Table of Contents
** Minutes
From kitchen table to CrossFit games
Ultimate flexibility to manage logistics virtually
Learn how athletic brand FLEO Shorts stays flexible and reaches for high customer satisfaction by partnering with ShipBob for ecommerce fulfillment.
Customer Profile
FLEO Shorts creates strength training apparel for CrossFitters, weightlifters, powerlifters, and other fierce women who are every bit as fun loving as they are iron willed, and whose training is purposeful, structured, and committed. FLEO designs their shorts in-house and manufactures them in the US.
Key metrics:
- 30% growth year over year since joining ShipBob
- 2 months worth of unit volume sold over Black Friday/Cyber Monday weekend
- 100% organic growth
FLEO Shorts is a company that lives in a “spandex universe” where fit is king, fabrics stretch in four directions, and colors are vibrant and alive. Every detail is carefully crafted and each element is designed with a purpose.
FLEO supports female athletes in niche spaces — including CrossFit, Olympic weight lifting, and even running, volleyball, and track and field — with award winning comfort and designs.
Hear from co-founder Carl Protsch on FLEO’s organic growth story and how partnering with ShipBob has helped them achieve success.
From kitchen table to CrossFit games
As told to ShipBob by Carl Protsch, Co-Founder of FLEO.
My wife, Babs King, launched FLEO four years ago to create women’s apparel for the CrossFit, Olympic lifting, and weight lifting market.
As the creative brains behind our company, Babs did all of the design and sewing herself when we started. We have since built out our manufacturing capacity but are truly a “kitchen table” success story, growing 100% organically.
As lifters ourselves, we reach new customers by staying involved with our gym network to find various competitions and events across the country, which have proven to be more valuable than selling through traditional retailers.
Over the years, we’ve also found the right influential athletes and brands in our space to partner with for special projects. Staying connected with our unique, tight-knit community is important to us, especially as direct-to-consumer brand.
But sizable growth for an apparel business doesn’t happen without some hiccups. We’ve hit new scale challenges each time we double or triple in size, with fulfillment being one of them. Luckily, we partnered with ShipBob and they have helped us get to where we are today.
“Before ShipBob, we used a fulfillment center that frankly couldn’t scale with us. Since moving to ShipBob we’ve grown 30% year over year, which is a testament to their scalability, service, and technology. I feel really fortunate to have found ShipBob when we did.”
Carl Protsch, Co-Founder of FLEO
Ultimate flexibility to manage logistics virtually
ShipBob has a strong integration with our Shopify Plus site to sync our two systems. The great interface and flexibility help simplify and manage the entire fulfillment process.
We roll out new products and designs on our website 1-3 times a month and send new inventory to ShipBob each week. It’s really easy to create new SKUs and restock existing ones using ShipBob’s technology, which is especially important with high inventory turnover.
As soon as we announce a new pair of shorts, they sell quickly. The majority of our sales volume is concentrated on a few days each month. These major releases naturally result in some customers entering the wrong information at checkout, creating the need to update the order post-purchase.
With ShipBob, we have the flexibility to quickly correct and edit this type of error to provide the best customer experience. And we don’t have to worry about fulfilling large volumes of orders on time, all at once, or by ourselves.
“ShipBob should be top of mind for ecommerce companies experiencing growth, so they can focus on brand and design instead of packing boxes.”
Carl Protsch, Co-Founder of FLEO
ShipBob’s technology also provides cost savings. Other 3PLs pass fees onto the client for work they do related to manual processes because they lack the fulfillment technology needed to meet customer expectations.
ShipBob’s technology has effectively eliminated the work of a program manager at other 3PLs, while providing immediate visibility into inventory and the ability to respond and make changes myself.
Continuing to grow with the right 3PL partner
Being based in Houston, I visit ShipBob’s Dallas fulfillment center quarterly and have watched ShipBob scale alongside FLEO.
As our customer base grows, so does our global reach. Having orders shipping internationally, ShipBob’s affordable rates solved our need for international fulfillment capabilities.
Over Black Friday and Cyber Monday, we will release many new products and we anticipate selling two months of unit volume in that weekend alone.
I feel confident that ShipBob will make Black Friday and Cyber Monday a success for us, helping us live up to our customers’ expectations and deliver on time.
Operationally, having the right partner to work through our pain points is a big deal for us, and ShipBob helps us with all of them. In my eyes, ShipBob is competing against the Amazons of the world. Not only are they very cost-competitive and quick, they actually care.
“With ShipBob, we have the right partner to work through any pain points we face by talking to experts who specialize in shipping and logistics.”
Carl Protsch, Co-Founder of FLEO
What’s next
As FLEO evolves, we will strive to maintain both our best-in-class athletic apparel and community-driven approach.
We will continue to release new product lines, sponsor athletes, and be involved in major competitions across our community.
I know ShipBob can remain a partner of ours as we grow even more — from expanding into additional fulfillment centers and distributing our inventory across the country to utilizing more of their capabilities — all while maintaining that partner feel.
Learn more
Need to partner with a 3PL for ecommerce fulfillment? Get in touch with ShipBob to receive a pricing quote and learn how you can scale your business while enhancing the customer experience.
