How to get product bundles to work with your 3PL / WMS

A smooth order management process is key, especially when you're working with a 3PL or WMS, such as ShipHero, Cin7, NetSuite, etc. These systems rely on accurate order and inventory data to correctly pick, pack, and ship products, as well as to update fulfillment statuses in Shopify. Here’s what we’re covering:

Using Simple Bundles V1.0?

If you are on Simple Bundles v1.0, which relies on order editing, it's possible that either the order itself or associated orders (marked with an “A”) are updated to include bundle items. However, if these items aren't syncing after the original order has been edited, it might be because your 3PL or WMS is not listening to Shopify's order edit webhook.

In those cases, if you’d prefer to avoid dealing with order edits or want to disable the creation of an associated order to include bundle items, go to your Preferences page, navigate to the Orders section, and uncheck “Enable creation of a new order if the Shopify order cannot be edited.”

You can also consider using the Single SKU feature as a workaround for Simple Bundles v1.0, where the bundle product and its components are identified by only one SKU during fulfillment. So when a customer orders a bundle, you'll only see the bundle product, not its individual components. Unlike Multi-SKU bundles, Simple Bundles does not edit the order to add bundle components to the order. This option is best if your bundles are already pre-packaged and ready to ship, as your fulfillment team won't need to search for individual components. In addition, you can still choose to show the itemized bundle contents on packing slips, even if these items are not added to Shopify orders. Learn more about Single-SKU bundles. 

Benefits of updating to Simple Bundles V2.0

If your orders are placed through Shopify's online store checkout or Shopify POS, consider switching to Simple Bundles V2.0, which significantly improves bundle fulfillment by directly adding items to orders because it uses the Cart Transform API to add bundle items to the order directly. This improves compatibility with external systems and avoids issues caused by non-editable orders. Learn more here: An Introductory Guide to Simple Bundles 2.0.

To enhance integration further, you can enable Bundle Details in Shopify Order Metafields (available on the Advanced and Plus plans).

Handling fulfillment for orders from sales channels or third-party apps

Some orders, especially those created by third-party apps or sales channels like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Amazon, or ReCharge for subscriptions, etc., can’t be edited due to Shopify’s limitations. To manage these, Simple Bundles uses the order editing method. When this happens, Simple Bundles has a built-in feature that ensures the bundle contents are added to the order by creating an associated order. This new order includes all bundle contents, such as reference custom line items with the bundle name, customer shipping details, and a note linking to the original order. For more information, refer to how our app handles orders that cannot be edited by Shopify.

Sometimes, though, associated orders can disrupt your fulfillment center's workflow. If you'd rather not use them, you can disable the feature by heading to: App settings > Manage Advanced Settings > Order Editing and Cart Transform fallbacks > Manage, and unchecking Enable creation of a new order if the Shopify order cannot be edited.

Sending fulfillment requests to your 3PL

If your Shopify store is connected to a third-party logistics (3PL) provider or a warehouse management system (WMS), you might want to automatically trigger fulfillment for orders that include bundle items. You can learn more here: Request fulfillment of orders after bundle items are added.

Alternatively, if you'd prefer not to send the parent bundle to your 3PL, you can choose to automatically fulfill bundle SKUs instead. This way, only the individual bundle items are processed for fulfillment.

These settings are available in both version 1.0 and 2.0 of the app. To enable this in v2.0, go to: App settings > Manage Advanced Settings > Order Editing and Cart Transform fallbacks > Manage, and locate the section titled Order fulfillment when Cart Transform function does not run.

Inventory management with 3PLs

Simple Bundles doesn’t sync inventory directly with 3PL apps, but it pulls data from Shopify. So, if your 3PL updates item stock in Shopify, that update will be reflected in the bundle inventory as well.

Just be sure your bundle product is stocked at the same locations as its individual items. You can check this in Shopify by going to Edit locations for both the parent product and its components.

If you notice your bundle inventory resetting to zero, check out this guide: Why Inventory Resets to Zero and How to Fix It.

If you ever run into questions or want help optimizing your setup, feel free to reach out. We're here to help!

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