Insights from Cherylann Welch-Frazer, Senior Global Logistics Manager at Tarte Cosmetics
When a product goes viral overnight, the logistics team finds out in real time. A single TikTok post has the potential to turn into a supply chain emergency within the hour. For brands whose demand is driven by social media trends, influencer cycles, and rapid product launches, the freight partner relationship can look different than it does in more “predictable” industries.
Cherylann Welch-Frazer knows both sides of this equation. With more than 25 years in global logistics, spanning Brinks, Christie’s, Harry Winston, and now Tarte Cosmetics as a Senior Global Logistics Manager, she has worked in freight forwarding, 3PLs, and shipper-side operations across some incredibly demanding and regulated product categories. Her perspective on what makes a freight relationship actually work is shaped by that wide-ranging experience, not just her current role.
Here is what she has learned about what trend-driven brands need from their transportation partners, and what tends to get in the way.
Speed is table stakes. Readiness is the differentiator.
In the beauty and cosmetics space, speed to market is an expectation. Consumers who discover a product through an influencer or viral moment want it quickly, and brands like Tarte operate with that pressure in mind at every level of the supply chain.
But Welch-Frazer is quick to point out that reactive speed is not the same as operational readiness. The brands that execute well under trend pressure are not scrambling. They have already done the work proactively.
"It's really about being prepared, the selection of the carrier that you utilize and the business relationship that you build is key in my eyes...It's really about the partnership and how you connect with people and how you work with others to ensure you can get the best."
For freight partners, this means that when a trend hits, the shipper is not evaluating you for the first time. They are leaning on a relationship and a set of systems that have already been stress-tested. Carriers and brokers who have taken the time to understand a brand’s network, volume patterns, and service requirements before a crunch moment are the ones who get the call when it matters, according to Cherylann.
Compliance knowledge is not optional.
One of the more underappreciated skills when working with any shipper is an understanding of the compliance complexities of that shipper’s industry. Cosmetics, for example, involves ingredient disclosures, country-specific labeling requirements, and import/export documentation that varies by market.
Welch-Frazer built her career deliberately across both the operations and compliance sides of global logistics, and she views the combination as a significant strategic advantage. It’s a level of experience that she looks for in the partners she works with as well.
"When you have an understanding of the global logistics side of the business, and then you get the compliance side...to me, that's a one-stop shop person right there."
For freight brokers and carriers working with shippers in this industry, fluency in compliance regulations specific to their customer’s industry is often what separates a partner who can scale with a brand from one who creates friction throughout the process.
The relationship IS the product.
Cold outreach is a constant in the freight industry. Shippers at major brands receive a high volume of emails and calls from carriers and brokers pitching their services, often with little differentiation between them. Welch-Frazer is direct about what breaks through, and what does not.
"I feel in my heart that it's really about partnership and how you connect with others. Everyone is offering the same service, but the personalization of it is what's key. I literally had an AI bot call me. I'm not sure how I'm supposed to build a relationship with a bot. I feel like sometimes because we're so focused on revenue or profit, we take that personalization out of the equation."
What she responds to is the opposite of automation: a genuine effort to understand her operation, her constraints, and her goals. Plus, she loves when people share knowledge with no expectation of anything in return. She shares, “Even when it’s not of added-value for them, they will share information or educate me on areas or strategies that I never even thought of. That makes me say to myself, okay, for this person, it’s not about just me being a number in their company…but it’s really about relationship and that they’re looking out for me. It leads me to want to work closer with them.”
This is not a soft preference. It has direct business implications. Shippers often have long-standing carrier and broker relationships, and breaking into that network typically requires demonstrating value before any volume is on the table. Transactional outreach rarely gets there.
Overpromising is a relationship-ending mistake.
In an industry where a shipment delay or a capacity failure can turn into a real customer experience problem, shippers have a low tolerance for partners who set expectations they cannot meet. Welch-Frazer is unambiguous about this.
"What causes a relationship not to work successfully from a brokerage perspective — to me — is really about when you sell expectations but don't meet it. I think that can cause a lot of conflict and frustration."
She draws this point partly from her own experience working in freight forwarding and 3PL environments earlier in her career. Having operated on the provider side, she is well-equipped to recognize when pricing or service commitments are unrealistic, and she does not shy away from saying so. Freight partners who approach the relationship with transparency and honesty about capacity constraints, market conditions, limitations, etc. tend to build more durable trust than those who lead with whatever the customer wants to hear.
For brokers and carriers, the implication is straightforward: a shipper who trusts you because you have been honest with them is a more valuable long-term relationship than a shipper you won on an overpromise.
How Tarte Cosmetics is evaluating their freight partners in 2026
When Welch-Frazer is assessing a freight partner (whether a new carrier, a 3PL, etc) she is looking beyond rate and transit time. The evaluation is more broad, and it reflects the complexity of running global logistics for a fast-moving consumer brand.
She is looking for partners who:
- Understand the business, not just the shipment. What is the brand’s distribution model? Where are the compliance pressure points? What does a bad week look like, and how can a partner help absorb it?
- Proactively share useful information, even when it does not generate revenue for them. This signals that the partner is invested in the shipper’s long-term success.
- Operate with transparency when problems arise. Trend-driven brands can absorb the occasional disruption; what they cannot afford is being surprised by one.
- Bring compliance and operational knowledge to the table. The more complexity a brand carries, like international lanes, regulated products, and multi-channel distribution, the more they need partners who can navigate it with them.
Trend-driven brands operate at a pace beyond that of more traditional consumer brands. The freight partners who earn long-term relationships with these shippers are the ones who have done the work to understand the business, shown up with knowledge worth sharing, and built enough trust to be relied on when the pressure is highest.
