USA fulfillment strategy: Stord · ShipBob · B2B specialist
USA D2C + Amazon + B2BDecision by Jun 30, 2026East 69% · West 31%
Strategic pivot in v5. The decision has split into two separate questions. We're not picking one provider for everything — we're picking the right provider for each workload. ShipBob and Stord have both been unsuccessful running Costco / Sam's Club / roadshow B2B. That work belongs at a specialist 3PL. DTC + Amazon belongs at whoever can execute East-hero / West-non-hero with FTZ at both nodes. Stord's dual FTZ commitment (Hebron + Reno) plus 3PL ownership plus Steve Swan pre-IPO partnership posture inverts the prior composite — Stord now leads 6.72 vs 6.00.
The decision, split
DTC + Amazon consolidation
~80% of total fulfillment spend · single provider
East hero node carries 100% of active catalog at Stord Hebron, KY with new FTZ. West non-hero carries top 20% of SKUs driving 80% of west-coast sales at Stord Reno, NV with new FTZ. Network design brings split-ship orders close to 0%.
Answer: Consolidate to Stord, conditional on written FTZ commitments and Jun 30 decision criteria
B2B + Costco / Sam's + roadshow
~20% of fulfillment spend · specialist provider
Club store routing guides, MABD, GS1-128 labeling, 9-block pallet builds, roadshow stage management. Both ShipBob and Stord struggle with this workload. It belongs at a 3PL whose core business is retail compliance, not DTC.
Answer: RFP among 3-5 B2B specialist 3PLs (candidates below)
DTC consolidation scoring
B2B / roadshow stripped out, since that workload moves elsewhere. Scenario A = base, B = Stord delivers all FTZ commitments by Jun 30, C = ShipBob delivers NE FTZ + DFW14 fix by Jun 30.
ShipBob composite
6.00
obj 5.62 · subj 6.57
Recommendation
Consolidate to Stord
gap -0.72 pts · scenario A
Stord composite
6.72
obj 6.76 · subj 6.66
60%
Network strategy · East hero / West non-hero
69% of small-parcel volume ships to zones 5-7 from the east. East node carries the full active catalog to ship complete; west node carries the 80/20 workhorse SKUs. Split-ship rate drops close to zero.
Hero · 100% catalog
East node
Hebron, KY (Stord) · CVG cluster
Catalog coverage100% active SKUs
Parcel volume served69% (zones 5-7)
FTZ statusVerbal commit pending writing
Geographic advantage~1 day to NE / Mid-Atlantic
Ship-complete rateNear 100%
Non-hero · 20% SKUs / 80% sales
West node
Reno, NV (Stord-owned) · Long Beach proximity
Catalog coverageTop 20% SKUs (80% sales)
Parcel volume served31% (west + zones 1-4)
FTZ statusVerbal commit pending writing
Cost advantageReno < Fontana / LA
Port proximityLong Beach inbound
Must-haves framework
For DTC + Amazon workload only (B2B / roadshow moves to specialist). Stord now passes 4 of 5 with one conditional on a fix. ShipBob passes 3 of 5.
Competitive pricing
Storage, handling, FTZ-adjusted total cost
ShipBobStord
Integrated APIs / webhooks
Working endpoints, ~80% parity at Stord per TC IT
ShipBobStord
MCP-capable connection
ShipBob native MCP; Stord via TC IT custom MCP layer
Both still fail on SLA execution. ShipBob DFW14 inventory issues (no RF-aided putaway, WROs not closing out). Stord -3.4% inventory shrink vs 0.3% ceiling, Insights tab broken. The Jun 30 decision criteria are exactly what each provider must commit to in writing to convert their SLA fail into a pass.
Decision criteria · June 30 review
Stord must commit in writing
Hebron, KY FTZ commitment with builder, operator, go-live date
Reno, NV FTZ commitment with builder, operator, go-live date
Inventory variance closed to under 1.0% net by Jun 15, 2026
Insights tab fixed and operational
AI reporting tool roadmap with delivery dates (Domo replacement)
Specific API endpoint completion (Insights, Parcel Insights, Shipment Activity)
30-day clean DTC execution proof point
ShipBob fallback if Stord falls short
NE FTZ go-live commitment by Sep 1, 2026 in writing
RF-aided putaway at DFW14 with documented SOP and timeline
WRO auto-close-out within 24 hours of physical receipt
Direct floor access protocol (named contacts, FaceTime SLA)
FTZ-fine pass-through removed from MSA (19 CFR 146.23(b))
Storage rate parity with Stord ($0.04/unit/month benchmark)
30-day clean DTC execution proof point at DFW14
Decision timeline
May 9–31
Information gathering.
