Why I Left Amazon to Solve Cartonization, a Problem Every Warehouse Faces but No One Prioritized

Hi, I’m Tomas, founder of Perseuss. Before starting this company, I spent five years building software for Amazon’s supply chain.

It was intense, technical, and exciting. But something kept bothering me.

Outside Amazon’s walls, the supply chain was full of messy problems that no one seemed to be fixing. One of the biggest? Cartonization.

What is Cartonization, and Why Should You Care?

Cartonization is the logic that decides how to pack items into boxes.

It sounds simple, but it has a huge impact on cost, speed, and customer experience.

Most warehouse systems approach it like this:

• Add up the item volumes

• Pick a box that fits

• Hope nothing breaks

  
  

That’s fine if you’re packing pillows. But most operations are more complex.

You have fragile items. Carrier restrictions. Customer-specific packing rules. Items that need to stay upright. Zones where certain carriers charge more.

And yet, most WMS platforms treat cartonization as a basic checkbox feature. They give you "liquid fill logic," where items are packed like water into a box. It ignores orientation, cost, shipping method, and operational nuance.

Tomas David Ye, former Amazon supply chain engineer and founder of Perseuss, shares the story behind why he left Big Tech to solve a critical pain point for warehouses: cartonization.

When I Met Andrew, It All Made Sense

After I left Amazon, I met Andrew. He was running fulfillment for a large operation with a solid WMS setup. But packing was chaos.

Fragile goods were arriving damaged. Shipping costs were all over the place. The software had no idea how things actually got packed on the floor.

Andrew said something that stuck with me:"Why can’t the software pack like my best employee?"

That was the spark. I realized cartonization was more than just a feature. It was a full-blown decision engine, and nobody was building it properly.

Why WMS Cartonization Falls Short

Most WMS platforms are great at managing inventory and routing.But cartonization is never their top priority.

Which is why they:

• Ignore shipping rates and carrier contracts

• Use simple volume-based rules

• Don’t support SKU-level logic

• Can’t handle real-world constraints like hazmat or fragile stacking

• Don’t adapt or learn over time

The result?

You overpay for shipping, waste box space, and lose speed on the floor.

What We Built at Perseuss

Perseuss is a standalone cartonization engine that thinks like your smartest warehouse operator.

It brings structure to chaos by using:

• Exact dimensions and weights

• Box inventory and available options

• Carrier-specific rules and pricing

• Fragile or orientation rules

• Cutoffs, zones, and shipping logic

• Real-time voice-guided instructions (with partners like Lucas)

This isn't just about tighter packing. It's about smarter operations.We optimize for cost, compliance, damage prevention, and pack-out speed.

You're Not the Only One Struggling With This

Every week, we hear from 3PLs, distributors, and brands asking the same thing:

"Why does my WMS keep picking the wrong box?"

If you’ve asked that question, you’re not alone.That’s why we built Perseuss.

Because cartonization deserves its own brain.