A fulfillment strategy where only a portion of a customer’s order is shipped when complete inventory is unavailable, rather than holding the entire order until all items are ready. The remaining items are typically shipped separately once they become available or are restocked.
This approach is critical for maintaining customer satisfaction and cash flow, as it allows businesses to deliver available products immediately rather than delaying the entire order for out-of-stock items. Partial shipments help reduce order cycle times, improve inventory turnover, and provide customers with faster access to needed products.
For example, if a customer orders 10 units but only 7 are available, the warehouse ships those 7 units immediately and creates a backorder for the remaining 3 units. Modern WMS platforms automatically manage partial shipment logic, track split orders, coordinate shipping costs, and communicate delivery expectations to customers while maintaining complete order visibility throughout the fulfillment process.
