How Can I Ship 100 Orders a Day Without Packing Them Myself?

Category: Order Fulfilment

If you want to outsource packing and shipping because 100 daily orders are taking over your working day, the usual solution is an order fulfilment partner. You send your stock to their warehouse, connect your sales channels and agree how orders should be packed and dispatched. Their team then handles the physical work while you manage the business.

The key is not simply finding someone who can pack 100 parcels. You need a reliable process for normal trading days, weekend backlogs, promotions and returns, without creating more administration for you.

Which service actually removes the packing work?

A courier collection alone will not solve the problem. It moves parcels after you have picked the products, packed them and prepared them for collection.

Contract packing can help with a defined job, such as assembling bundles or re-packing products. However, that is different from managing a daily stream of individual customer orders.

Full order fulfilment covers the recurring workflow: receiving stock, storing it, picking items against orders, packing them and arranging dispatch. Returns handling may also be included, depending on the agreement.

You still control your products, customer promises and stock purchasing. The warehouse takes over the physical handling, rather than the commercial decisions behind your business.

How to outsource packing and shipping at 100 orders a day

Start by defining what “100 orders a day” means operationally. Is that 100 orders placed each calendar day, or 100 parcels leaving on each dispatch day? The distinction matters when orders arrive over weekends but the warehouse only dispatches on working days.

For example, 100 orders on Saturday and another 100 on Sunday create a backlog of 200 before Monday's new orders arrive. Your provider needs to understand that pattern, not just your daily average.

Order complexity matters too. A single-item order in a standard carton is a different job from a six-item gift box with tissue paper and a personalised insert.

Give prospective partners a representative period of actual order data, including busy days. Ask them to confirm capacity against your product mix, packaging requirements and dispatch schedule. There is no universal order threshold that makes outsourcing the right choice, and 100 orders should be treated as a workload to assess rather than an automatic buying signal.

Compare the full cost, not just the packing fee

Before you outsource packing and shipping, compare the complete outsourced cost with what your current operation genuinely costs. A low headline pick-and-pack fee does not tell you the total bill.

Use the same order profile and delivery requirements for every quotation.

For the in-house comparison, include labour, employer costs, premises, materials, software and delivery charges. Count your own packing time as a resource, even if you do not currently pay yourself an hourly rate for it.

As an illustration, 100 orders taking five minutes each require 500 minutes, or eight hours and 20 minutes. That is a planning example, not an industry benchmark, and it excludes receiving stock and dealing with returns.

Our guide to order fulfilment costs per order explains how the different charges fit together.

Prepare a brief that makes quotations useful

You can outsource packing and shipping more smoothly when the provider understands your operation before stock arrives. A short, accurate brief is more useful than a rough monthly parcel count.

Include the information that changes the work involved:

• Products: SKU count, dimensions, weights, barcodes and any fragile, perishable or restricted items.
• Orders: Daily volumes, busiest days, items per order, delivery destinations and sales channels.
• Stock: Typical quantities held, replenishment frequency and how suppliers deliver goods.
• Packing: Required materials, inserts, bundles, presentation standards and product-specific instructions.
• Service: Dispatch days, cut-off requirements, delivery options and returns instructions.

A SKU is simply the unique reference for a particular product or variant. If two sizes or colours look similar, clear references and readable barcodes help the warehouse distinguish them.

Send photographs or sample packs where presentation matters. “Pack carefully” leaves room for interpretation; an approved sample showing the materials and arrangement gives both sides something concrete to follow.

Move to the warehouse without interrupting dispatch

The safest way to outsource packing and shipping is to agree a controlled handover rather than sending everything away and hoping the next day's orders work.

Reconcile the stock first

Count the stock being transferred and provide a manifest showing product references and quantities. Agree how shortages, damage or unexpected items will be reported when the delivery is received.

Confirm when stock becomes available for orders. Delivery to the warehouse and completion of the receiving process are separate events, so do not promise customers that transferred stock is ready before that has been confirmed.

Test real order scenarios

Check the connection between your sales platform and the warehouse before the full switch. Test a straightforward order, a multi-item order, an out-of-stock item and a cancellation request.

Confirm that product references, addresses, delivery services and dispatch updates pass through correctly. Ask what happens if a customer changes an address after an order has reached the warehouse, particularly once picking has started.

Set one clear handover point

Agree the final orders your existing operation will handle and the first orders the warehouse will handle. Running both without clear rules creates a risk of duplicate dispatches or missed orders.

Where practical, keep enough stock available to cover the transition. If you phase the move, define exactly which products or orders belong to each location and how stock availability will stay accurate.

Keep visibility without managing every parcel

Outsourcing should remove manual work, not leave you chasing basic information. Establish how you will see stock levels, order progress, dispatch confirmation and returned goods.

Your warehousing and storage arrangements should also match the products you sell. Batch references, serial numbers or best-before dates may matter more than a simple total stock count.

Agree who deals with exceptions and how quickly they should be raised. A missing item, damaged product or incomplete address needs an owner and a clear next step. Decide which issues the warehouse can resolve under agreed rules and which require your approval.

When you outsource packing and shipping, review a small set of measures rather than every individual order: dispatch against the agreed deadline, picking accuracy, stock discrepancies, returns turnaround and total cost per dispatched order.

Keep dispatch and delivery separate in those reviews. An order can leave the warehouse on time but arrive late with the carrier. Understanding where a delay occurred helps you address the right problem.

How Gus Logistics can support the change

For a business handling around 100 orders a day, the relevant question is whether a provider can support your particular workload and service requirements.

Gus Logistics is a family-run provider based in Nantwich, Cheshire, with over 10 years of experience supporting eCommerce brands, manufacturers and product businesses. Its order fulfilment service includes pick and pack, with integrations for more than 60 platforms, including Shopify, Amazon, eBay, WooCommerce and Magento.

If you want to outsource packing and shipping without committing to a minimum order volume, Gus Logistics has no minimum volume requirements. Customers speak directly to the people handling their freight rather than a call centre.

Real-time warehouse tracking through a client portal, returns management and batch, serial number and best-before date tracking are also available. Late cut-offs up to 10pm and next-day dispatch can support suitable operations, but confirm the arrangements for your channels, dispatch days and chosen services. Next-day dispatch is not the same promise as next-day delivery.

Frequently asked questions

Is 100 orders a day enough to use a fulfilment company? It is enough to justify a detailed comparison, but volume alone does not determine suitability. Product complexity, storage needs, margins and the time spent on fulfilment all matter. Provider minimums vary; Gus Logistics has no minimum volume requirements.

Is it cheaper to outsource packing and shipping? It can be, but savings are not guaranteed. Compare the complete outsourced bill with your full in-house cost, using equivalent delivery services and packaging standards. Also consider whether outsourcing removes a capacity constraint that is preventing growth.

Can I keep using my own packaging? Confirm this before agreeing the service. Ask how your materials will be supplied, stored and replenished, whether they affect packing charges and what happens if they run out.

Which UK fulfilment company is best for my business? Choose against your actual requirements rather than a general ranking. Ask each shortlisted provider to explain how it would handle your busy days, unusual orders, stock discrepancies and returns, then compare complete quotations.

Discuss your 100-order-a-day operation

Have your daily order volumes, SKU count, typical parcel dimensions and current packing process ready. Those details make it easier to establish the right service and obtain a meaningful quotation.

Call Gus Logistics on 01270 335014 to discuss moving your packing and dispatch to a fulfilment partner. Quotes are usually turned around the same working day.