Seller Operating Expectations

Sellers are expected to uphold and follow a standard of operational behavior. This article reviews the operating expectations and code of conduct that all Sellers in the Cahoot Network agree to maintain, covering general obligations, inbound shipments, SKU configuration, inventory, order fulfillment, returns, and carrier accounts.

General Seller Obligations

These baseline expectations apply to every Seller in the Cahoot Network, regardless of which services you use.

1. Sellers agree to adhere to these Seller Operating Instructions, your Fulfillment Services Agreement, and the Software Subscription and License Agreement at all times.
2. Cahoot fulfills orders Monday through Friday, excluding US Postal Service Observed Holidays and Amazon Listed Holidays.
3. All communication must go through Cahoot. Anonymity of all Sellers and Fulfillment Centers will be respected, and Sellers and Fulfillment Centers will not communicate directly.
4. Owners and key stakeholders will have direct relationships with Cahoot key stakeholders.
   • Maintain current account information including contact information, warehouse address (if applicable), etc.
   • Mobile phone numbers for primary personnel and business owners will be kept on file and used in the event of an emergency.
5. Cahoot provides initial training on how to use the Cahoot software and services, after which Sellers are responsible for new and refresher training of staff.
   • Business leaders need to complete all training, not just the warehouse staff.
6. Never misrepresent yourself or your intentions when doing business.

Inbound Shipment Requirements

Before sending any inventory to a Cahoot Fulfillment Center, you must create an inbound shipment in the Cahoot portal and receive approval. Inventory that arrives without an approved inbound, or that doesn't meet prep requirements, may be refused or delayed in receiving.

1. Inventory should adhere to the product prep and shipment guidelines. Determining the type of preparation required to ship your products to Cahoot safely is your responsibility. Failure to comply with these product preparation requirements, safety requirements, and product restrictions may result in the refusal of the delivery and/or receiving delays.
2. Product prep guidelines are designed to ensure safe handling by warehouse staff, transportation by carrier employees, and delivery to customers. Items should arrive at the Fulfillment Center ready to be fulfilled. Cahoot is only expected to either attach a shipping label directly to the unit of inventory (Ready to Ship), or pack the item within appropriate packaging material before shipping.
3. Prep services and special projects may be available for a fee (for example, inventory barcoding, bubble wrapping, etc.).

SKU Configuration Requirements

SKU values in Cahoot must match your sales channel SKUs exactly. Mismatched or incorrectly configured SKUs prevent Cahoot from fulfilling the order, and those orders are assigned back to you to fulfill.

1. All SKU values for any given product must match the SKU value(s) in Cahoot EXACTLY. Sellers must communicate any changes to SKUs, ASINs, etc. for existing products immediately.
2. Orders for SKUs with incorrect configurations will be assigned to Sellers to fulfill. It is recommended to use the same SKU value across sales channels to minimize SKU management and avoid errors.
3. Sellers must not edit Package Manager Data for SKUs that Cahoot is fulfilling, whether they are Cahoot Only Fulfilled SKUs or Merchant Fulfilled SKUs.

Managing Your Inventory at Cahoot

Cahoot tracks Qty Available in real time as orders are assigned for fulfillment, but monitoring stock levels and preventing stock-outs is your responsibility.

1. Cahoot will confirm that the inventory count received matches the Seller's intended shipment quantity, or else document the overages/shortages, during the receiving process.
2. Sellers are responsible for monitoring inventory and maintaining positive quantity available across Cahoot locations to prevent stock-outs, overselling, and backorders.
3. It is recommended that you list fewer available units across all sales channels (by 2% of the total stock or 5 units, whichever is greater) than are actually on hand to preserve a "safety stock" and prevent overselling and order cancellations.
4. Orders without sufficient inventory available for fulfillment (backorders) will be assigned to Sellers for fulfillment. When new inventory becomes available in the Cahoot system, new orders will be fulfilled automatically, but Sellers must reset the backorders that you wish to be fulfilled by Cahoot. Cahoot will not automatically fulfill backorders.
5. Cahoot does NOT track inventory outside of Cahoot Fulfillment Centers.
6. Inventory Removals (as distinct from FBA Forwarding or B2B Fulfillment services) should be requested by submission of a work order.

Order Fulfillment Responsibilities

Sellers own order flow into Cahoot and shipment confirmation back out to each sales channel. Review these expectations carefully — most fulfillment defects trace back to one of the items below.