Get Stord written FTZ commitments (Hebron + Reno) with named operators. Confirm Steve Swan "exciting announcement" implications. Issue B2B / roadshow RFP to 3-5 specialist 3PLs (candidates below). Reconcile ShipBob portal Ramp card-charges with Adam. Stord rebate billing dispute opened.
Jun 1–30
Decision review and B2B RFP scoring.
Run this rubric live with Ben, Adam, Santos, Siobhan. Score B2B RFP responses. Make final DTC consolidation call and B2B specialist selection by Jun 30.
Jul 1–15
Notifications and transition kickoffs.
Notify ShipBob of DTC transition (if Stord wins) or notify Stord of changes (if ShipBob wins). Kick off B2B specialist onboarding. Lock peak 2026 plan.
Aug–Oct
Transition execution.
Stand up Hebron FTZ and Reno FTZ. Migrate B2B / roadshow operations to specialist 3PL. Run parallel for 30 days before single-cutover on each workload.
Nov 1, 2026
Peak 2026 live.
Full DTC + Amazon volume on chosen DTC provider with East-hero / West-non-hero network operational. B2B and roadshow handled by specialist with documented Costco / Sam's compliance.
Contract pricing comparison · DTC workload
Line item
Stord
ShipBob
Edge
Storage (per unit/mo, apparel)
$0.040
$0.044
Stord
Pallet receiving (single SKU)
$6.01
$7.00
Stord
Case receiving (single SKU)
$1.84
$2.50
Stord
Mixed SKU receiving (per unit)
$0.25
$0.20
ShipBob
Implementation fee (one-time)
$25,000
$10,000
ShipBob
Monthly account support fee
$10,000
none
ShipBob
OMS / software (per order)
$0.10
included
ShipBob
URO fee (unidentified receiving)
none
$25 + $25/day
Stord
Annual volume rebate
2.00%
none
Stord
FTZ working-capital benefit · East
$1.5–2.0M
$0 today
Stord
FTZ working-capital benefit · West
$1.0–1.5M
$1.0–1.5M
Tied
Total annualized FTZ benefit
$2.5–3.5M
$1.0–1.5M
Stord
Stord rate-card advantage on most line items + dual FTZ produces $1.5–2.0M annualized cost differential at TC's current volume. Conditional on Stord delivering both FTZs.
Financial reconciliation
ShipBob · 11 months
NetSuite AP (Feb–Apr 2026)$4.95M
Ramp bills paid$0.17M
Portal Ramp card (est)$6.80M
Total reconciled$11.75M
Monthly run-rate$1.07M
Stord · 13 months
NetSuite AP (full window)$15.46M
Ramp bills paid (subset)$6.52M
Portal direct charges$0.00
Total reconciled$15.46M
Monthly run-rate$1.19M
Open AR item. NetSuite confirms no Stord rebate credit memo applied. Period 1 spend $14.18M earned $283,678 rebate, $23,640/month amortization. ~$77,920 owed to date. Adam / Finance opening billing dispute this week.
Issue trajectory · quarterly Slack mentions
Stord trajectory: structural inventory issue growth Q2 2025 to Q2 2026. ShipBob trajectory: volume-correlated plateau. Both providers' trajectories were measured against the full workload (DTC + B2B). With B2B / roadshow moving to a specialist, the relevant signal for DTC consolidation is the pattern, not the absolute count.
Objective KPIs · DTC workload
KPIWeightShipBobStordGap
Subjective KPIs · trajectory
Tap each KPI to see early / middle / recent trajectory per provider, plus the weight slider.
B2B / Costco / Sam's specialist 3PL candidates
Five candidates known for retail compliance, club store routing guides, and roadshow execution. All offer EDI integration (850/856/810), MABD management, 9-block pallet builds, and GS1-128 labeling. Suggested approach: send RFP to all 5 with TC's specific roadshow / Costco / Sam's volume during May, score responses in June.
Family-owned since 1941. Apparel & footwear vertical specialty. ISO quality program manages retailer routing guides in centralized database. Walmart OTIF case studies. "Direct access to senior leadership decision makers" cultural fit. Strong Memphis + Dallas + California cluster reaches Costco / Sam's DCs efficiently.
Employee-owned (ESOP). Named retailer relationships: Costco, Target, Lowe's, Walmart, Macy's, Kroger, Publix, Sam's-adjacent. Apparel and beauty verticals. Madison Reed case study: 50%+ chargeback reduction across 3,800 retailers. Scale advantage with shared facilities for cost efficiency.
