Upgrading Your Gift for a White Elephant Exchange

Well, it’s officially that time of year when you have to start thinking about what you’re going to bring to your family’s gift exchange. Sometimes people do it around Thanksgiving. Other times, families wait until the winter holidays. No matter when they’re held, one thing is for certain: they can cause a lot of strife between family members if not set up correctly (or agreed upon in advance).

We all know that these sorts of exchanges can get heated depending upon the parameters set up prior to the event. Sometimes family members shirk the idea of a decent gift and provide something secondhand (which is okay if everyone knows that’s the rule of the gift you bring). Other times, people end up fighting over something that’s far too overpriced when the rich uncle shells out a hundred bucks on a gift card or something similar. Even still, presentation plays a big part in showing that you tried to put effort into your gift. If you didn’t put a lot of money into it, the presentation can actually mask the dollar amount (this works especially well if your family has a wide dollar range). Check out these tips for sprucing up the package!

Handmade tags.

Just putting a little more effort towards even the tag can completely change the look of your gift, and nicer labels on the tag can really do the trick. Even if your bag or box came with a tag, we suggest creating your own. Try cutting your own little piece of cardboard off a box that’s tag sized with a pair of scissors. Then, write “To: The lucky holder” or something silly related to white elephant gift exchanges. All that’s left is piercing a hole in the tag and tying it to your gift.

Tissue paper.

Using bags for gifts is often seen as “cheap” or time saving. If you’re gonna do this, at least include some relevantly colored tissue paper. Alternatively, you can give brown kraft packing paper a go. This type of paper serves to keep the gift hidden while also upping the presentation of the gift.

Twine.

If you’re putting your gifts in cheap moving boxes, the wrapping paper will often look good enough to make the box look nice. However, simple brown cheap moving boxes can look far better (if there’s no wording on it) so long as you use some rustic looking twine. This also happens to come in handy for attaching those tags you made yourself.

All about Rigid Box Packaging

If you’re someone who has been online, even a little bit, then you’ve probably seen those durable, fancy boxes with products in them. known as rigid boxes, they’re a favorite for a good reason. If you’re wondering about this, you’re not alone, and here, we’ll dive into all of the aspects of rigid packaging content. 

What rigid Box Packaging is 

This is a type of packaging that’s synonymous with both luxury and quality, and it refers to various packaging that’s made from durable, stronger materials than regular old cardboard. 

Rigid boxes are known for keeping their shape, and the structure, even when this is empty, so you’ll get a good feel and ideal protection. 

These boxes are ultimately made with some high-end items and packaging that’s integral to the branding overall, along with the presentation of the product. This design is robust, and it customizes well with different materials, various finishes, and even options for printing that will help with perception of value. 

Some of the benefits include: 

• They’re thicker due to being constructed from more dense paperboards 

• They have a better structural integrity due to being able to maintain the shape and the contents within. 

• There are customizing options that allow you to change the shape, size, and even color and final touches such as foil stamping and the like. 

• They’re luxury and enhance the process of unboxing. 

• They’re sustainable, since they’re made from sustainable, recycled materials that appeal to customers that are eco-conscious. 

• They’re versatile, and work with electronics, jewelry, and also gourmet items. 

• They are great for marketing and branding as they’re effective tools for such. 

The Costs 

Now that you know about rigid boxes, you may wonder what they cost. They’re pretty, right? 

Well, it depends on a few different types of factors, as most of them aren’t just one series of costs, and nothing more. 

These include: 

• The size, because larger boxes will obviously be more expensive 

• The materials, as the higher-quality ones will have a higher cost 

• The complexity of the design, especially if it’s intricate, has multiple colors and finishes going on 

• The quantity, because bulk allows you to reduce the costs per box 

• The production time, because the sooner you need it the higher it is 

In general, for small boxes you’re probably paying anywhere from a buck to five dollars per box. Medium boxes for electronics can be up to $10 a box.  Larger boxes, as in the case for board games, will be anywhere from five bucks, to up to twenty bucks.  As mentioned before though, these are based on the factors mentioned above. 

Special Features 

You can also get special features for an added cost. However keep in mind that this can add up. 

For example, lamination might be used to add a shine to the item and make it durable. Depending on the type of lamination and the quality, it can be up to fifty cents a box. 

Debossing and embossing can cost up to a dollar per box and is what creates the recessed and raised designs on the box, adding some character to this. It's good if you can afford it. 

Finally, there are closures you can add, including magnetic and ribbon ones. These are good for a premium feel, but they can add up to two dollars per box, so keep that in mind if you choose to use it.

Rigid boxes are great for a high-quality packaging feel, but keep in mind that the costs can be high.

Semi-Automatic Stretch Wrapping

Have you thought about getting a semi-automatic stretch wrapper? There may be a few reasons for thinking this is the right thing. Whether it’s saving money or possibly reducing the labor, there are tons of benefits to doing this. You may wonder if semi-automatic stretch wrapping is good for the business or not.  What are some of the benefits? Can you buy this anywhere? Don’t worry, if you have a question about this, this article will help you decide whether or not an automatic stretch wrapper is right for the business. 

