Wholesale Custom Packaging Boxes Guide

Most companies order packaging twice: this time, poorly, and then, well. The first round is generally the result of selecting the best-selling item, regardless of what it is actually supposed to accomplish. The second round follows receipt of a dented box, a flimsy shelf display, or when a customer makes an unboxing video that doesn’t do the brand any favors. This guide does not include this first round.

If you are new to ordering custom boxes or looking to change suppliers because you have outgrown your current ones, then here’s what really counts when it comes to ordering wholesale custom packaging boxes.

Begin by considering what the box must do to be alive.

Designing packaging to meet the needs of a product is the first question that should be answered, rather than the first question the product should ask. The stresses on a candle boxes and a lotion box are vastly dissimilar on the way. Candles are dense and don’t bend easily. Lotion bottles are typically top-heavy, made of glass, and likely to leak if the cap opens during transit.

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When selecting a box style, ask yourself 3 questions:

What is the mass of the product? Is it uniform?

Does it have to withstand drop testing…or does it simply have to remain safely on a shelf?

Will it be shipped directly to the consumer, or will it make it to the retail shop?

If a cosmetic boxes must be used without an outside mailer for parcel shipping, it will not meet the requirements for retail sales. This is the first step that you must get right, and the remainder of the sourcing process becomes a lot easier.

The selection of materials is more variable than you might imagine!

Most wholesale custom packaging boxes are made from three materials: kraft, corrugated, and rigid stock. All are solving different problems.

• Kraft will suit any brand that takes a more natural and minimal approach, and it is actually recyclable and not just ‘recyclable in name’. It’s one of the most popular ingredients to feature in lotion boxes and skin care lines, where packaging is supposed to tell the customer something about the ingredients of the product before they read the label.
• Corrugated is the most popular material for use. It is multi-layered, so it is a good choice for direct-to-consumer mailings that do not need a secondary mailer box. Glass bottles are often used to make cosmetic boxes with a corrugated structure and a rigid or SBS layer on the outside that is visible.
• The best and the most expensive is rigid stock. Though more expensive per unit, it is heavy, has sharp corners, and looks good in pictures, so it is the material of choice for higher-quality cosmetic lines and gift packaging. If your product is dependent upon presentation, whether it’s on a shelf or a photo, a rigid stock makes the cut.
• Making printing and finish choices that influence sales.Making printing and finish choices that impact sales.
• While full colour CMYK printing can meet most needs of packaging branding, it is at the finish that the packaging looks expensive or cheap. A matte finish and single foil accent is all that is needed and is considered premium. Five colors and three fonts on the glossy finish spell a startup still searching for its identity.
• Spot UV coating is used to enhance a logo or highlight important features like the design with a raised, glossy appearance without having to apply a glossy finish to the entire box. Embossing and debossing work in a similar fashion but without the shine. All of these are optional; you don’t have to use them all together. Choose one finishing method and use it for the entire product line instead of trying out the various methods on individual boxes.

The effect of volume on options.

Many packaging suppliers subtly pressure a larger brand to place a minimum order quantity that is not what a growing brand can handle. This leaves the smaller businesses paying more for the extra stock or losing the ability to have custom packaging.

This changes when you are using a supplier who doesn’t require a minimum order. A brand testing a new product line can place an order for 50 custom boxes in order to test the design before running 5,000 in the wholesale market. Flexibility is the most important factor in the first year of a product launch, followed next by this.

Locally sourced vs. nationally sourced packaging.

When looking for packaging boxes in Arizona, businesses might be facing two issues: quicker turnaround time and smaller shipping fees for large orders. Boxes are heavy for what they are worth, so if you buy them from a local or regional supplier, you don’t have to pay for shipping a pallet of boxes across the country.

However, reliable turnaround and design support are more important than “local. If the supplier has regional shipping throughout the U.S. that is efficient, they can generally outperform a local print shop in price and speed, particularly for custom printed runs that require proofing for the actual printing. The quality of the supplier’s ability to get from design approval to delivery in two to three weeks is more important than their location.

A short checklist before you place a wholesale order

It’s likely that if you miss one of these, you are going to wind up with that first bad order that any business experiences at some point.

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Why it matters

Box dimensions match actual product, not a rounded estimate

Prevents rattling, crushing, or wasted material

Material matches shipping method

Retail shelf vs. direct-to-consumer need different strength

Finish is consistent across the product line

Builds brand recognition over repeat purchases

No minimum order required

Lets you test before committing to bulk

Turnaround time confirmed in writing

Avoids delays around product launch dates

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Empress Packaging plays a vital role.

Empress Packaging provides no minimum order quantity for wholesale custom packaging boxes in cosmetic, lotion, candle, and general product packaging lines and offers free design support on all orders. The process is the same whether you’re ordering boxes for packaging materials in Arizona or nationwide: try out the box first, then the materials or the finish, and then scale the volumes based on the successful design.

When your next packaging order, and you don’t want to continue the trial and error process that most businesses experience, contact us at (888) 900-7629 or email query@empresspackaging.com to receive a free design consultation.