As we crack the official start of summer, most of the country is facing a heat wave of historical context. Here in the Midwest, we are in the midst of a week-long stretch of mid 90s with high humidity, and it brings to mind some of the hot/trendy ecommerce packaging that we’ve seen so far in 2024.
There are of course some common packaging trends that never fade, such as reducing cost, and a focus on sustainability. But what follows specifically relate to graphic and structural design trends that have gathered steam in recent months, that are worth taking a closer look at.
Custom Printed RSCs
There was a time when custom printed RSCs were a rare request from a potential customer, but that is no longer the case. We have several printed RSC orders on schedule at the plant this month alone, and that speaks to both a machine/printability/production capability improvement as well as an ever-increasingly informed customer base that understands the benefits of an RSC. Die cut mailers are the bread and butter of our business, so take if from us that when we say a printed RSC may be better suited for your product, graphics, application or needs, we say so with full transparency and honesty. RSCs tend to be a cost-saving alternative to die cut mailers when appropriate, and we are a big fan of getting the most packaging bang for your buck. When you consider that RSCs are typically lower cost to print per unit than die cut mailers, and the print plates are almost always lower cost as well, the cost savings can add up quickly.
We’ve written extensively on the benefits of printed RSC boxes, including the appeal and cost-effective draw of interior printing on an RSC, and we invite you to read more here.
Structural Design-Focused Packaging
As a company that is an industry leader in structural design services, we are very proud to see this trend in ecommerce packaging, because we believe in the hierarchal premise of custom packaging that places structural design at the top, above graphic design and all else. This means, simply, that the first order of business with any new packaging project should always be to ensure that the product is safely packaged to arrive to the end user without damage. This also means that many new customers are ordering plain, unprinted board/boxes with custom internal packaging (inserts, dividers) for a first run, and then shifting their focus to branding/printed packaging on subsequent orders.
This post speaks in detail to the difference between structural and graphic design, and is certainly a great starting point if you want to know more about either as they pertain to your specific situation.
Mailer Envelopes
In recent weeks, several of our customers have placed reorders for existing printed mailer envelopes, and in that same time we’ve also had customers that previously have ordered boxes, ask about pricing or details about mailer envelopes. We’ve also heard from new potential customers with their questions about the feasibility of envelopes for their products. A common thread behind all of these examples is the goal to reduce/minimize packaging materials with smaller, lighter weight options in an effort to reduce not only packaging costs, but most importantly, shipping costs. Envelopes can be a great solution for a lot of products, including soft goods, t-shirts and many apparel items, and they are available custom branded in low minimums.
One of the most exciting new developments with paper mailer envelopes is that we now have the ability to print them digitally with virtually any design you can imagine. Read more about this brand new capability in this post.
Want to know more about a specific packaging trend, or interested in starting or creating the next hot trend? Please reach out to us today. We are eager to learn more about your products and packaging objectives.
Please Contact Us Today
As always, if you have any questions, one of our branded packaging advisors is standing by to assist, with decades of experience behind them. Want to know more about custom packaging options? Please call us at 630-551-1700 or contact us via email at www.SalazarPackaging.com.
Related Posts:
https://www.salazarpackaging.com/4-new-ecommerce-packaging-upgrades-enhancements/
https://www.salazarpackaging.com/pantones-2024-color-of-the-year-peach-fuzz/
https://www.salazarpackaging.com/e-commerce-packaging-trend-simplicity-to-reduce-cost/
