Lead generation
Ken is our product3PL Lead Generation
Ken's database lists 173,003 companies that fit the buyer profile for 3PL providers, as of Oct 17, 2026. With a typical deal of $16,000-$100,000 (estimate) and that many buyers, volume outbound in Campaigns fits best.
Buyer counts come from Ken's company database. Ken is our product.
Search These Buyers in Ken
In short 173,003 companies in Ken's database match this buyer filter, as of Oct 17, 2026.
Ken Search
Query
US companies with 11-1,000 employees that ship physical goods and outsource warehousing and fulfillment: manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers.
- Companies in Ken's database
- 173,003
- 11-50 employees
- 132,282
- 51-200 employees
- 31,807
- 201-500 employees
- 6,639
Snapshot of Oct 17, 2026, refreshed weekly. Counts only, no company records.
Who Buys From 3PL Providers?
In short Ecommerce brands and B2B shippers that run out of space, staff or shipping speed buy warehousing and fulfillment from 3PL providers, and an operations or supply chain lead usually signs.
| Buyer trait | Typical buyer |
|---|---|
| Industries | Online and mail order retail, Personal care product manufacturing, Food and beverage manufacturing, Retail apparel and fashion, Sporting goods manufacturing, Wholesale |
| Company size | 1-10, 11-50, 51-200, 201-500 employees |
| Titles to contact | Founder, Head of Operations, VP of Operations, Director of Supply Chain, Logistics Manager, Ecommerce Manager |
How Many Buyers Can You Reach?
In short 173,003 companies in Ken's database, as of Oct 17, 2026.
173,003 companies in Ken's database match the buyer filter for 3PL providers as of Oct 17, 2026. The filter: US companies with 11-1,000 employees that ship physical goods and outsource warehousing and fulfillment: manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers.
These are companies in Ken's database (250M people and 24M companies), not every company that exists. The count refreshes weekly.
| Employees | Companies | Share of buyers |
|---|---|---|
| 11-50 | 132,282 | 76.5% |
| 51-200 | 31,807 | 18.4% |
| 201-500 | 6,639 | 3.8% |
| 501-1,000 | 2,275 | 1.3% |
Companies in Ken's database. Bands come from each company's listed employee count.
Plays That Work
In short 5 outbound plays for 3PL providers, each tied to a trigger you can spot.
| Play | Channel | Trigger | Angle |
|---|---|---|---|
| Peak season planning | Late summer, when a brand that ships its own orders starts hiring seasonal packers ahead of Q4. Carriers add demand surcharges from roughly October to mid-January. | Write to the Founder or Head of Operations about moving Q4 volume into your warehouse, with your order cutoff times and peak capacity. | |
| Example first line[Company] is hiring seasonal packers, and we can take your Q4 orders into our warehouse so your team isn't packing boxes through December. | |||
| First retail account | The brand announced its first wholesale or retail store account, which brings case picks, pallet builds and retailer routing guides. | Write to the Director of Supply Chain about shipping retail pallets to routing guide specs from the same building that ships their online orders. | |
| Example first lineNow that [Company] is going into retail stores, we can ship your store orders to routing guide specs from the building that handles your online orders. | |||
| Warehouse lease ending | Email and LinkedIn | The brand listed its warehouse for sublease or posted that it is moving out of its current space. | Write to the VP of Operations comparing a new lease, racking and staff with paying per pallet and per order. |
| Example first lineSaw [Company]'s warehouse listed for sublease, and before you sign a new lease we can price your inventory per pallet and per order instead. | |||
| Warehouse hire posted | The brand posted a job for a warehouse manager, fulfillment associates or a shipping coordinator. | Write to the Founder or Head of Operations with the cost of outsourcing next to the cost of that hire plus space. | |
| Example first lineSaw [Company] is hiring a warehouse lead, and we can show what your current order volume costs at our warehouse before you add the headcount. | |||
| Second stock location | The brand ships every order from one coast, which shows on its shipping policy page or return address, while sales grow on the other. | Write to the Logistics Manager about splitting inventory across two buildings to cut transit days and shipping zones. | |
| Example first line[Company] ships every order from the East Coast, and a second stock point in our West Coast building would cut transit days for your western customers. | |||
Campaigns or 1:1 Accounts?
