The majority of products that enter the retail market require some type of packaging, and when we are talking about the collective retail market, we are dealing with millions of products of different shapes, sizes, natures, and industries. The market is truly ginormous. Therefore, it is divided into tens of categories. There are so many categories and subcategories that it is even hard to mention them all. Yet the one thing that stays the same with almost every single product on the planet is the fact that they come inside some type of packaging.
Diversity in the Types of Packaging Solutions
Like the diversity of the products in the retail market and even on categorical and sub-categorical scales, packaging solutions are of various types as well. There are packaging solutions based on some cellulose while there is a complete variety of controversial plastic packaging. Some other packaging solutions may also involve the direct use of wood and other types of synthetic polymers. Put in simple words, there are a lot of options.
Emerging Problems with Certain Packaging Solutions
I have been associated with the packaging industry through different desk jobs and field jobs since the beginning of my career. One thing that I learned over time is that neither the people nor the Earth wants plastic packaging anymore. The chances of packaging made of plastics finding its way to the bottom of the oceans or landfills are more than them getting recycled and reused. Now people and businesses are getting more aware of the harms of plastic, and are willing to make the change. If you have a disposable plastic container by your side at the moment, flip it and you will see a number inside the recyclable sign.
The higher this number gets, the more difficult it becomes to recycle that particular item. Plastics usually have a high recyclability number. Even if it is low, only a fraction of plastics actually gets recycled. So, the problem is real and it is starting to show its effects. If you are following some blogs or activists that are communicating the problem, you would have gotten an idea of how bad the situation has gotten. The oceans are filling up and animals are choking on the plastics we are carelessly dumping every day.
Kraft and Cardboard Packaging
With plastics causing a lot of problems on a global scale, Kraft and cardboard-based packaging options are looking much better. Both of these packaging solutions are commercially successful. A major difference between these two and plastics is the eco-friendliness. Both of these packaging materials are recyclable, reusable, and biodegradable. Another great thing is that they are already around us, and are used by many industries we talked about at the beginning of this article.
Cardboard boxes are usually white while Kraft has a brown wood-like appearance. Both of these materials have pluses of their own. Like, Kraft has an edge in terms of eco-friendliness as it could be made of 100% recycled material while cardboard gives you more freedom of customization. So, both of these mainstream retail packaging materials have pluses of their own.
Types of Packaging Boxes Available in the Market
Kraft and cardboard are the names of packaging materials. These materials are further used in making various types of packaging boxes and bags. As most of the time, retail packaging is some type of box instead of bags; therefore, we will be staying in the domain of boxes for this article.
Retail packaging boxes are of many types. Some of the famous ones are two-piece boxes, slider boxes, auto-bottom cartons, 123 boxes, hang tab boxes, and bookend boxes. All these and many other types of packaging boxes can be commonly seen in the market.
Nowadays, every packaging is expected to perform three important duties: keeping a product safe, adding a nice presentation, and proper branding. If packaging performs in all three departments, it is excellent and can greatly help a brand in growing its business. This is why many brands prefer custom packaging for their products as they can get presentation, durability, and promotion all at once.
Importance of Durability and Toughness in Packaging
Durability and toughness are important aspects of any packaging. If a packaging solution is lacking these qualities, a product can get damaged before even reaching a customer. That’s the last thing a brand, retailer, or customer would want. Besides, the safety aspect of a retail product is the reason why we use packaging in the first place. So, if you are buying ready-made packaging, do see if it has the durability and toughness you require. Otherwise, go for a sturdy material if you are getting custom packaging.
Importance of Presentation and Appearance of a Product
The presentation and appearance of a product have a massive role in making a product a success. Successful brands in the market know this, and that’s why they invest in the presentation aspect of the packaging. People are naturally attracted to things that look good. Therefore, good-looking packaging can make your product more noticeable and attractive. Long story short, spending on the presentation gives your product more potential for sales.
