The pallet sourcing options you choose for your business matters. Here’s why. Where you buy pallets impacts how much you spend on the pallet (cost), your company’s operational efficiency, and the reliability of the pallets themselves. Choose the wrong pallet sourcing options and you may see negative impacts on your company’s profitability and customer relationships.
While there are billions of pallets currently in circulation across the country, the fact of the matter is that pallet sourcing can be complex. In the current pallet landscape, you have oodles of pallet sourcing options at your disposal. However, it often can be difficult to determine where to buy pallets to get the highest return on your investment.
In this complete guide on where to buy pallets, we take a close look at the five most popular pallet sourcing options available. These options include buying pallets directly from manufacturers, purchasing recycled/manufactured pallets, online pallet marketplaces, sourcing from local/regional suppliers, and using managed service providers such as PalletTrader.
Read on to learn more about the various pallet sourcing options available and discover why you may want to diversify where you buy pallets by partnering with PalletTrader.
Before you source pallets from various suppliers, it’s important to determine what your pallet needs actually are. To determine your pallet needs, explore the following questions:
The use case for the pallet(s) should drive your decision-making and specification process. Available options include wood, plastic, and composite or specialty materials, as well as new or recycled pallets. Sizes may include standard 48” by 40” pallets, export sizes, and/or industry-specific dimensions. Also factor in the pallet’s weight capacity and compliance needs for exports and specific industries.
Your annual pallet volume can directly impact which sourcing model is the best fit for your operations. If you require fewer than 5,000 pallets/year, transactional pallet buying may be adequate. However, if your pallet volume is between 5,000 and 20,000 pallets/year, some supply coordination will be required. When you require more than 20,000 pallets/year, a procurement strategy is very much needed.
A third factor to consider is the predictability of demand. Do you experience seasonal spikes in demand or steady weekly usage? Do you experience project-based increases to demand? Is demand cyclical? You’ll want to be sure that your pallet suppliers can match the demand variability of your business.
Where pallets will be used should be considered, as well. Keep in mind that location often impacts freight costs more significantly than pallet costs. Ask yourself this: are you sourcing pallets for a single facility or for multi-site distribution? Do you need regional or national suppliers? Also consider whether you’ll be using pallets in rural or urban freight lanes.
A final element to consider when determining your pallet requirements is the operational lift required to manage all your pallet needs. Do you have the staffing in place to manage supplier relationships, balance inventory, resolve quality disputes, coordinate shipments, and monitor pricing trends? Once you answer these questions, you can evaluate pallet sourcing options effectively.
The first pallet sourcing option we tackle in this guide is the most traditional and the costliest: purchasing new pallets directly from pallet manufacturers. When you buy pallets directly from the manufacturer, you must establish a direct relationship with that manufacturer and maintain that relationship. Keep in mind that pallet manufacturers also may have minimum purchasing requirements, i.e. you may not be able to order smaller quantities of pallets from the manufacturer. When you buy directly from pallet manufacturers (new or recycled), you may be paying more than the current market price, may not benefit from price decreases, and may be subject to shortages if the manufacturer’s machinery goes down.
One of the benefits of purchasing directly from the manufacturer is that you can order pallets in customized sizes and specifications. Sourcing directly from pallet manufacturers also can be helpful when you have high-volume, consistent pallet needs or specific quality or specification requirements. Companies needing custom pallet designs and with long-term, predictable demand often opt to source pallets directly from the manufacturer, as well.
Pros of Purchasing New Through the Manufacturer:
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Another popular pallet sourcing option is purchasing used or recycled pallets from pallet recycling and remanufacturing companies. These companies specialize in collecting, repairing, and reselling used pallets. They sell recycled and/or remanufactured pallets that typically are at a lower price point than new pallets purchased from the manufacturer (option number one above). Suppliers that specialize in pallet recycling and remanufacturing typically sell various quality grades, including A, B, and C grade recycled pallets. Recycled/remanufactured pallets are an eco-friendly alternative to new pallets.
