Cardboard Vs. Corrugated Packaging 

When you’re looking through box options, you’ve got either cardboard or corrugated forms of packaging. You may wonder if there’s a difference. Yes, there is, and you’ll learn right now what the differences are, so you can become a packaging expert later on. 

The Definitions 

Cardboard boxes are made of, well, cardboard.  That’s a fancy word for paper that’s heavy duty. It ranges from tiny kraft paper that you’ll find on cereal boxes and packaging, to even thicker cardboard used for larger, more robust reasons. 

Then, we’ve got the corrugated options, which are essentially cardboard items with three different layers.  This is where you’ve got two flat pieces, with a wavy piece right in between these. This is similar to packaging sandwiches, for lack of a better word! 

Durability and Strength 

One of the biggest differences is the durability and the strength of each. 

For cardboard, it’s thinner, and less durable, since the material isn’t sandwiched. For lighter items, this is best. 

Many times, if you’re getting books, jewelry, even tiny earrings, a cardboard box offers ample protection without being too much. 

Corrugated packaging, however, is for heavy duty items, as the fluting that’s between it carries the item—literally! 

Think of when you buy electronics when you’re moving from place to place.  The box that protects your tv or a vase, is of course a corrugated box. 

Best Ways to Use them 

Cardboard boxes are good for when you don’t need a bunch of protection during the transit process, as in the case of clothing, snacks that are packaged, or even cosmetics. 

You may order decorative mugs or calendars, and cardboard is the go-to option for these items. 

Corrugated boxes, however, are for the bulkier, fatter items that do need more protection, since fragile and bulkier items like glassware and appliances, or even bulk food, benefit from this. 

If you’ve ever gotten wine glasses, or a kitchen mixer, chances are they will arrive in cardboard boxes. 

The manufacturing process 

Cardboard is made up of moist fibers pressed together, derived specifically from wood pulp. This is a solid sheet that offers unique cutting and shaping into different forms, no matter what it might be. 

Corrugated is a little bit different, more intricate, and it starts with a wavy middle, the fluting for this, and it’s usually adhered to one or two of the linerboards that’s flat.  This creates the three strong layers that you’ll be able to use. 

So in conclusion, cardboard is lightweight, good for everyday items like clothing, snacks and books, and is made from pressed together fibers that are moist. 

Corrugated is heavy duty, moves everything from electronics to grandma’s vase, and finally, offers fluting and linerboards for extra protection 

Now which one is better? The answer is both of them have their own pros and cons. Some people prefer using cardboard, as they just ship a variety of different items, and none of them are that intricate. 

Maybe you prefer corrugated boxes, because you’re shipping some of the heavier items, which require you to have that little bit of extra cushion for your needs. 

Regardless, both of them do have their own advantages.  You do need to choose based on your needs. Focus on the product, including the fragility, the weight, and the requirements for shipping. 

You also need to look at the purpose of the box, and the protection that’s needed before you buy. 

We hope this gives you everything that you need to ship your items correctly, and to provide boxes for everything that you enjoy as well! 

Types of Supplies for Packaging your Foods and Drinks 

If you’re looking to get into the retail business, you probably know that packaging is important. Think about the last time that you walked into a store and saw all of the different types of packaging. 

Every type is made and further curated in different styles.  This is because there is definitive packaging. 

These characteristics, especially in edible products, play a huge role.  The right material does matter, so you want to make sure that you make the right choice when you’re getting the right items for packaging. 

With so many suppliers, getting the right type for the pricing that you want is important. Before you approach these people however, you need to know what types of products you plan to order in a bulk form from the packaging solutions provider. 

There are different types, which we’ll go over right here, and also what you should know before you commit to one of these. 

The first is aseptic packaging, made specifically for foods that are made to be sterile, including dairy that must be preserved for a bit of time.  You should look at the different types. Most of these are made with polyethylene. 

Then there are trays.  These are very common when you go to stores, and various meats, plants, seeds, and the like get packed here. They are usually with a surface that’s flat, and a ridge that’s raised. 

The most in demand item is of course, bags.  These snacks that you get are usually in this. you’ll also find fruits, powders to wash stuff, even other healthy options in this.  These bags are sealed in order to keep products not affected by the external world that’s there. 

Finally, you’ve got the cartons.  The cartons are probably another one that’s popular. When we think of cartons, we think boxes, but that isn’t the case. These are basically smaller, thinner types of items, and usually, they are used to house different goods.  They’re not always made from corrugated fiberboard, but they can be. 

Egg cartons are an example of this, but there are plenty of other cartons, and some of them are good for ensuring that you get the products from one location to another. It’s imperative that you choose these accordingly. 

