Amazon FBA Labelling Questions

[norwichmuscles]

All,

So I'm new to all of this, and I had some questions re Amazon FBA labelling questions:

• I understand I should get the Chinese company exporting my product to place a label on each product that contains a SKU for my reference. Is this right?
• I understand for a new product, I will need to get a UPC/EAN code created and the supplier will need to have this attached to the label of each individual product. Is this right?
• I understand for an existing product with a UPC/EAN code - I have to use this code and get the supplier to attach it to each individual product. Is this right?
• I understand for the pallet/carton packaging, there may be a specific code (with address) to place so Amazon is aware what the order relates to/so it can deliver it to the appropriate place within its warehouse etc?

Any help re the above would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

 

[lww]

I would say:

* No
* Yes
* Yes
* Yes

Generally all products require a UPC/EAN barcode or a personal SKU sticker - it's easier to just put on proper barcodes if you can... if it's your own product then they will be your own barcodes, if it's an existing 3rd party product then just use theirs (usually they are printed onto the packaging of course). This then lets you hold your own stock, or "co-mingle" and share stock with other sellers selling the same product.

You have to book in shipments with Amazon - you create a shipping plan, and then you either send in a "less-than-a-load" delivery (ie. just boxes via a courier like Parcel Force), or schedule a slot to deliver pallet-loads. Once your shipment is booked and confirmed, you get a label to print which needs to be fixed to the outer carton - I think would work OK for "less-than-a-load" boxes from China but I don't know what you do for larger loads as they normally need scheduled delivery slots. Until you book the shipment though, you won't have a label or know where it needs to be sent.

 

[Wavecrest Ltd]

I would be a little bit cautious about getting the manufacturer to do the labeling unless you have a very straightforward product range e.g. only one colour. The reason I say this is we have had many shipments over the years turn up from China incorrectly labelled - for example green umbrellas marked up as white.

We have a number of clients that sell on Amazon and we do the labeling here in the UK on their behalf and arrange the booking in at the FBA.

As mentioned above all pallet deliveries have to be booked in for specific time slots. Depending on the delivery FBA depot there can also be requirements on how the pallets are packed (e.g. height limit)

 

[MOIC]

It depends on the product and how many SKU's are in the shipment as to whether you can rely on a China supplier to label correctly.

If the SKU's are likely to be confused by the China supplier, then it's advisable to have the labeling supervised, probably at the same time as the product inspection, to save on costs.

Take on board, that the person you are speaking to at the factory in China is not the person who will be doing the labeling. Misinformation happens, especially when they "think" they know English.

We apply barcode labels to shipments sent to fulfillment warehouses, including Amazon warehouses and have this supervised by our inspection team.

There are many do's and don'ts associated with deliveries to Amazon.

The 4 points noted in the OP is part of a long list..

 

[Iain Hill]

Hi,

Completely agree with the above.

I've seen relatively simple labelling carried out in China which has been completely incorrect. It may initially be more expensive to get it labelled in the UK and then sent to Amazon, but believe in the long run it will work out cheaper as you wont have to pay to correct mistakes.

We can label for Amazon before being sent there so if you have any further questions feel free to PM me.

Good Luck!

Iain

 

[VAL]

Amazon Fba is a bit of a headeache if you asked me.
If your label is incorrect you will have to pay them to relabel it for you again.
Look clearly on the types of labels Amazon accepts for fba.
I would purchase original ones from GS1 uk the label provider if you do a lot of re labelling on new items.
If you make a small mistake on fba everything gets delayed.