Case study
boldebottle.com
BOLDE® Bottle sells a premium SKU “A” that is commonly purchased alongside two smaller ticket accessory items, SKUs “B” and “C.” While nearly 40% of all orders include this combination, fulfilling each item separately incurs higher pick and pack costs at the warehouse.
ROI
Reduction in Shipping Rates
Average Shipping Savings
Overview
By implementing an intelligent order mapping solution that bundles these items post-purchase, our client was able to optimize fulfillment processes and reduce shipping charges considerably—all while maintaining an optimal customer experience and preserving Shopify analytics reliability.
Challenges
The core challenges included:
Operational Efficiency:
– Customers order item A along with accessory items B and C, but fulfilling these items individually results in increased pick, pack, and shipping costs.
– The fulfillment provider charges for each individual item, making it cost-inefficient when three separate units are processed.
Seamless Integration Without Disrupting Sales:
– Directly modifying orders within Shopify could negatively affect sales metrics and customer analytics.
– The solution needed to work via an API integration with the fulfillment provider to dynamically re-map the order items into a bundled SKU format.
Maintaining the Customer Experience:
– Although bundling orders pre-fulfillment offers cost benefits, the client did not want to present the bundled option upfront.
– The objective was to preserve the sales experience (selling SKU A first and subsequently upselling B and C) while still capturing the benefits of bundling for fulfillment.
Solutions
To overcome these challenges, we developed a customized, API-driven workflow with key features:
API-Based Order Mapping:
– The solution intercepts orders containing the A+B+C combination and re-maps the order information before it reaches the warehouse.
– Depending on inventory availability, the solution dynamically converts the order into either a fully bundled format (SKU ABC) or into a partial bundle (two items bundled plus one separate).
Dynamic Bundling Logic:
– Full Bundle: For approximately 70% of orders where all items can be bundled, the entire order is processed as a single SKU. This reduces the shipping cost from $15 to $9.
– Partial Bundle: When a full bundle is not entirely available, the system bundles two SKUs and leaves one separate, reducing costs from $15 to $13.
– This flexibility allows the client to optimize shipping costs without compromising fulfillment efficiency.
Maintaining Customer Experience and Data Integrity:
– Customers continue to see and purchase SKU A with B and C upsell offers on the storefront, ensuring a focused, conversion-optimized shopping experience.
– The backend adjustments remain invisible to the customer while helping preserve the integrity of Shopify’s analytics and performance tracking.
Results
The strategic implementation of the dynamic bundling solution led to remarkable outcomes:
Significant Shipping Cost Savings:
– For 40% of 60k+ total orders with an A+B+C combination, the savings totaled approximately $100,000+ by optimizing the fulfillment process.
Up to 40% Reduction in Shipping Rates on Fully Bundled Orders:
Bundling SKU A, B, and C as a single item reduces the shipping cost from $15 to $9 per order—a 40% savings when full bundling is executed.
Average Shipping Savings of Approximately 32%:
With a blend of full (70%) and partial (30%) bundled orders, the overall shipping cost reduction averages out to nearly 32% per order where bundling is applied.