Effective packaging plays a pivotal role in capturing consumer attention and driving sales. Custom packaging solutions — particularly custom flexible packaging — have emerged as a game-changer for businesses in various industries. In fact, it can bolster brand image, enhance product protection, unlock innovative solutions, and ultimately contribute to business success.
But, how do you know if flexible packaging is right for your business? Here, we’ll discuss what flexible packaging is, the benefits, and help you decide if you should pursue it for your next packaging project.
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Flexible packaging — as its name suggests — is a type of packaging made from flexible mate rials such as films, foils, papers, or laminates. The design allows for it to conform and adapt to the shape of the product it contains, which makes it widely used in various industries, including the food and beverage, medical, and personal care sectors, among others.
Flexible packaging materials are lightweight, but durable, and provide an excellent barrier against moisture, oxygen, light, and other external factors. Flexible packaging can be pro duced in the form of bags, pouches, sachets, wraps, labels, or even shrink sleeves.
Custom flexible packaging allows businesses to stand out from competitors by incorporating unique designs, colors, logos, and graphics that reflect their brand identity. Customizing your packaging in this way allows your business to create a strong visual presence and enhance brand recognition
Flexible packaging can be designed to provide optimal protection for your prod ucts. By selecting the appropriate materials and incorporating features such as barrier films, resealable closures, or tamper-evident seals, you can safeguard your products from moisture, oxygen, light, and other environmental factors that can degrade quality. Thus, you can extend the shelf life of your products, reducing waste and ensuring customer satisfaction.
You can add unique, interactive elements like QR codes, augmented reality fea tures, or personalized messages that can engage consumers and create a sense of connection with your brand. You can also add features that make the packag ing easy to open, reseal, or portion, that improves convenience and satisfaction for your customers.
The lightweight design of flexible packaging reduces shipping and transportation costs, and allows for more products to be packed in each shipment. A custom solution can also optimize material usage, which minimizes waste and lowers production costs.
Additionally, flexible packaging’s efficiency in storage and display applications can maximize shelf space utilization, which could lead to more sales.
Custom flexible packaging can be designed with sustainability in mind. Recyclable films and inks are revolutionizing the space, allowing for businesses to benefit from this packaging material. With more and more consumers wanting sustainable packaging and products, flexible packaging isn’t something you can ignore.
Evaluate the specific needs and characteristics of your product. Considering factors such as shape, size, weight, fragility, shelf life, and any specific storage or handling requirements can help you determine the appropriate materials, barrier properties, and packaging design elements needed for optimal protection and functionality.
For certain products like pharmaceuticals or food items, there may be specific requirements for materials, labeling, safety, or tamper-evident features. It’s crucial to work with packaging experts who understand the regulatory landscape and can help ensure compliance.
While custom packaging allows for unique designs and functionalities, it’s essential to evaluate the cost implications. Assess the production costs, material costs, and any additional expenses associated with customization. Aim for a packaging solution that provides the desired benefits while remaining within your budget.
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With so many flexible packaging manufacturers to choose from, why should you select us? The answer is simple: our team, experience, and capabilities can’t be beat. We employ seasoned packaging experts who can walk you through the entire process from ideation to final product. With years of experience, 14 manu facturing sites, two distribution centers, three ISO certified clean rooms, three digital presses, 17 laminators, and more state-of-the-art equipment, we’re the partner you need to make your packaging dreams a reality.
We’re also focused on sustainability, which not only benefits the environment, but it also benefits your brand image. When you work with us, you’ll get the most innovative solutions in sustainable packaging, which could help boost your brand sales.
Flexible packaging is the cost-effective, reliable solution to reduce costs and keep products safe and fresh. This industry has shown tremendous growth as flexible packaging manufacturers have introduced cutting-edge technology and advanced packaging materials to preserve and protect an ever-growing list of products while more and more brand owners are using or exploring ways to use flexible packaging for their products.
Companies like LPS industries have made a great contribution to this industry by supplying different types of flexible packaging to brand owners in a long list of markets. The industry is a multi-billion-dollar business in the US and generates more than $30 billion in sales every year.
With so many flexible packaging manufacturers in the market, it is becoming harder for brand owners to find the best supplier based on their specific needs. Here are three questions you should ask a flexible packaging manufacturer to determine if they are right for you.
