Use Fulfillment by Amazon to Ship Your Handmade Products

You can use Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) to send inventory to one of our fulfillment centers. When a customer places an order, Amazon packs/handles the stored inventory and ships it for you.

Why should you use Fulfillment by Amazon?

The benefits of using FBA include:

• Free shipping on eligible orders: With FBA, your products are eligible for Amazon Prime free Two-Day Shipping and all Amazon customers can get free shipping on eligible orders.
• Customer service and returns: Amazon provides customer service on your behalf and handles returns for FBA orders.
• Take Advantage of FBA Only Opportunities: Enrolling in FBA allows you to use programs such as FBA Small and Light, Lightning Deals, Prime Exclusive Discounts and more, which can help you maximize sales and build customer trust.
• Choose from optional services including product preparation, repackaging, and Amazon partnered carrier options.

We recommend that you familiarize yourself with the FBA fees and rate structure prior to ensure it is the right fit for you.

The Fulfillment by Amazon Revenue Calculator is a great resource for determining what your actual fulfillment costs will be and how that impacts your margin – the amount of money left-over after you have subtracted all of your costs (materials, time, shipment, taxes, and other overhead).

Step 1: Convert your products to FBA

When you initially create your listings for your products, the default shipping option is Merchant Fulfilled. Switching to FBA requires that you make a change.

1. On the Manage Inventory page, select the items that you want to convert to FBA.
2. On the Action on Selected drop-down list, click Change to Fulfilled by Amazon.
3. This will direct you to the Convert to Fulfilled by Amazon page.
4. You will be asked to provide additional compliance information. Answer any questions and click Save & Continue.
5. At this point, you can click Convert and directed back to your Inventory page for Amazon-Fulfilled Inventory listings, or click Convert & Send Inventory and begin creating a shipping plan. See Step 3: Create a Shipping Plan for more details.

Step 2: Prepare your FBA Products

Proper preparation, packaging, and labeling can help ensure your products get transported safely and securely to the fulfillment center and made available quickly to customers. Prior to sending items to Amazon, you will need to ensure they are prepared correctly.

For additional information on the prep and packaging requirements for FBA, see Packaging and prep requirements and Shipping and routing requirements.

As hand-crafted products do not have a barcode attached to them, each product must be labeled individually with FBA Labels containing an Amazon barcode so that they can be received at Amazon’s Fulfillment Centers.

Step 3: Create a Shipment Plan

When you are ready to send inventory to Amazon, you begin by creating a shipping plan. A shipping plan specifies:

• The products you want to send to Amazon
• The quantity of each product
• The shipping method and carrier details

Specific details for creating a shipping plan can be found at Send/replenish inventory to Amazon.

Once your products are received at the fulfillment center, they are available for customers to buy. For more information, see How Amazon receives and stores your inventory and Manage FBA orders.

Replenishment Alerts: Amazon will alert you when remaining inventory falls below a threshold of your choosing. We suggest a duration of 4-8 weeks cover, which is likely to give you enough time to prepare/send inventory and have it received before items sell out.

FAQs

Is FBA right for you?

Determining if Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) is right for your business by using the FBA Revenue Calculator. This tool allows you to calculate your FBA fees by entering in the ASIN you are interested in enrolling. There are no inventory minimums, so you control which and how many items you enroll.

Can I create two listings - one with customizations and the other FBA?

Yes, but modify the title so that the listing is not a duplicate. Send in the non-customizable SKU to FBA and your offer with customizations can remain in MFN.

Examples:

You list a personalized necklace with chain lengths offered in 12”, 18” and 22”. You could offer one, two, or all three sizes without personalization through FBA by creating a unique custom-disabled listing for each size. You could also create a separate merchant fulfilled listing that offers engraving in all the chain lengths.

You have multiple candles in five different color containers. You could have an FBA offer for your best-selling colors – green and blue and also an MFN listing with customization options offering all five colors.

Why can't I convert my Handmade listing to FBA?

Listings must be Custom Disabled with attributes such as size or color fixed to be eligible.

How can I unsubscribe from FBA?

Refer Removal Process.