All of these are a form of flexible packaging.  There are wrappers you can get too specifically for this. you can buy them in bulk, and they offer different printing and characteristics that benefit you. 

With all of these packaging options, you’re probably wondering what’s best.  Ultimately, that’s for you to decide. Talk to a supplier before you begin, and make sure that you get the right types of products, and the means to ensure that they’re the right types of means for you as well. 

Assortment of various food delivery containers on table close up

Ultimately, the right packaging means will play a huge role in the future of your products, and if you want high quality packaging and the delivery of this, you’ll want to make sure that you get the right options for your needs. 

Talk to a packaging supplier today to help you choose the right one. With so many to choose from, you want to make sure that you make the right decision. Our experts are ready to help you get the right packaging that’s customized to fit your needs. By doing this, you’ll ensure that there are correct packaging suppliers for you to choose from, and ultimately, the ideal types of packaging needs that’ll make it even better for you, especially with the overall state of your needs. 

How to make Sure your Products are safe when Shipped 

There’s nothing worse than having a reputation damaged by items that were shipped. Customers get mad, they’ll want a return, and it’s bad for the reputation on all fronts. 

Making sure that the items which are delicate return to their customers safe and sound from the moment they’re thrown in the box is important. 

It’s much easier said than done for a lot of people though, as this can be a problem. Here, we’ll go over the best ways to make sure that your items are safe and secure when shipping them to others. 

Breakage: the Achilles Heel for Shipments 

Shipping and its damage are bad for your brand. 

Delicate glasses, artwork that’s intricate, even electronics that are not properly protected get damaged during shipping. This can lead to losses and damage. 

Having a good reputation ultimately depends on the deliveries and their success.  It’s vital to reduce the breakage occurrence when fulfilling items. 

Breakage not only is bad for profits but also the image of the brand.  Damaged items do look bad for businesses, and it will cause these negative reviews to plague the place. By understanding the underlying reasons for breakage, including bad packaging, the mishandling by carriers, and bad cushioning materials, you’ll be able to implement the proper strategies so that everything gets to where it needs to be safe and sound. 

There are a lot of items that can be vulnerable during the transit process, including figurines, ceramics, and porcelain, on top of glass.  There are a lot of other items, however, that you need to look at as well that might be so brittle that they will shatter without the correct cushioning. 

Instruments and clocks, especially with movable components, also need to be taken care of. 

Properly understanding the damage that can come with items when you ship is your best friend, as this is the best way to prevent the risks from getting worse as well. 

How to Prevent the Breakage of items: A guide 

You may wonder what steps to take? Well, we’ve got it here. 

  1. First make sure that you’ve got the right packaging.  You want a box that’s robust with different dimensions.  Double walled is the best.  Also having corrugated packaging is important, as they do minimize breakage and motion when you’re shipping items 
  2. Wrap everything with different layers of wrapping. Pay close attention to areas that are delicate such as corners.  Use tape to secure this.  bubble wrap is great for guarding against it, and when you wrap this in bubble wrap, it will prevent it from breaking down. 
  3. Use some form of padding between items including packaging peanuts or other layers of bubble wrap in order to stop collisions. 
  4. Fill out the empty spaces as well with more peanuts and paper that’s crump in order to prevent the movement and shocks of this.  You can also use foam inserts to cushion anything that’s delicate.  They will fit the items snugly, and reduce the risk of breakage and improve security 
  5. Have a sealer that will help with robustly strengthening this.  that way, you don’t have to worry about the box getting damaged or jostled 
  6. Label the box as fragile to prevent it from being roughly handled 
  7. Use a reliable shipping center known to care about items

Your packaging is important, and when you ship items that are properly secured, you’ll be happy with the results. Make sure to keep all of this in place when you start with your packaging experience too. 

Why Companies use Retail Store Displays 

Merchandising in the virtual sense is starting to use more  store displays to engage customers with these products, and also entice them to buy stuff, thereby building brand awareness. 

The proper use of these displays is to draw the user’s attention with the correct messaging, setup, and even design. 

How does one make a display that achieves this? Here, we’ll go over retail displays, and why they’re the best for those looking to showcase the merchandise that you offer. 

What they Are and Why they Matter 

Before we talk about the different displays, you need to know what they are, and the benefits of them for industry. Retail displays are different displays of your marketing on a physical level;. They include fixtures or even in-store displays to attract these customers. Engage the customers, and finally showcase or promote this merchandise. 

They’re basically like product exhibits.  This alone is enough for a lot of people, but if you further need to be convinced, it can actually increase profits by up to almost 500%.  If you look at this, you’ll see that the displays are tools that’ll attract customers, used in marketing and promotion. There are different display styles and variants too. It’s essential to know the right type of display for the needs that you have. 

