{"id":4451,"date":"2025-10-23T14:57:52","date_gmt":"2025-10-23T18:57:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pixels360.locusrobotics.com\/?p=4451"},"modified":"2025-10-23T14:58:42","modified_gmt":"2025-10-23T18:58:42","slug":"great-3pl-partnership","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/locusrobotics.com\/blog\/great-3pl-partnership","title":{"rendered":"Inside the 3PL Partnership: How People, Culture, and Automation Drive Long-Term Success"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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October 23, 2025<\/div>\n

Inside the 3PL Partnership: How People, Culture, and Automation Drive Long-Term Success<\/h1>\n \n

\n \"Author\n Mary Hart<\/span>, Sr. Content Marketing Manager<\/span>\n <\/p>\n <\/a>\n <\/div>\n

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When companies evaluate third-party logistics providers (3PLs), the conversation often starts with the numbers of cost per unit, facility footprint, and technology stack. But as Bryan Corbett, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at <\/span>Barrett Distribution Centers<\/span><\/a>, explained during his <\/span>appearance on the <\/span>Warehouse Automation Matters<\/span><\/i> podcast<\/span><\/a>, the most important factor isn\u2019t on a spreadsheet. It\u2019s the people.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

\u201cA 3PL is only as good as the GM in the building,\u201d Corbett said. \u201cYou\u2019re partnering with people at the end of the day. Solutions are driven by people.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

Experience That Comes Full Circle<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>

Corbett\u2019s path into logistics wasn\u2019t traditional. Before joining Barrett, he spent nearly two decades as an entrepreneur, running his own e-commerce businesses and managing warehouses from the ground up.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

That experience, which included everything from holding a tape gun for ten hours to unloading trailers, gave him a firsthand view of the challenges customers face when outsourcing fulfillment.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

\u201cAt the time, I had no idea how or why that might pay dividends,\u201d he recalled. \u201cBut knowing the problems on the ground floor helps me understand what companies really need from a 3PL partner and not just what they want to hear.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

That understanding shapes how Barrett approaches each customer relationship, which is an extension of the customer\u2019s brand, not just a service provider.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

What to Look for in a 3PL Partner<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>

For Corbett, one of the biggest misconceptions about choosing a 3PL is that success can be quantified purely by price or throughput. He encourages customers to look deeper at the people, culture, and consistency that keep operations running smoothly.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

\u201cWe\u2019ve had leaders at Barrett for more than twenty years,\u201d he said. \u201cThat kind of tenure matters. You don\u2019t want a partner whose team is constantly turning over. You want the same people who put your solution in place to still be there years later.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

He also advises companies to pay attention to early warning signs during the evaluation process.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>