In short With 173,003 buyers and a typical deal of $16,000-$100,000 (estimate), volume outbound in Campaigns fits best.
| Check | 3PL Providers | Points to Accounts (Coming) when |
|---|---|---|
| Typical deal (estimate) | $16,000-$100,000 (first-year storage and fulfillment fees from one client, before postage), midpoint $58,000 | Over $15,000 |
| Buyer companies in Ken's database | 173,003 | Fewer than 25,000 |
| Suggested lane | Campaigns | Both checks pass |
Ken's estimate: 300-2,000 orders a month at the $3.20 average B2C pick and pack fee, plus 20-100 pallets at the $20.17 average monthly pallet rate, both from a 2025 survey of more than 600 warehouses.
Ken's view: when one deal is worth more than $15,000 and there are fewer than 25,000 buyers, each account is worth researching and writing to one by one. Otherwise volume wins: a Campaign of short email and LinkedIn sequences reaches more of the market for the same effort.
Objections
In short What buyers tend to say back to 3PL providers, and how to answer.
| Objection | How to answer |
|---|---|
| We ship from our own space and it's cheaper. | It may be. Send last month's order count and pallet count, and we'll price it per order and per pallet so you can compare it with the rent, labor and packaging you pay now. |
| Your monthly minimum is too high for our volume. | Tell us your monthly order count and we'll say up front whether you clear our minimum. If you don't yet, we'll tell you the volume where outsourcing starts to pay off. |
| Our last 3PL lost inventory. | Ask for our inventory accuracy reports and a reference client at your volume. Start with one product line so you can check counts before moving everything. |
FAQ
How do 3PL providers get clients?
In Ken's view, many 3PLs win clients through referrals, marketplace listings and partners such as freight forwarders and ecommerce agencies. Outbound reaches brands before they start searching, when they hire warehouse staff, land a retail account, outgrow their space or plan for peak season.
What does a typical 3PL client pay?
A 2025 survey of more than 600 warehouses put the average B2C pick and pack fee at $3.20 per order and pallet storage at $20.17 per pallet per month. A brand shipping 1,000 orders a month from 50 pallets would pay about $4,200 a month before postage.
When should we contact ecommerce brands about peak season?
Before their Q4 plans are set, so late summer is a good window. Carriers add demand surcharges from roughly October to mid-January, and brands that wait until then have little time to move inventory into a new warehouse.
What does the CAN-SPAM Act require of a cold email?
In the US, the CAN-SPAM Act covers commercial email, and the FTC says it makes no exception for business-to-business email. Its requirements: no false or misleading header information, no deceptive subject lines, identify the message as an ad, include your valid physical postal address, tell recipients how to opt out, honor opt-outs within 10 business days, and monitor anyone who sends email on your behalf. Other countries have their own rules. This is general information, not legal advice.
Do This in Ken
Find These Buyers in Ken
Open Ken Search with the buyer filter for 3PL providers, narrow it to your territory and best-fit size, then send the plays above as a Campaign over email and LinkedIn.
- Search companies with this filter: US companies with 11-1,000 employees that ship physical goods and outsource warehousing and fulfillment: manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers. Searching is free.
- Narrow the list to your territory and size band, then pick the titles to contact: Founder, Head of Operations, VP of Operations.
- Find valid emails at 1 credit ($0.02) each and add the list to a Campaign.
- Module
- Ken Search
- Open in Ken
- /waitlist
- API
POST /v1/search/companies- MCP tool
search_search_companies- Cost
- Free to search, 1 credit ($0.02) per valid email
The new Ken opens to the waiting list in batches.
Related
Sources
| Source | Checked |
|---|---|
| Fulfill.com, How much does a 3PL cost in 2026 | |
| FTC, CAN-SPAM Act: A Compliance Guide for Business | |
| Ken pricing (credit costs) |
Changelog
- Page published.