Cookies on this site

We use cookies to see how the site's used and to make it better. You can accept all of them, reject the non-essential ones, or choose what you're happy with. The essential cookies stay on because the site needs them to work. See our cookie policy.

UK ecommerce fulfilment services, run by people who pick up the phone

We store, pick, pack and dispatch orders for growing eCommerce brands from our warehouse in Sheffield. Orders in before 2pm go out the same day. When you need a person, you get a named contact who knows your account, not a queue.

5.0 · 25 reviews
THE PROBLEM

You're probably at the point where the packing is the business

Doing it yourself worked. It got you here. These are the signs it's now costing you more than it saves.

Evenings and weekends are dispatch

Every hour on the packing bench is an hour not spent on buying, marketing or product. That's the real price of in-house fulfilment, and it doesn't show up anywhere in your accounts.

Your best week is your worst week

A feature, a viral post or Black Friday should be the best thing that happens to you. In a lock-up it means late dispatch, apologetic emails and stock you can't find. Capacity stops being something you have to plan.

Your carrier rates are retail

Add up rent on the unit, packaging bought in small runs, your own time and the postage you're paying at counter rates. When we build that comparison on a call, outsourcing usually costs less than founders expect.

5.0
5 stars from our happy customers used in the testimonials
from 25 reviews
Founder-led, not outsourced
Your stock treated like our own
A real person, not a ticket queue
WHAT WE HANDLE

Everything between your stock arriving and your customer's door

What outsourcing actually looks like

From your lock-up to live, in four steps

You've never done this before, so we don't assume you have. Every step is explained, agreed in writing, and run by the same person from first call to go-live.

01

A call, then real numbers

Twenty minutes on what you sell, how many orders you ship and how you pack them. You leave with a costed quote on your actual volumes and an honest view on whether now is the right time.

02

We learn how you pack

Your boxes, your tissue, your inserts, your card in every third order. We write your pack down as a spec, using your boxes, your tissue, your inserts and your cards, and agree it with you before we ship anything.

03

Store connected, stock moved in

We connect your Shopify, Etsy, Amazon or eBay and run test orders end to end. Then a pallet or van load comes over from your unit, and we book it in and check it in against what you've told us to expect.

04

Your first morning off the bench

Orders drop in as customers check out, get picked and packed to your spec, and go out same day on daily carrier collections. You watch it happen from your phone.

BEFORE YOU HAND IT OVER

What people worry about before they hand it over

Fair worries. Here are the straight answers.

“Nobody will care about it like I do.”

You get a named account manager on site in Sheffield who learns your products and your peak, not a ticket queue. They pick up the phone, and they tell you when something's gone wrong before your customer does.

“The unboxing is my brand.”

We pack to your written spec with your own materials, down to the tissue and the thank-you card. You sign off a photographed sample before go-live, and you can change the spec whenever you want.

“I'll lose sight of my stock.”

Live stock and order visibility is included, not an upsell. You see every order and every SKU in one place, and levels sync back to your store automatically so you don't oversell.

"We're probably too small for you."

There's no hard minimum to get started. Our only guideline is around five orders a week for each pallet space your stock uses, so it scales with the room you take up rather than a flat number. New brands get a 90-day exemption while you ramp up. If staying in-house a bit longer is the better call, we'll tell you.

"Peak is when it'll fall over."

Peak pricing is the bit most brands get stung on. Carrier peak surcharges get passed on at exactly what the carriers charge us, with nothing added on top, so a busy November doesn't quietly become a margin problem. And your rates come down as your volume climbs rather than staying where they started.

"Something will go wrong eventually."

It will. Logistics isn't perfect and now and then an order goes out wrong. If the mistake is ours, we cover the full cost to pick, pack and reship the correct order, so it never lands on your P&L. Then we find the cause and change the process rather than patching it for the day.

Sheffield, S9 3AJ

See where your stock would live before you commit

Unit 3-4 Parkway Link, Kettlebridge Road. Come and walk the pick faces, watch an order get packed and meet the person who'd run your account.
Arrange a visit →
QUESTIONS WORTH ASKING

First-time questions, straight answers

Nothing here is a trick question. If yours isn't listed, ask us on the call.

When should I stop doing my own fulfilment?
Most brands reach the point somewhere between 300 and 1,000 orders a month, or sooner if packing is eating the hours you need for buying, marketing and product. The clearer signal isn't volume, it's cost: once you're paying yourself or staff to pack, a 3PL is often cheaper per order than doing it yourself.
How much does it cost to outsource fulfilment in the UK?
You pay per order picked, a small amount per extra item in the order, storage per pallet or shelf, and the carrier rate. Cloud9 publishes an example rate card and quotes on your real order profile. Integrations and account management are included, and nothing new appears on the invoice without your written agreement.
Am I too small for a fulfilment company?
There's no hard minimum to get started. Our standard guideline is around five orders a week for each pallet space your stock uses, so it scales with the room you take up rather than a flat number. New brands also get a 90-day exemption while you find your feet, so being small or just launching is never a barrier.
Will my packaging and unboxing stay the same?
Yes. We pack to your written spec using your boxes, tissue, inserts, stickers and cards. We build the spec with you before go-live and photograph the finished pack so you can sign it off.
How do I get my stock to the warehouse?
Most first-time clients send a pallet or a van load over from their lock-up or unit. We book it in, check it in against your numbers and flag anything that doesn't match. If you want a full count on goods-in, we can do that as an option.
Do I have to sign a long contract?
New brands start on a six-month rolling term. That's deliberate, because you shouldn't be locked in while you're still working out what your volumes look like. Everything's agreed in writing before you sign, and we'll walk you through it line by line.
GET A QUOTE

Tell us what you ship, and we'll show you what it costs

Give us a picture of your products, your volumes and where you sell, and we'll build a line-by-line quote and a plan to move you across. No obligation, and if we're not the right fit yet, we'll tell you.

Your enquiry goes straight to our UK team. We don't outsource sales or support.
Honest advice, even if Cloud9 isn't the right fit for you.
No hard sell, no pressure, no obligation.
Prefer to talk now?
0114 551 4900
Mon - Fri 9am - 5pm