Most brands come to a 3PL to save time. VetzPetz came to us because their previous 3PL had become the thing eating it.
VetzPetz is an Australian distributor of science-backed health and wellness products for dogs and cats. Their hero product, Antinol, is a natural joint supplement that VetzPetz describes as one of the most researched in the world, backed by more than 15 independent peer-reviewed studies and trusted by vets. Their newer product, Symbiol, supports gut health and digestion. The brand stands for something simple: products that genuinely make a difference to pets, and that both owners and vets can trust without hesitation.
This is from a conversation with Bella Garozzo, Operations Manager at VetzPetz Australia.
When managing your 3PL becomes a second job
Before Fulfilpackers, VetzPetz spent about nine months with another 3PL. What started as operational frustration slowly became something more serious: a loss of confidence in every area that matters in a 3PL relationship.
Communication was poor. Stock control was unreliable. Fulfilment accuracy was consistently below expectations. And when issues came up, getting a clear and timely answer was a battle in itself.
“It was daily, often several times a day,” Bella says. “A significant amount of time was spent chasing updates, following up on unresolved issues and correcting fulfilment or stock errors. Instead of our 3PL reducing the operational workload, managing them became an additional workload in itself.”
The breaking point was a stocktake report that took about three weeks to arrive. For a business that depends on accurate inventory, that one delay summed up what had been building for months.
“We absolutely felt like a number rather than a valued customer. The service often felt transactional, and there was very little sense of ownership or urgency when things went wrong. Having to repeatedly chase the same issues and reinforce our expectations made us feel that there wasn’t a genuine understanding of, or care for, the impact these issues were having on our business and our customers.”
If parts of that sound familiar, we’ve written up the most common 3PL red flags and what to do about each one.
Six weeks to get their own stock back
Leaving wasn’t clean. A planned one-month transition stretched to six weeks, mostly because of delays in getting stock released and transferred. When the inventory finally arrived and was reconciled, it turned up a significant number of stock variances. The move confirmed what Bella had suspected: the problems had been worse than they looked from the outside.
“The switch cost a significant amount of time and caused a lot of unnecessary stress,” she says. “Once the stock was received and reconciled, we discovered a significant number of inventory variances, which required considerable time to investigate and resolve. Overall, the handover was much more difficult and drawn out than it needed to be.”
After that, Bella wasn’t taking chances with the next provider. Asked what she was looking for: “Honestly, everything. After our previous experience, I was extremely thorough and particular when choosing our next 3PL. I wanted confidence in their stock control, communication, fulfilment accuracy, service levels and, most importantly, that they genuinely cared about our business.”
Why Fulfilpackers: it came down to one conversation
Bella went in with a clear checklist. What she didn’t expect was that the decision would come down to something less tangible: the sense that VetzPetz would actually matter to the team.
“What stood out most to me with Fulfilpackers was Terry. From our very first interactions, his energy, passion and genuine care for our business were obvious. I came away from those early conversations feeling confident that we wouldn’t just be another number, that this was a company that would genuinely care about our brand, our stock and our customers, and would look after us as we grew.”
Onboarding, and how problems get handled
The contrast showed up straight away. Onboarding was thorough and personal.
“The onboarding experience was brilliant and completely different from our previous experience,” Bella says. “From the beginning, it was clear that Fulfilpackers genuinely cared about our business and wanted the transition to be successful. Nothing ever felt like too much trouble, and the team were incredibly hands-on and supportive throughout the process. Sometimes I actually feel bad for how much they do for us, but I think that says a lot about the level of care they put into their customers.”
If you’re planning a move yourself, here’s how onboarding with a 3PL works step by step.
Small teething issues came up, as they do with any transition. The difference was in how they were handled.
“If something does go wrong, Fulfilpackers takes ownership, communicates with us and works quickly to resolve it. There’s no chasing or feeling like we have to fight to get an issue addressed. Mistakes can happen in any business. For us, what matters is how they’re handled, and that has been a completely different experience from our previous provider.”
Asked to rate the team’s care for her products out of 10, Bella gave it a 10. “At this stage, there genuinely isn’t anything I could suggest that would move that number higher. They consistently go above and beyond for us.”
Before and after
| Before | After |
|---|---|
| Chasing the 3PL daily, often several times a day | No chasing: issues are owned and fixed quickly |
| About three weeks to get a stocktake report | Confidence in stock control |
| Felt like “a number rather than a valued customer” | 10 out of 10 for care of the products |
| Managing the 3PL as a second workload | Back to doing the actual job |
Back to doing the actual job
The change isn’t measured in hours saved a week. It’s what Bella can now get through in a day without a provider that needs managing.
“Since switching, I’ve been able to focus on actually doing my job rather than spending so much of my day managing our 3PL. I can get through my daily tasks without the constant stress of chasing updates, waiting for replies or worrying about whether something has been actioned correctly.”
And summing up the partnership: “After our previous experience, finding a 3PL that we can trust and that genuinely cares about our business has made such a difference. We genuinely feel like they are an extension of our own team rather than just an external 3PL provider. We’re incredibly happy with the partnership we’ve built and feel very fortunate to have a team that treats our business and products with the same care that we do.”
Her advice to anyone stuck with a bad 3PL
“Move. There is always better out there. If you don’t feel valued or cared for by your 3PL, don’t be afraid to make the change. It’s a bit like staying in a bad relationship because leaving feels too hard. Staying isn’t going to make it better.”
And the one thing she wishes someone had told her before signing with a 3PL the first time: “I wish I had asked to visit the 3PL and see the operation for myself before signing. At the time, I didn’t have as much experience with 3PLs, so I didn’t necessarily know all the right questions to ask or what I should be looking for.”
Thinking about switching 3PLs?
Whether you’re stuck with a provider that’s become the problem or choosing your first one, start where Bella would: come and see the operation. Our pick, pack and dispatch runs out of our Gold Coast warehouse, and you’re welcome to walk through it before you sign anything. Book a call or a warehouse visit and we’ll talk through what a move would look like for your brand.