What No One Tells You About Getting Products on Shelves

Hey everyone,

Welcome back for part 2 of 3 of our retail series.

If you missed part 1, which answers the question, “Should my DTC brand go into retail?”, click here 👉 Part 1

Picture this: You just got the call that Walmart wants to carry your products in 4,000+ stores. You're celebrating, maybe even posting about it on LinkedIn.

Then reality hits.

The buyer sends you a 47-page vendor manual filled with acronyms you've never heard of. Your head starts spinning as you realize getting the "yes" was actually the easy part.

At Obvi, our first major Walmart shipment was a disaster that nearly cost us the relationship. Today, I want to share what we learned so you don't make the same expensive mistakes.

On the Menu:

• Why Your DTC Logistics Won't Work

• The 3PL Reality Check

• OTIF: The Metric That Rules Everything

• How We Lost $500K in 3 Weeks (Forecasting Edition)

Most Brands are One Algorithm Shift Away From Disaster

We know, because this was us.

We were over-reliant on Meta. Then iOS 14.5 hit, and our ROAS imploded.

What followed was a full system rebuild across attribution, creator partnerships, retail, and emerging channels.

We went from facing disaster to grossing $100M+ in sales in just 6 years. 

Join us (Ron, Ash, and Ankit) on July 22nd for a deep dive into what it actually takes to build a profitable growth engine that doesn’t depend on one platform to survive.

→ Attribution that works
→ Retail as a key unlock
→ Community as LTV driver
→ Creator systems that scale

Hosted by Elevar. Built for founders.

👉 Save your seat here

Why Your DTC Logistics Won't Work

When we first started with Walmart, we figured logistics would be straightforward. 

We were already shipping thousands of DTC orders monthly. Scaling to larger quantities shipped to fewer locations seemed manageable.

❌❌ We were wrong.

The first wake-up call came with Walmart's packaging requirements. 

Twenty-three pages of specifications for everything from box dimensions to label placement. Our DTC packaging didn't meet a single requirement.

But the real difference isn't packaging → it's stakes.

DTC customer's order delayed by a day: Slightly annoyed customer who'll probably order again.

Retail shipment delayed by a day: Disrupted distribution network serving hundreds of stores.

Here's the math… 

• Miss a Walmart delivery by 24 hours, and that delay cascades through their system, potentially causing stockouts in 500+ stores. 

• If each store planned to sell 2 units that week, you've cost them 1,000+ units of sales. 

• At $30 retail, that's $30,000 in lost revenue. Just one week, one product.

Our first shipment arrived 3 days late. 

We'd underestimated labeling requirements and spent 72 hours re-labeling 10,000 units by hand. The buyer made us write a formal explanation and commit to process improvements.

The lesson: Retail logistics isn't scaling DTC operations. It's building an entirely different muscle that prioritizes clean execution. 

The 3PL Reality Check

Our first 3PL was chosen like most DTC brands choose fulfillment: price per shipment, proximity to our office, clean warehouse during the tour.

❌❌ Big mistake.

Within 6 months…

Missed deliveries, incorrect packaging, constant firefighting. 

The final straw was when they shipped the wrong product to Target's distribution center. Instead of our collagen, Target received sleep supplements.

By the time we caught the error and reshipped, we'd burned through most of our Target buyer goodwill.

The problem wasn't incompetence.

They were good at DTC fulfillment. But retail requires specialized knowledge that many 3PLs don't have.

What changed everything: Switching to a retail-specialized 3PL.

Instead of explaining why Walmart needed ASNs or Target required specific case packs, our new partner already knew. 

They had dedicated account managers who understood each retailer's quirks.

Cost: 30% more than our previous arrangement.
Value: That Target error cost us ~$50,000 in lost sales. The extra we pay saves multiples of that in avoided mistakes.

💡 When evaluating 3PLs, ask: "How many brands do you work with that sell to [specific retailer]?" No references from your target retailers means keep looking.

OTIF: The Metric That Rules Everything

If you remember nothing else: OTIF determines retail success more than any other factor.

OTIF = "On Time In Full" → The percentage of orders delivered exactly when promised, with exactly the right quantities.

✅ ✅ Most retailers expect 95%+ OTIF rates. Miss consistently and you face chargebacks, reduced orders, fees, and potential removal.

Our worst OTIF month: 87%

Here’s what we found when we analyzed the failures:

• 40% packaging errors (wrong case pack quantities)

• 30% transportation issues (carrier delays)

• 20% inventory shortfalls (demand spikes)

• 10% documentation problems (missing paperwork)

Notice what's missing from that list? Product quality. Customer complaints. Marketing problems.

OTIF failures are operational, not strategic. But the consequences are absolutely strategic.

Poor OTIF doesn't just cost you money. It costs opportunities. Retailers give promotions, premium placement, and expansion to their most reliable suppliers.

How we fixed it:

• Tracked weekly instead of monthly

• Built buffers into production schedules

• Quality checks at every fulfillment stage

• Made OTIF part of our 3PL's compensation

Result: 87% to 97%+ in six months. Buyers started calling us first for new opportunities.

How We Lost $500K in 3 Weeks

Let me tell you about our most expensive forecasting mistake.

It was a new product launch into Walmart stores nationwide. Based on DTC data and optimistic assumptions, we forecasted 3 months of demand.

We thought we were conservative. Enough inventory for 12 weeks at projected sell-through.

❌❌ We sold through in 3 weeks.

Next 6 weeks: Empty shelves across 4,200 stores. Frustrated customers. A buyer questioning whether we understood retail.

When we restocked, momentum was gone. That error cost $500K+ in lost sales and $200K in expedited shipping.

The brutal truth is that retail forecasting has smaller margins for error but much larger consequences.

DTC stockout: Few days of delay, patient customers.
Retail stockout: Damaged relationships, lost shelf space that's nearly impossible to recover.

Our new framework:

Acknowledge retail is different → 

Customers discover through browsing, not targeted ads. Promotions drive 5-10x volume. Seasonal patterns are pronounced.

Build bigger buffers → 

For new retail products, we plan 150-200% of the base-case forecast. It’s expensive to carry extra inventory, but catastrophic to be out of stock during launch.

Invest in real-time data → 

Most retailers share sell-through data if asked. Use it to spot trends early.

Plan for being wrong → 

Build relationships with co-manufacturers for expedited production. Establish emergency shipping agreements. Know what you'll spend to avoid stockouts.

Quick Hits:

• Live webinar on July 22nd: Scaling Profitability in a Multichannel World

• Why Your Ads Aren’t Converting (Even If Everything Looks Right)

• The Cash Flow Playbook That Can Save Your 2025

Sum It Up

Retail logistics isn't just ops. it's the basis of your strategy.

• Your OTIF rate determines promotional opportunities. 

• Forecasting accuracy determines launch momentum. 

• 3PL choice determines whether you grow or fight fires.

If you’re planning for retail: Invest in logistics infrastructure early.

If already in retail but struggling: Fix operations before they cost relationships you can't afford to lose.

In Part 3, we'll cover the relationship side: pitching buyers, brokers vs. direct, and building partnerships that turn retail from transactions into growth engines.

Great logistics get you in the game. Great relationships help you win it.

All the best,

Ron & Ash