How do I set up shipping when I'm not shipping? The Distributor is.

[HANNOVERSA]

Hello All,

I'm starting my shop, I got a template. Discovered Oberlo while watching your tutorials. I downloaded the app and got busy looking for products and adding them to my list. Now I have a few questions?

1. Does every vendor found on Oberlo automatically makes them a drop-shipper distributor? Do I still need to make initial contact with the distributor, even if I'm ready to launch?

2. Some offer free shipping, some don't I list my final price accordingly and plan to list my products with "Free Shipping" Is that done under the shipping section under "settings" or do I also need to alter the code or add an app for that?

3. Under the shipping area... The "Shipping From" area shows my address but since the products are being fulfilled by the distributors, is there a setting I'm missing to deselect my home address as the source of shipping?

I'm sorry about the multiple questions but after working for the last couple of days I have hit the wall here and I'm unable to move forward.  I thank you in advance for any help you can provide.

Han,

[Sophia]

Hi, @HANNOVERSA.

Sophia here from Shopify. Congratulations on getting started, and welcome to the Shopify Community!

I'm happy to see that you're being proactive in asking these questions now to ensure that you're setting up for success. I've listed your questions again here and posted my answers below each:

1. Does every vendor found on Oberlo automatically makes them a drop-shipper distributor? Do I still need to make initial contact with the distributor, even if I'm ready to launch?
   AliExpress suppliers found through Oberlo are not necessarily dropshipping exclusively, but you do not need to contact individual suppliers in order for them to ship to your customers. Instead, just add a custom note to your shipping settings with the Oberlo dashboard, and it will automatically be sent to all suppliers whom you place orders with. This note will advise them not to include any invoices or promotional materials with the orders. The fulfillment process takes care of the rest for you, so the suppliers will have the shipping information they need to get products out to your customers.
   
   Even though you aren't required to contact suppliers, it can be a good idea to do so anyways. Introducing yourself and asking any questions you may have regarding their fulfillment process—including current shipping times—can give you a good idea of how responsive they are and whether they're easy to communicate with.
   
   
2. Some offer free shipping, some don't I list my final price accordingly and plan to list my products with "Free Shipping" Is that done under the shipping section under "settings" or do I also need to alter the code or add an app for that?
   You're correct—you can set up a free shipping rate for your customers under Settings > Shipping and delivery in your Shopify admin. Coding is not required to set up shipping rates. Apps can help if you require more customization in your shipping rates, though typically you won't need to customize your shipping settings for dropshipping purposes beyond what's available in the admin.
   
   
3. Under the shipping area... The "Shipping From" area shows my address but since the products are being fulfilled by the distributors, is there a setting I'm missing to deselect my home address as the source of shipping?
   Oberlo can be selected as the location under Shipping from. It should already be listed automatically as an option the app has been installed. More information on this is available here in the Oberlo Help Center. Let me know if you're having any trouble finding it and I'd be happy to take a look into that with you.

In case you haven't seen it yet, I recommend checking out the How to Start a Dropshipping Business course along with the other free courses available through Shopify Compass. Oberlo 101 is free for a limited time as well, and that course will walk you through the step-by-step setup as well as marketing your store on Facebook if you're looking into paid advertising once you've launched.