Importance of Branding
Branding is an important aspect of any product packaging. It does two things: adds a level of credibility to a product and gets you brand awareness. What I have learned from my experience in the field, a packaging without logos and taglines translates to missing opportunities. Customers should know from which brand they are buying a product. Also, it helps you in promoting your brand. So, trust me on this, and do not miss out on the branding.
If I tell you that there’s packaging that has all these qualities and can be used for many different industries, how would that be? It could solve a lot of packaging-related problems and even enable you to make more sales. You might think I am exaggerating and overhyping a particular packaging, but that’s not the case with mailer boxes. It could have been with any other packaging boxes but not with mailer boxes. These boxes are the literal all-rounders of the packaging industry.
What are Mailer Boxes?
Mailer boxes a.k.a double wall tuck front boxes have a very compact structure. These boxes have a standard storage compartment and a lid joined at one end that closes and opens the box. The term double wall in their name comes from the fact that the two parallel sides(left and right) have two layers. The front side of the lid goes inside those layers and that covers the “tuck front” part of their name. By the way, if you have read my other blogs, you would already know all these details. But the reason to discuss all these aspects is to educate the new audience as well.
Variety of Materials for Mailers
Double-wall tuck front is the name of a style of packaging box. They are not limited to any material in the same way as other types of packaging boxes. You can find these boxes made of cardboard, Kraft, corrugated, and even rigid material. It is up to the customers which material they prefer. Recently Kraft mailers have become very popular as subscription boxes. The corrugated varieties are used by logistics companies around the world. The fact that these boxes are named mailers is because of their success in the mailing and product transportation industry. When I was still in school, we bought a wifi router that came inside a mailer box. That box was in my closet until recently that’s how I recall.
Printing and Finishing Options
The number of customization options and the extent of customizability of any packaging depend on the material. As Kraft and cardboard are more mainstream, so I will only give examples of these two.
Kraft has a brown surface that is unbleached and may feel a bit grainy. You can print it with logos, text, and many other details. But you do not get printing results as good as cardboard. For me, the ideal approach is to keep Kraft packaging as simple as possible. The rustic and vintage appearance looks very unique. It is a good break from all those bright and shiny colors and other such stuff. The eco-friendliness is another major advantage of Kraft mailers, and it can help you make a green reputation for your brand as well. So, these boxes can be an excellent packaging solution.
If you want all the colorful details and a ton of customization options, then the bleached white surface of cardboard is perfect to play with colors. You are open to trying various themes, patterns, and a lot more. The best thing is that you get a flat and compact surface to apply all those details.
In contrast to Kraft variants of mailers, there are many finishing options you can try as well. There are so many options out there that you get maximum freedom to make your packaging as attractive as possible. There are the standard gloss and matte that amplify the color scheme of your custom-printed mailer boxes. If you want your logo, taglines, and other branding details on the packaging in a unique way, you can go with embossing and debossing options. Similarly, there are many other options as well that can help you get an eye-catching and attractive presentation.
Apart from the presentation, printing, and finishing of mailers allows brands to have their proper branding. They can add their logos, taglines, social media handles, and every single thing they want. Again, this is the part where you promote your business. Therefore, it should be the best.
Other Customizations
The whole concept of custom packaging I think paves the way to getting your perfect boxes. You can add many other customizations to the packaging. Our company and many other online vendors are welcoming new requirements for custom packaging. Among other customizations, die-cut windows are the ones that never actually go out of fashion. Window mailer boxes have been the favorites of a lot of brands and still are.
Custom Mailer Boxes for Your Brand
The best way of incorporating everything you want in your packaging is to have it custom-designed. You can select everything from the material to the finishing and beyond. I have been associated with the packaging industry since the start of my career and I have seen many brands that have benefited greatly from this particular type of box. So, if you are launching a product and need packaging for it, or if you are looking to revamp your previous packaging, custom mailers are an excellent option. They are so good that I consider them “the number 1 style of boxes”.
I hope this article was informative and helpful, and that you had fun reading it(which I highly doubt). Visit our blog again for new updates on the changing packaging trends, new styles and designs of boxes, and much business-friendly packaging-related advice.
