What do you get when you mix big-time investors, a famous footballer, and an industry that’s thirsty for a better way to stay hydrated? You get Ice Shaker, a protein shaker bottle that has been gaining major traction since it was first pitched on NBC’s Shark Tank.
By the time former NFL player Chris Gronkowski hung up his helmet, he knew the struggles of using a sub-par protein bottle during workouts, games, and everyday life. That’s why in 2016 he set out to create and market a better solution. Thus, Ice Shaker was born! In 2018, Gronkowski took his vacuum-sealed, insulated cup to Shark Tank, and the Sharks loved it.
Since then, Ice Shaker has seen massive growth on the ecommerce side. When it came to fulfillment, Chris already knew which software he could count on.
“I started using ShippingEasy in 2017,” says Chris Gronkowski, Founder of Ice Shaker. “Before I started Ice Shaker, I was already using ShippingEasy with my wife’s company. And I didn’t see why we should switch when it was working so well.”
How ShippingEasy Keeps Fulfillment Chill
How would ShippingEasy perform for Ice Shaker, though? Chris was determined to find out. While venturing into new retail markets like Walmart, expanding their custom engraving efforts, and ramping up their marketing efforts, 2021 has put Ice Shaker’s ecommerce solution to the ultimate test.
“We predicted for this year to grow about 30%. I think we’ll be more around 100%” Chris says.
With about 80% of that growth coming from the ecommerce sector, it’s more important than ever to Chris that his shipping solution can keep up.
“I was using another solution at one point, and it was a lot of work to go to their platform, print the label, and then upload the tracking numbers back into the system I was using. It was very time-consuming. Using ShippingEasy saves a ton of time and a ton of man-hours.”
Chris outlined some of his favorite ShippingEasy features that he relies on the most to keep Ice Shaker’s fulfillment process running.
Batching
“Every morning, our operations manager prints out all the labels. We can print out a couple hundred labels in about 30 minutes.”
“We’re sending out about 4,000 packages a month right now,” says Chris. “With ShippingEasy, we can bulk print and set up a lot of different rules so that all we’re doing is clicking one button and printing.”
Categories/Filtering
“The number of customized products is significantly growing. It was 10 to 20% last year. This year it’s probably around 50% of products that are customized. We actually have it split into different categories based on the machine that it will be laser engraved on. So we get very specific with it. It saves us a ton of time,” says Chris.
“Setting up those rules means that, for the most part, everything is already pre-setup as well. We know what box it’s going to go into before the orders are even printed. The heights, the weights, and all the box dimensions are already in the system.”
Reporting
Chris also uses ShippingEasy’s reporting feature to make informed decisions about his shipping practices.
“We run all of our inventory reports through ShippingEasy, and all of our POs as well. It’s been a great tool for us,” he says.
Automation
“The automation rules have been a massive game-changer. That’s something I didn’t set up originally, but once it was set up, it saved an unlimited amount of time. It saves hours every day at work,” says Chris.
“Having the ability to filter everything into a box size with the exact weights and the measurements is massive. That’s something that you’d have to do individually on every single order if you weren’t using ShippingEasy.”
More Time, More Money
How do you decide if a shipping solution is working for you? For Chris, shipping success means having more time and money to devote to other areas of business, such as strategy, marketing, or product development.
“Using ShippingEasy has led to a lot better organization in the warehouse and has allowed us to set up a more efficient workflow,” Chris says. “With that extra time, I was able to start really figuring out how I could break down the shipping process even more. That’s where the whole idea for breaking it down into which laser was going to receive which labels came from. That’s what you’re able to do with that extra time.”
With those extra resources, Ice Shaker is able to retain thanks to ShippingEasy, the team has more time to weigh their options when it comes to shipping processes.
“We were also able to think of different ways and different shipping options that would allow customers to have more options, but that would also actually save us money as well. We realized with certain rates that we get and we’re able to implement because of ShippingEasy. We can offer two-day shipping and actually save money instead of offering free shipping.”
The Bottom Line
At the end of the day, Ice Shaker’s shipping needs are simple: they need accuracy, speed, and cost-effective solutions. By taking advantage of ShippingEasy’s unique features and integrations, Ice Shaker has found that ShippingEasy is the perfect solution for their needs.
“ShippingEasy makes it super efficient and pretty much foolproof. You can’t make a mistake when everything’s already in there correctly. That’s why I will never, ever integrate with a shipping company that doesn’t integrate through ShippingEasy”