It does Boost ROI 

There are a lot of people who are looking to boost how much they put out, and a stretch wrapper can do this. Maybe you’ve done nothing but hand stretch wrapping. Well a semi-automatic stretch wrapper can improve the ROI by about 80% in just 16 months! 

This is something that can be really good, especially if you’ve done nothing but manual stretching. It takes a lot less people to do this too.  For most pallets, it takes about four people to wrap just one, but through upgrading to this, you can actually get it down to about two minutes, with half of the employees depending upon the type of use. 

It also reduces the labor  costs too. So let’s say you’ve got one company that’s hand wrapping a total of 125 different pallets a week, for about 50 weeks, and it’s about $10 an hour. 

If you’re looking to reduce this by using an automatic stretch wrapper, you’re saving about 8 hours each a week, and can reduce this by about $400 0 a year if you’re looking to reduce the spending costs. 

Some of the products that you can palletize are going to be big too, but if you’re struggling to get it all over the product, you may want to consider possibly reducing the time and effort through an automatic stretch wrapper. 

With semi-automatic stretch wrapping, this can cause this to stretch by up to 200%. Before this, there was a very inconsistent about 20% pre-stretch that happened due to the people. This helps to not only make this more consistent, and it can also reduce how much you’re using by up to 80 feet per load. 

The Cost Reductions 

Film costs are another part of this. If you’re looking to reduce the costs of the stretch film, you’ll want a semi-automatic stretch wrapper. 

This is because it offers a consistent, easy way for you to get it consistent each time and can save up to $8k in costs. 

Thinking of the upgrade 

If you’re curious about upgrading to a semi-automatic stretch wrapper, this is definitely the way to do it. 

Is it right for you? How much are you going to save? What other things should you do before you do his? 

There are a lot of different costs that go into this, especially with stretch wrapping. If you’re curious about whether or not you want to purchase this, you’ll definitely want to find out a bit more. 

Talking to someone about the pros and cons of stretch wrapping and working to make sure that you have the right stretch wrapping experience, can aid you in making sure that you get the results that you want out of this, and it’s also a great way to make sure that, if you’re curious about making the stretch wrapping process a bit easier, then you’re in luck. 

It’s definitely good to make this happen, and to properly ensure that the stretch wrapping is perfect for your business and reduces the costs of labor as well.

Tips to Reduce Your Packaging Waste

 Packaging and its waste is harmful for the environment. Production, along with disposal of packaging is what contributes to greenhouse gasses, pollution of water, and also for making up a lot of the fossil fuel burnage that’s out there. 

It takes years, even centuries and millennia if you use the wrong materials to decompose, and that does contribute to the destruction of wildlife and habitats. 

How can you reduce your packaging waste though? we

Ve got the answer, and when you read on, you’ll find the answers are pretty straightforward, and easy for you to utilize as well. 

Choose the Right Materials 

It first starts with the materials that you choose.  You should use sustainable materials for your packaging, and also try to focus on more biodegradable types of alternatives.  This of course, includes paper-based and other forms of packaging, along with reusable types of containers. 

It does reduce the waste and overall is better for the environment. 

Use Source Reduction 

Another thing that you should look at is the source. The best ways to reduce this are using packaging that reduces sourcing packaging that you should use.  You can implement this through using smaller types of packaging, eliminating layers, and then exploring proper alternatives to use with this that utilize less resources. 

Consider Efficient Packaging 

Efficient packaging is where you take the products and size, and then use the correct dimensions for this.  this type of packaging implements the right types of packaging for one to use. 

It reduces greenhouse gases, and also reduces the waste from packaging. It also reduces the transportation costs, since more efficient packages will fit onto this easily. 

Refillable/Reusable Packaging 

This is a type of packaging that allows customers to send it back, and you use this again. A customer can reuse or refill this, and it reduces that need for newer materials. This is a wonderful option, especially since it also gets the customers involved in the product and its packaging. 

Sustainable Transportation 

The right transportation also plays a role in this. For instance, if you’re using big rig trucks that are getting just a few miles to the gallon, that’s not sustainable. 

Hybrid or electric vehicles are better in this case. They get better gas mileage and reduce your carbon footprint when it comes to packaging. 

This also reduces the overall general impact of the packaging as well.  If you want people to buy from you, you’ve got to consider sustainability on all lines. 

Collaborate with Customers and Suppliers. 

Collaborations with the product suppliers and manufacturers are a great way to build sustainability.  These partners can give you tips to help with improving the packaging sustainability that’s out there. 

There are now new materials one can get, along with designs they can optimize, and in turn, reduce the packaging waste by a whole lot. This collaboration is key, as many people do not have all of the resources to make this happen on their own. 

Sustainable packaging offers plenty of solutions to create unique packaging that does work wonders. 

Optimizing design is another part of this, because there are plenty of people who will have better ideas for packaging designs. Contacting them to get your help on this is key, because otherwise, you’ll limit yourself. 

Consider these tips when trying to optimize your packaging and be mindful of such whenever you’re working to promote product sustainability it matters a lot, and it can do a whole lot of good for people involved and get the results that you need to have sustainability as your main game too.