A 3PL (third-party logistics) provider is a partner you hire to manage the physical side of your ecommerce business, including warehousing, inventory management, and order fulfillment. Partnering with a 3PL allows you to offload daily operations so you can focus on growing your brand.

The inventory turnover ratio in days tells you exactly how long, on average, a piece of inventory sits on your shelf before someone buys it. Think of it as a stopwatch for your stock. A low number is fantastic—it means products are flying off the shelves. A high number? That’s a red flag that your cash is tied up in slow-moving goods.

An Advanced Shipping Notification (ASN) is a digital heads-up from your supplier. It details exactly what’s in a shipment, the precise quantities, and when it’s scheduled to arrive. Think of it as a detailed tracking update for an entire B2B shipment, giving you the complete picture before the delivery truck even pulls up.

The 3PL vs 4PL conversation comes down to a simple question: are you looking for a partner to do the logistical work, or a partner to manage the entire process? A 3PL is your hands-on crew, physically handling warehousing and shipping. A 4PL acts as the general contractor for your supply chain, managing all the different players (including 3PLs) to ensure the entire system works together seamlessly.

Inventory turnover days is a metric that tells you, on average, how many days it takes for your business to sell its entire stock.

Think of it like the fresh ingredients in a restaurant’s kitchen. Inventory turnover days shows how quickly you use up all those ingredients to serve dishes before needing to restock.

Last-mile delivery is the final, crucial step in getting an order to your customer. It’s the journey a package takes from a local distribution hub to a customer’s front door, and it’s often the most expensive and complex part of the entire shipping process.