Logistics platform provider ShipBob has announced the opening of its first fulfilment centre in Western Canada and revealed that it has added two new freight partners to its end-to-end managed freight and inventory distribution programme, FreightBob, further expanding its global network.
The company’s facility in Western Canada is in British Columbia and marks the first in ShipBob’s network’s to be in Western Canada and the fifth for ShipBob in the country overall.
Meanwhile, the new freight partners – Maersk and ECU Worldwide – have been added to the FreightBob programme, which since its launch in 2022, has powered ocean and air freight into the ShipBob fulfilment network for hundreds of merchants moving thousands of cubic meters, with the most popular lanes being Asia to the US and the UK.
Expansion into Western Canada
ShipBob, which offers a global supply chain and fulfilment platform for SMB and mid-market e-commerce merchants, noted that its expansion into Western Canada will help “drive down shipping costs and transit times” for its customers in the region.
Located in Surrey, British Columbia, the new fulfilment centre is just outside of Vancouver. Merchants can now distribute inventory in the British Columbia fulfilment centre in the West, in addition to ShipBob's fulfillment centers in Ontario in the East to get inventory closer to consumers across Canada.
Like the rest of the nearly 60 facilities in the ShipBob logistics network, this new fulfilment centre will be equipped with ShipBob’s cutting-edge technology designed to provide merchants with unparalleled visibility.
“We continue to put our merchants at the centre of everything we do, and this new location expands our countrywide operating footprint to provide an even better delivery experience to consumers in Western Canada,” said Divey Gulati, COO of ShipBob.
New freight partners
Meanwhile, through the new freight partners, ShipBob noted that its merchants can “unlock many more global freight lanes” with FreightBob, levelling up the entire supply chain experience from port to porch.
Maersk, for example, has 65,000 port pairs in more than 100 countries without any volume minimums, providing ShipBob merchants of all sizes with curated solutions that are fit even for first-time importers.
ECU Worldwide is a global leader in ocean consolidation and air freight, enabling cargo movements across 180 countries, with more than 2,400 direct trade lanes and door-to-door deliveries in over 50 markets.
With these new partners, FreightBob now gives ShipBob merchants access to guaranteed ocean freight sailings, air freight, and domestic freight from most global locations directly to ShipBob’s receiving hubs and fulfilment centres for smarter distribution from the factory floor to the customer’s door.
Melissa Nick, Chief Supply Chain Officer at ShipBob, said: “We're confident that these new partners will support our merchants through every global freight need, from clearing customs to importing inventory, while unlocking preferred rates.”
“The Maersk and ShipBob partnership brings together two like-minded companies who share an ambition and commitment to meet customer needs,” added Mark Fearnehough, UKI Area Head of LCL at Maersk. “Together we look to deliver premier reliability and efficiency, coupled with the agility to respond to rapid market changes through a fully owned global network.”
