How does shipping work?
UNFI Endless Aisle is a fully dropship program. This means all orders are shipped directly to retailers from suppliers instead of first delivering to a UNFI warehouse for distribution.
Orders should be dropshipped directly to the retailer via parcel carrier such as UPS or FedEx. All orders must be shipped from and to the continental U.S.
There are two options for shipping, you can create a label using your own shipping accounts and/or through a 3PL partner, or you can create a label using ‘Ship with Mable’. Ship with Mable allows you to create a shipping label on Mable’s FedEx or UPS accounts, all you have to do is enter the parcel details when prompted and then print the label when it has been generated.
As a reminder, all UNFI Endless Aisle orders need to be shipped within 5 business days of receiving the order. This means that tracking information needs to be added to an order before the cancellation date and time, if tracking information is not added within 5 business days of receiving the order, then the order will be automatically cancelled and cannot be uncancelled. Even if an order is physically shipped within those 5 days, it is crucial that the tracking information is also added to the order within this timeframe to prevent cancellation.
If you use Ship with Mable tracking will automatically be added when you make a label, but if you ship an order on your own account make sure to add that tracking and cost right away in your Mable seller portal.
Who pays for shipping?
UNFI retailers pay all shipping costs for orders placed through Endless Aisle.
If you ship an order using your own shipping account(s) be sure to upload the correct cost to the order in your Mable portal alongside tracking, and you will be reimbursed for that cost in your payout for this order. If you use Ship with Mable to create a shipping label, that shipping cost will not impact your payout and will be covered by the retailer.
UNFI retailers’ pricing is calculated based on UPS and FedEx shipping estimates, see more on pricing here. Please avoid using USPS whenever possible, it will not save money for the retailer and can lead to more delivery and tracking issues than other carriers.
Shipping with a 3PL
If you ship using a 3PL, you will need to enter the tracking details from your 3PL into a given order in your Mable seller portal. Please make sure you are able to get those shipping details from your 3PL within the required 5 business days.
Many sellers streamline their order fulfillment process by integrating their Mable orders with their Shopify store via platforms like ShipStation. With a Shopify integration and Shipping Sync turned on, the tracking number will automatically sync from your Shopify to an order in Mable. You will still need to go into your Mable portal to add shipping cost, but this is not required within the 5 day window- tracking is sufficient to prevent an order from cancelling.
Sync your Mable orders to your Shopify store here.