Family-owned, asset-based 3PL with one of the largest retail distribution networks in North America. Heavy retail / CPG focus, less DTC. Strong inland network with positioning near most major retailer DCs. Bigger account-management overhead than family-owned peers but operational scale advantages on roadshow surge labor.
Acquired by Maersk in 2020. Omnichannel retail focus with club-store routing expertise inherited from Performance Team's pre-acquisition retail-distribution roots. Global supply chain resources useful for upstream inbound coordination. Corporate culture vs family-owned alternatives.
Parent
A.P. Moller-Maersk
Acquired
2020
Verticals
Retail, omnichannel
Scope
Global network
Suggested RFP framework. Send each provider TC's actual Costco / Sam's / roadshow volume, peak-week intensity, current chargeback rates, MABD requirements, and 9-block pallet specs. Score on retailer-named experience (40%), pricing (25%), implementation timeline (15%), technology / EDI capability (15%), cultural fit (5%). Site visits are non-negotiable per Barrett's own advice — "a site visit tells you more in 15 minutes than any sales presentation."
Recommendation
Recommendation: split the workload. Consolidate DTC + Amazon to Stord with East-hero (Hebron, KY + new FTZ) / West-non-hero (Reno, NV + new FTZ) network. Move B2B + Costco / Sam's + roadshow to a specialist 3PL via RFP. Wind down ShipBob post-transition, or maintain as backup for non-FTZ overflow.
Why Stord wins DTC + Amazon in v5 (changed from v4):
Dual FTZ commitment beats single proposal. Stord Hebron + Reno (both Stord-owned) vs ShipBob Fontana (active) + NE proposed. Dual-FTZ working capital benefit estimated $2.5–3.5M annualized vs ShipBob $1.0–1.5M.
Geography aligns with East-hero strategy. Hebron, KY is structurally better than Fontana, CA for serving the 69% of small-parcel volume in zones 5-7. Reno-Long Beach beats Fontana-Long Beach on cost.
3PL ownership of both facilities. Direct floor access via Joe and Steve Swan when problems arise, vs ShipBob's 4PL communication chain that costs real hard-dollars (turned trucks, paperwork delays).
Executive partnership is pre-IPO grade. Steve Swan (President + COO) personally driving the relationship, IPO disclosure shared executive-to-executive, flagship reference status with press-quote request. Pre-IPO Stord is the most motivated Stord ever.
API is at ~80% parity, not zero. Stord APIs exist at developers.stord.com; TC IT controls exposure layer. Domo replacement with AI tool and VP of Analytics commitment closes the trajectory gap.
Rate card is cheaper on most line items. Storage, pallet receiving, case receiving, no URO daily fee, plus 2% rebate (~$309K/yr at current volume).
Why ShipBob loses DTC consolidation in v5:
4PL communication chain creates structural cost in any workload, especially during peak.
DFW14 inventory issues are systemic (no RF putaway, WROs not closing out, ICQA emergency) — and DFW14 is exactly the wrong geography for East-hero strategy.
NE FTZ is proposed but not delivered; Stord's commitment matches with dual locations.
The Mark Anders + 2-Node analysis is real partnership behavior but at AM / engineering layer, not C-suite. Steve Swan brings deeper executive sponsorship.
Why B2B / roadshow goes to a specialist:
Neither ShipBob nor Stord has been able to execute Costco / Sam's / roadshow reliably — both have publicly missed roadshow execution in May 2026.
Specialist 3PLs (Barrett, Buske, Saddle Creek, NFI, Performance Team) have built their core competency around routing-guide compliance, 9-block pallet builds, MABD management, and 99%+ retailer scorecards.
Splitting workloads protects DTC peak from B2B roadshow chaos. Decouples two operational rhythms that have repeatedly collided.
Specialist pricing on the ~20% B2B fraction of fulfillment spend likely beats Stord / ShipBob B2B rates by 10–20%, offsetting any small loss of consolidation discount.
Risks to manage:
Stord dual-FTZ commitment is still verbal. Get both in writing with builder, operator, go-live date before Jun 30 decision.
Stord inventory variance must close to under 1.0% net by Jun 15 to demonstrate execution credibility.
Pre-IPO Stord has incentive misalignment risk: post-IPO they may deprioritize the customer-reference posture they're showing now. Lock in contractual commitments while leverage is highest.
B2B specialist transition adds operational complexity through Q3 2026. RFP and site visits in May/June are non-negotiable.