Challenge: Foreign Resource, a premium streetwear brand, faced slow inventory velocity and cash flow constraints from traditional sea freight logistics. The founder was spending entire quarters managing operations instead of focusing on product development and marketing.
Solution: By switching to Portless for direct fulfillment from China, Foreign Resource cut their manufacturing-to-shipping timeline from 21+ days to just 2 days, enabling near-negative cash conversion cycles and freeing the founder to focus on growth.
Foreign Resource is a premium streetwear brand founded on the principle of making global travel more convenient through fashion. Created by founder Matias Belete - who grew up across China, India, and Vietnam before studying in the United States - the brand tells the story of journeying beyond borders through modular clothing designed for modern travelers.
“What Foreign Resource is about is telling the story of journeying beyond borders. So, everybody that's traveled can relate to this idea that they were curious enough to want to go somewhere. And then that led to a sense of connection in the place they went to, and then a sense of freedom comes from that. We try to tell that fluid story of, like, curiosity to connection to freedom.” — Matias Belete, Founder
Foreign Resource specializes in functional streetwear that adapts to different travel scenarios — pants that convert to shorts, necklaces that transform into bracelets, and other versatile pieces that help customers reduce their wardrobe by up to half when traveling. Foreign Resource positions itself as a premium brand serving young, style-conscious global travelers who value both form and function. “It's a huge problem for a lot of people, and I don't think it's really been addressed at a large scale, “ says Matias. That’s what you are hoping to address in the market through Foreign Resource.”
As Foreign Resource grew, Matias faced critical operational bottlenecks consuming his time and capital while limiting the brand's growth potential. He was spending entire quarters managing logistics instead of focusing on product development and marketing; the core activities that drive brand growth.
First, inventory velocity was painfully slow. "For me, there are two big things that limited growth, and the first is turning inventory quicker. So not having to sit on a boat for 30 days.", says Matias. Traditional sea freight shipping options meant Foreign Resource could only turn inventory six times per year, severely limiting their ability to respond to market demand and test new products.
Second, the financial burden was crushing their unit economics. "The second one was putting up the money to air freight inventory because sometimes there are time-sensitive collections and you've got to meet a launch deadline. So I air freight inventory and as a smaller brand, those costs stack up, and then your unit economics get cooked.”
"Last quarter’s focus was on product dev, coming up with new products. And that's a big reason why I switched to Portless because I was spending a lot of time on ops, making sure finances, cash flows were straight to like, sea freight stuff to LA where my old warehouse was. And it just took up too much time." — Matias Belete
The risk extended beyond just cash flow. “I’m paying tax ahead of time. So it's just complete risk on a cash basis. Obviously most of our inventory sells, but you always have a dud, a drop or something, things don't go perfect. So then you're sitting on some units that have a bunch of import tax you [already] paid and just not ideal."
Foreign Resource's search for a partner began with a referral from a former business partner who had previously met the Portless team. This connection provided initial confidence in Portless's reputation, but the decision ultimately came down to specific capabilities and cultural alignment.
"I started searching online and saw Portless next to other companies like NexSmartShip, which we had a horror story with a long time ago - they just lost all our inventory," Matias recalled. Previous negative experiences with other 3PLs made reliability paramount. "I really do care about the brand's reputation and being reliable with shipping, even if it takes a bit longer. If we shipped from the US, obviously it'd get to customers in four days. With Portless, it's around 7–8 days, which is fine—as long as it arrives reliably and there are updates on tracking."
A critical differentiator was Portless's customer communication capabilities. "One of the biggest things Portless has is the custom package updates tracking page." This feature addressed Foreign Resource's commitment to customer experience. Something Matias discovered wasn't standard among other 3PLs.
"That was a big reason why I picked Portless as my fulfillment partner. You care about my customers as much as I do – almost too much sometimes. This care has hurt me in the past, but I think it's a long-term game not a short one that requires building deep relationships with customers to be successful." — Matias Belete
The transformation in Foreign Resource's operations was as fast as their onboarding. The most significant impact was on cash conversion cycle and inventory velocity. "In the past I would do 21 day sea freight, you know the “fast” boat to LA and then start shipping,” said Matias. “But now my factory sends inventory one day, and it arrives in your warehouse the same day. Then the next day you guys inbound it, so within two days I'm shipping orders to customers."
This dramatic reduction in lead times fundamentally changed their financial dynamics. "I have net, I have a 30/40/30 term with my factory. So it just gives me so much more time to pay that last 30% because I'm inbounding straight with you guys, shipping it immediately. And now instead of having to pay all these tariffs, taxes, duties and shipping fees upfront I can pay them as sales are made. So I recoup all that cash."
"I can almost achieve a negative cash conversion cycle. I can get paid before I'm paying for shipping — and sometimes, with good terms from the factory, even before that."
— Matias Belete
This represented a complete reversal from their previous situation where capital was tied up for months before generating returns.
Median global shipping time (past 30 days): 7.5 days
Orders delivered successfully: 99.93%
The partnership with Portless enabled Foreign Resource to refocus on the core business activities that drive growth. "Having Portless there, where I don't have to deal with a huge part of the business, means I can just focus on product and marketing. That's been a huge unlock.”
A recent product launch demonstrated the strategic value of this operational efficiency:
"We had a drop sell out recently and I the the production was really late. So it came in like a day before launch but because our factory is near the [Portless] warehouse, it made it in time. And then I was able to sell out everything and then be building next week from you guys and not have to like scramble to get the inventory to the US and just deal with all of that. I could just focus on the marketing of the product which made it sell out, you know, which I hope to do again and again." — Matias Belete
The proximity to manufacturing also enabled innovative inventory management strategies. When products have low sell-through rates, Foreign Resource can now send items back to their manufacturer for modifications — bleaching, dyeing, or repainting — then re-release them as new products. This is something impossible with traditional US-based fulfillment. "When the manufacturer cooks you and the product doesn't come out the way it should, and you only realize that once customers start getting it—you can actually do something about it now.”
Foreign Resource's founder offers clear guidance for other brands considering direct fulfillment from China. His primary recommendation focuses on the strategic value of operational simplification and having a lean team: "My goal is to have a head of product, a head of marketing, and a head of ops and see how far we can push it. I don't need a billion-dollar company. I want to have a big company, but to me, my autonomy and being able to go around the world and tell the brand story and make cool stuff is very important and what success looks like.”
The key insight is understanding what drives your business growth. "That's going to be my focus right now, and that's what I believe is going to take us to the next level. Just focus and having one funnel." By eliminating operational complexity, Foreign Resource can concentrate on product development and marketing: the activities that directly impact revenue and brand building.
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