Dropshipping
A fulfillment model where the supplier ships products directly to your customer, so you never hold or handle inventory.
In a dropshipping arrangement, you take the order from your customer and pass it to the supplier, who packs and ships the product directly to that customer, often with your branding on the label and packaging. You never receive, store, or handle physical inventory yourself.
Dropshipping is what makes true no-minimum ordering practical for suppliers: because the supplier only produces or picks what's actually been sold, they can accept single-unit orders without the packaging waste of accepting a bulk order they'd otherwise have to hold.
Example
A customer orders a bottle of protein powder from an ecommerce store; the store owner forwards the order to their supplier, who ships the product directly to the customer under the store's brand.
Worth Knowing
Dropshipping and white label are not the same thing -- you can white label a product you hold inventory for, and you can dropship a generic unbranded product. Suppliers that offer both together (branded dropshipping) are the closest match to a true no-minimum, no-inventory launch.