1. Orders received before 2 p.m. local time at the shipping location will be shipped same day.
2. Sellers must make any Order Corrections needed in a timely manner to enable fulfillment within established SLAs (for example, address corrections, split shipments, etc.). Sellers should monitor all orders in No Match Found status at least daily for such corrections and alert Cahoot Support if there are any questions or concerns.
3. Provide Cahoot with forward visibility for fulfillment capacity, carrier capacity, and storage capacity needs. Avoid unplanned spikes in order volume where possible to reduce the risk of order defects.
   • Cahoot may override handling time SLAs (excluding Seller Fulfilled Prime orders) if order volume for certain SKUs is spiking unexpectedly.
4. Sellers are 100% responsible for sidelining Cahoot-eligible orders in other systems to ensure orders are not double-shipped. The best way to prevent double-shipments is to use Cahoot Shipping Software for all Merchant Fulfilled orders.
5. Orders assigned to Cahoot for fulfillment cannot be reversed after Order Status has been updated to Shipping Label Ready. Orders are batch processed, so cancellations must be done before they enter the fulfillment queue.
6. Cahoot does not control carriers nor package deliverability, only that orders are shipped on time using the order and address information provided.
7. Cahoot does not create demand. It is the Seller's responsibility to ship SKUs to Cahoot that have existing demand.
8. Cahoot is not responsible for Amazon Shipping Templates and does NOT review or manage them. Paid consulting services are available if needed.
9. Sellers can file claims for lost or damaged shipments directly with carriers. Find the individual forms here.

Claiming Carrier Refunds for Late Deliveries

Some carriers guarantee On Time Delivery for certain expedited services purchased. When a guaranteed delivery date/time is missed, you may submit a claim with the carrier to request a refund of the shipping cost paid for that shipment.

Learn more about claiming refunds for late deliveries.

Returns Handling

Cahoot does not manage customer-initiated returns. How a return is handled depends on whether the customer initiated it or the carrier did.

1. Customer-initiated returns are managed by Sellers and Marketplaces. Learn more about returns.
2. Carrier-initiated returns (also called "Return to Sender") are undeliverable packages. They are either returned to the Cahoot returns location in Dallas, Texas, or returned to the business address on file for the carrier account used to purchase the shipping label.
   • Orders returned to Cahoot HQ are tagged with the Order Tag Returned to Cahoot.
   • Orders returned elsewhere are tagged with the Order Tag Returned to Sender.
3. If an order needs to be replaced (due to lost, damaged, or stolen orders, etc.), Sellers can import a replacement order into Cahoot.

Bring Your Own (BYO) Carrier Accounts and Third-Party Billing

By default, all orders ship on Cahoot's partnered carrier accounts, and you do not need your own UPS or FedEx accounts. Cahoot also supports two alternatives when your business requires them: connecting your own carrier accounts, and billing shipments to a third party's carrier account for retailer drop ship programs.

Using Your Own Carrier Accounts

If your billing agreement includes approval to connect your own UPS or FedEx accounts, you can submit those credentials to be used instead of Cahoot's partnered carriers. When you do, you take on responsibility for managing the carrier relationship, including pickups at every Cahoot Fulfillment Center that ships your product.

1. Sellers utilizing the Bring Your Own Carrier Accounts option are responsible for working with their account representatives to schedule dedicated daily pickups at Cahoot Fulfillment Centers shipping their product.
   • Pickups should be scheduled after 3:30 p.m. local time to support same-day shipping SLAs.
   • Forward the carrier pickup window confirmation to your Onboarding Specialist.
2. Make sure packages can be reliably picked up at scale and that space allocation on trucks is not a concern for the size/weight of your SKUs. Discuss any potential issues with your Onboarding Specialist or Carrier Account Rep.
3. Work closely with local carriers in response to shifts in demand. If a carrier doesn't expect your volume, they may refuse it.
   • Sellers need to have conversations with their carrier's Sales and Operations teams in advance of spikes in order volume to ensure space is available on trucks picking up from Cahoot Fulfillment Centers. Cahoot is not responsible for arranging additional carrier pickups for non-Cahoot accounts to accommodate spikes in order volume.
4. Sellers are responsible for giving Cahoot Support two weeks advance notice of any carrier/service changes required.

Third-Party Billing for Retailer Drop Ship Programs

Some retailer drop ship programs — including Nordstrom, Nordstrom Rack, and Macy's — cover shipping costs and require that you bill each shipment to their carrier account rather than your own. Cahoot supports this directly in the platform, so you do not need to create these labels in an outside system.

1. Obtain the third-party account number and billing postal code from the retailer as part of their drop ship onboarding.
2. Open a Submit Ticket with the retailer program name and the third-party billing details so Cahoot can configure the carrier account on your behalf.
3. Confirm the setup on a test shipment. A correctly configured label displays BILLING: 3RD PARTY at the bottom.

Questions About These Expectations

If you have questions about any of the requirements above, or need clarification on how a policy applies to your account, open a Submit Ticket and Cahoot Support will follow up.