Prioritize transit times to your primary customer clusters, warehouse layout and throughput capacity, available value-added services (kitting, returns, temperature control), carrier connectivity, and SLA terms for order accuracy and cut-off times. Evaluate real operating density to verify cost assumptions and peak-season scalability.

Fribourg generally offers lower real estate and labor rates versus Zurich or Geneva, which reduces fixed warehousing spend. Lower occupancy costs can improve total cost of ownership (TCO) when balanced with transport frequency, inventory days, and required service levels to customers.

Confirm road and rail frequency, national carrier access, parcel integrator connectivity, and cross-border freight lanes. Verify the 3PL’s network of last-mile partners, palletized freight providers, and any preferred carrier contracts that affect lead times and freight rates.

Require flexible slotting for mixed order profiles, fast pick-and-pack operations, scalable labor during peaks, returns handling, integration with your OMS/ERP, and support for split-shipments and POS replenishment to serve retail partners and consumers efficiently.

Look for 3PLs that offer customs brokerage partnerships or in-house expertise, pre-clearance services, commodity classification support (HS codes), and documentation handling. These services reduce dwell time at borders and streamline regulatory compliance for cross-border lanes.