Brand owners use flexible packaging for many different products but the two constants are to protect and preserve. Whether the product is a consumable for humans or pets, a chemical for lawn or garden use or packaging for medical tests or devices, you should have a clear understanding of the manufacturer’s production capacity, turnaround times and reputation for meeting delivery dates. Ask questions of your potential flexible packaging manufacturer about how they ensure the timely delivery of the packaging. This step is crucial when your company is producing time-sensitive items, such as food or medical supplies. An indicator of smooth sailing is if your manufacturer has a quality certification, e.g., ISO. This is emblematic of a company being built upon a framework of repeatable, measurable processes to ensure consistency and reliability. Your flexible packaging manufacturer should also be able to demonstrate knowledge and experience producing the packaging your type of product requires.
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It’s critically important that your flexible packaging manufacturer is knowledgeable about the wide range of materials available to cost-effectively construct packaging to your exact performance specifications. There is a multitude of combinations of materials that when laminated, can deliver the protection your product requires. What’s important is an exact match of performance to your product’s protective specifications. For example, a layer of foil is considered the highest level of protection. The moisture and oxygen transmission rates for flexible packaging including foil will almost always be the lowest, i.e., best, but beware of packaging overkill. While foil is a great protective barrier and certainly has its place in packaging for medical tests and devices, it is expensive and is likely not requires for food, snacks, pet food and treats and a multitude of other applications. A knowledgeable manufacturer can recommend a combination of films that will create a strong protective barrier engineered to your exact protective specifications. These can include “untreated” films, films with special barrier coatings applied and even polymer films with a layer of metal, usually foil, applied in the manufacturing process. Other options include the use of a relatively new type of polyethylene that has been specially treated to add strength and support so it can be used to construct stand up pouches and meet the requirements of being 100% recyclable.
Another benefit of choosing a knowledgeable and experience converter is they will have an inventory of premade films constructed to deliver varying degrees of protection but without the outer layer (the one that carries the graphics) applied. Some of the benefits of this are (1) the manufacturer has produced large quantities, which has the effect of lowering the cost per square foot vs. producing on an order-by-order basis that may require a higher MOQ and (2) the need to print and laminate a single layer of film to be added to the stock film translates to a faster turnaround for an order. One additional benefit is that the experienced manufacturer can be a great asset in evaluating and recommending a structure to meet your requirements after evaluating and your specifications when initially presented. This avoids the expensive and time consuming corrective actions that occur only after the product is packaged and is on the shelf. It is far better to receive this feedback before the packaging is produced than learn about a problem from consumers who are dissatisfied.
If your flexible packaging manufacturer is vertically integrated, it means they can perform all the functions required to package your flexible packaging roll stock and if required, convert the roll stock into bags or pouches with value-added features. These operations may include the following.
A full-time graphics department to support the creation of the final artwork as used on the packaging
Producing the printing plates used to print the graphics
Printing the substrate in advance of laminating
Laminating multiple layers of materials
Slitting the laminated master rolls into smaller widths to fit on converting equipment
Extruding the zipper that is used for recloseable bags and pouches
Converting the roll stock into bags or pouches
If a company integrates all these functions within its own four walls, it will reduce the overall cost, enhance the quality of the final product and improve the timeliness of the end-to-end-process. You should also look for a flexible packaging manufacturer that has a process in place for 100% traceability across its supply chain and throughout its manufacturing processes. This setup will ensure timely delivery of your product, and in turn, increase your customer’s satisfaction level.
While selecting your packaging provider, you should check their years of experience in the field. Having a quick look at available customer feedback can be quite helpful as well. This feedback can highlight some essential company attributes including:
How responsive is the manufacturer towards its clients?
How easy is it to contact them on an ongoing basis?
Does their organizational structure support fast decision-making?
Do they have a reputation for delivering product on time?
Do they have a reputation of consistently and dependably producing quality products?
Do they have an independent, internationally recognized quality certification such as ISO ?
Today, how you package your product can help you differentiate yourself from the competition. The global economy has allowed products to be transported from all corners of the world every day. Selecting the right flexible packaging manufacturers has become quite crucial. When selecting your flexible packaging manufacturer and provider, you should ensure that the organization has all the necessary attributes to effectively support your short-term as well as long-term needs.