What Is an Advance Shipping Notice?

An ASN is not complicated. It is a packing list that arrives before the packages do. For an apparel brand, the detail that matters most is the variant: every size and every color is its own line, because to the warehouse each one is a separate product with its own barcode and its own shelf location.

Some brands send the ASN through their warehouse portal. Others upload a spreadsheet or send it from their inventory system. Retailers often require their own suppliers to send ASNs electronically, through EDI. The idea is the same in every case: tell the receiver what is coming before it comes.

When the delivery shows up, the warehouse unloads it, opens the cartons, scans every unit and compares the count with the ASN line by line. Matches go to their slots. Anything that does not match gets flagged so you can decide what to do.

1. A dock appointment is booked against your ASN.
2. Cartons are unloaded and checked for damage.
3. Every SKU is scanned and counted against the ASN.
4. Each size and color is slotted into its own location.
5. Mismatches are logged and you are told about them.

Without an ASN, step three becomes detective work. Someone has to open cartons, work out what the product is, guess which SKU a loose bag of hoodies belongs to, and then ask you. That costs time on the dock and usually costs money on the invoice, because unlabeled or unexpected freight takes more labor to receive.

Common ASN mistakes

• One line for a whole style instead of one line per size and color.
• Sending the ASN after the truck has already arrived.
• SKUs on the ASN that do not match the barcodes on the bags.
• Leaving out a second container or a split shipment.
• Not updating the ASN when the factory changes the quantity at the last minute.

At OC3PL, receiving starts with a dock appointment and your ASN details. Each shipment is inspected for damage and matched against the ASN, every SKU is photographed at receipt, and stock is slotted by size, color and pick frequency. Labeled inbound is received and slotted within one business day.

If something does not match, you are notified, the discrepancy is logged in your portal, and the photos give you evidence for your supplier or a freight claim. More on that in receiving apparel from overseas factories and our receiving process.

Your account manager works on site at our Anaheim fulfillment center, in the same building as your inventory. When something is urgent you call and talk to a person who can walk to the shelf and fix it. Call anytime. We are here. We got you.