping for e-commerce businesses and regular contract manufacturing so you can easily put your product in the hands of consumers!

The Benefits of B2C Fulfillment

When you work with a company that offers B2C supplement fulfillment services, your product is directly shipped from the manufacturing facility to the customer’s front door.

With this streamlined approach, you don’t have to worry about stocking inventory, hiring employees, or buying packaging equipment. What other benefits do B2C supplement fulfillment services offer? A few are:

1. Shipping: As mentioned before, B2C supplement fulfillment services ship your product directly to the consumer’s residence. Supplement fulfillment companies also often offer discounted shipping rates, which can help you reduce shipping costs and increase profits. And because the fulfillment center will have the staff and technology to ship efficiently, you can save time and cut expenses.
2. Customer Service: B2C supplement fulfillment services handle all customer service needs, including order tracking, returns/refunds, address corrections, and lost packages. This allows you to focus on promoting your products and growing your business instead of having to deal with customer service concerns or inquiries.
3. Fulfillment Management Software: By using B2C supplement fulfillment services, you should get full access to fulfillment management software. This software makes it easier for you to manage inventory, orders, and to quickly view customer accounts.

All in all, you won’t have to go out of your way to purchase an expensive fulfillment management software because your B2C fulfillment partner already has one!

Equinox Nutra & Supplement Fulfillment

It’s no secret that managing the supply chain and fulfillment processes for a business is not an easy feat. And it can become even more challenging when you are selling products online.

Many businesses do not have the resources to manage their own inventory and fulfill orders. This is where the B2B or B2C supplement fulfillment services, like Equinox Nutra, come in handy. At Equinox Nutra, we take care of everything from inventory management to shipping the products to customers. Are you ready to level up your supplement business with a fulfillment service you trust? Contact us to get a quote today!