Different Displays to check out. 

Now that you know why people use this, let’s talk about the different types of displays. There are a lot, including shelves, tops for tables, and also on the floor too. 

There are so many different popular options that come here. 

First, we’ve got the POP which is the point of purchase floor display. They’re free-standing presentations that draw a customer’s attention. They’re different from the fixed ones, providing opportunities for merchandising and marketing throughout different pathways and aisles, where the purchasing decisions happen. 

They come in multiple tiers, and they can display a wide variety of different products for people to check out. 

Then there are counter and tabletop types of displays.  You’ve got the tuck top and snap lock bottom. They’re small, and good for those on a budget, in order to help with promoting awareness. 

There are also larger multi-tier corrugated shelf displays that show different products on multiple shelves. 

What’s best for Me? 

This is a challenge that a lot of people go through because there are so many different types out there and for your industry, you might not be sure. 

Any type of industry display can work, if you should narrow this down. 

For groceries and supermarkets, there are a lot of different items, including beer, foods, wine, household items, even pet food. Typical displays can include shelving, aisle units, and even gondola displays for the times. 

Convenient stores are smaller, and they offer quicker experiences, and usually basics. 

While they usually tend to be smaller, you should opt for countertop options. This, of course, gives them a chance to impulse buy, or if you want to show some showcase promotions that are quick to buy. 

Specialty stores are different, as they can carry a lot of different things.  For furniture, books, clothing, electronics, and the like, there’s a lot of different merchandise. 

Garment racks usually are best for clothing stores, but not the specialty ones.  Jewelry displays are used in display cases, because they tend to be higher in value. 

But, you can also create immersive displays.  The design of different exhibits for windows, along with more immersive displays will showcase the merchandise, offering customers a chance to entice them with the products that are offered. 

What Kraft Paper is for Packaging 

Kraft paper is something that a lot of people have decided to start using, as it’s a more sustainable form of packaging. Kraft paper has in fact made even more contributions and impact in order to meet the demands there.

While there isn’t any doubt that kraft paper is super popular, and the capabilities of such continues to get bigger, you might wonder why that is. 

Here, we’ll go into why kraft paper is the best thing for those in the realm of packaging. 

What Kraft Paper Is 

This comes from the word meaning “strong” and it’s literally that. 

Kraft paper is a tear-resistant, durable, and brown paper that’s made with the kraft pulp, and the process surrounding this.

It’s best for creating wrapping that’s durable, and also for cartons and boxes which are rigid, and this is also available in a variety of different colors, shades and the like.

Ideally, it’s perfect for branding and other solutions too! 

The surface of this is properly textured, creating a finish that’s high-quality, and premium to the taste, and also makes it rustic too. 

How it’s Made 

This is actually not a new packaging process. In fact, it was founded in the 1880s by Carl F. Dahl, who lived in Germany.

During the manufacturing process of paper, the wood gets pulped, which means it gets ground up directly into a pulp shape first and foremost. However, Dahl managed to treat this pulp with different chemicals, and in turn, this created a better strength, and a more impactful pulp that works, especially with the sulfates as well that benefited from the strength of this.

Originally, this was used directly as a material for wrapping, and it’s more durable, sturdy, and better for packaging and other solutions, especially when we look at the boxes that we know of today

How this differs from regular paper 

Some people may think that this is the same thing as regular paper, but that’s actually not the case.

Did you know that kraft paper is a lot stronger. 

Because of the process used to create this, more lignin is then stripped away from this wood pulp, and this in turn leaves more cellulose for the paper, so it’s much more tear-resistant, and more durable as well in terms of characteristics. 

Kraft paper also tends to have a more porous nature than regular kinds of paper too, so it’s a little bit less effective when it comes to printing.

However, it does succeed when used in debossing, and foil stamping, so if you like those finishes, this is some of the best types of paper to use. 

Uses in Packaging 

These days, kraft paper is used primary for corrugated packaging, especially boxes, and even some cartons as well. because of the durability of this, and the benefits that this offers to the ecommerce world, this is one that can withstand a lot of the harder shipping situations, without impacting the overall results of the box. 

So in turn, you can use kraft paper for a lot of great things, especially for shipping and creating item durability that matters a whole lot! 

Kraft paper also is used as well for a lot of businesses because this offers a lot of sustainability options that are there. It does portray more eco-friendly types of initiatives, especially since it’s brown, rustic, and also offers a rawer look to the kraft paper that’s there. 

It’s versatile and offers a larger range of the innovative packaging that’s utilized in the industry today for your uses as well too.