Flexe, the Airbnb of warehouses, is a logistics link for Casper, Hims, and other digitally native, direct-to-consumer companies Last fall, Maddy Moelis was facing a towering to-do list. The cofounder of Great Jones, a new direct-to-consumer cookware brand aimed at the millennial market, Moelis was racing to launch her new company before the holiday rush (they would start taking orders in November). One of the many nascent consumer brands following the lead of companies such as Warby Parker and Casper, Great Jones was trying to assemble the puzzle, from procurement to delivery, to get their product to customers.
Amid the rush, Moelis found at least one aspect of launching relatively simple and straightforward. She chose Flexe, a Seattle-based warehouse firm, to provide what?s called third-party logistics, or 3PL. The company set them up with warehouse space in Pennsylvania, just across the border from Trenton, New Jersey, fulfills orders, and saves them 10 to 15 percent on shipping and fulfillment costs. Flexe and its competitors represent a new take on shipping and logistics, one that its leadership believes is perfect for the 21st century e-commerce economy. Through its own software and technology, Flexe creates a marketplace for storing goods and products; think of it as a warehouse version of Airbnb. It doesn?t actually own real estate, but instead creates a marketplace for existing warehouses to utilize unused space and serve as storage and packaging providers ...