This pallet sourcing option is ideally suited for budget-conscious operations and one-way shipping applications. Recycled pallets also are often used in internal warehouses, where pallet appearance is less critical. Lower-value products and goods that don’t require pristine pallets also can be transported or stored using recycled or remanufactured pallets. Recycled and remanufactured pallets are popular with warehousing and transportation companies that want to prioritize sustainability or with sustainability goals, as well.
Pros of Purchasing Recycling and Remanufactured Pallets:
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Online marketplaces are another increasingly popular option for sourcing pallets. Online pallet marketplaces include online classified ads, business-to-business (B2B) marketplaces, and specialized pallet marketplace platforms.
PalletTrader’s online marketplace is a digital platform that connects pallet buyers with multiple sellers. As a user of our online marketplace, you can browse or search the inventory of multiple suppliers in one easy-to-access, online location. One of the primary advantages of using an online pallet marketplace such as PalletTrader’s is that you can quickly compare prices, specifications, and availability online in a matter of seconds.
Our online pallet marketplace is ideal for businesses that are comfortable with online procurement and for those who need small to medium quantities of pallets. You also may want to consider sourcing pallets from our marketplace for one-time or irregular pallet needs. Using our online marketplace allows you to compare multiple options quickly and locate pallets in specific geographic areas, as well.
Pros of PalletTrader’s Online Pallet Marketplace:
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The fourth pallet sourcing option we’ll discuss is procuring pallets from local and regional suppliers. What you may not know is that there are a host of smaller, local pallets companies that service specific geographic areas. These often are family-owned businesses or independent, stand-alone operations. Local and regional pallet suppliers may offer new or recycled pallets or a mix of both types. One thing to keep in mind is that local and regional suppliers frequently provide delivery and pickup services.
If supporting local and regional businesses is important to you, you may want to consider sourcing your pallets from local or regional suppliers. Near-sourcing pallets also is recommended when you have immediate, small-quantity needs or when you have quick turn-around requirements. Using local and regional suppliers also is ideal if you’re looking to minimize transportation costs or build personal, long-term relationship with your pallet suppliers.
Pros of Local and Regional Pallet Suppliers:
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Another increasingly popular pallet sourcing option is to partner with a managed service provider such as PalletTrader. When you become a PalletTrader+ managed services customer, you gain access to a team of experts who can manage your entire pallet procurement process, from start to finish.
Partnering with PalletTrader simplifies your operations by creating a single point of contact for all your pallet sourcing needs, including pallet sourcing, quality control, logistics coordination, and account management. When you partner with PalletTrader+, we take pallet activities off your team’s plate so that staff can work on other tasks and activities instead.
Businesses lacking internal pallet expertise and dedicated pallet procurement staff often turn to PalletTrader+ for managed services, as do companies with variable seasonal demand or operations in multiple locations. Companies interested in optimizing their pallet spend and growing companies in need of scalable solutions often choose to partner with us for managed services as well. If your operations require a mix of new and recycled pallets, PalletTrader+ an ideal option, too.
With PalletTrader+, you also gain access to an extensive, vetted network of pallet suppliers along with customized solutions to meet your various business needs. PalletTrader+’s services include quality matching and specification expertise, logistics coordination and delivery management, dedicated account support, and competitive pricing thanks to our established relationships with suppliers. Additionally, you have the option to leverage our technology-enabled pallet ordering to save time and boost operational efficiency.
Pros of Using PalletTrader+:
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What’s most important when sourcing pallets is matching your suppliers with your specific business needs. Many successful businesses use a hybrid approach to procurement, working with a primary supplier for typical, day-to-day needs and a secondary source for overflow or special requirements. Keep in mind that your pallet sourcing strategy will likely evolve as your business grows and changes.
Check out these other key takeaways from our pallet sourcing guide:
Explore how PalletTrader and PalletTrader+ can streamline your pallet sourcing. Contact us to discuss your specific needs.