Do you know that the global packaging market (valued at 240 billion USD in 2024) is likely to surpass 490 billion USD by 2034? Sums up how popular custom boxes are for any business! Packaging is one of the most famous terms associated with a consumer-brand experience. Whether you are a B2B or B2C brand, the way you present your products speaks a lot of your professionalism and adherence to quality.
In order to outshine the entire market, brands need to pay heed to different custom boxes by style and understand their structure and uses to choose the best one for their products. No matter if you need them for branding, product protection, or safe storage, the right box selection can make a great difference to the overall product display and consumer experience. Each of these boxes has a distinctive style, features, strength, and purpose, which we are going to discuss down here. Let’s take a close look at the most popular ones among these boxes for a better understanding in simple terms. Before that, let’s first go through what these boxes actually are!
To fulfill the needs of different industries, custom packaging is available in different sizes, styles, and shapes, named “boxes by style.” These special design structures are defined on the basis of opening and closing mechanisms, folding ways, and locks or closures. While all of these boxes are generally supposed to securely hold the items and enhance product presentation, the overall box style determines how strong or attractive they are, and how much ease they offer during assembly.
A large number of these boxes by style are used in several industries such as retail, display, and shipping. Depending upon the purpose and functionality you want to achieve, the boxes are accordingly designed by the box suppliers. Each of these styles serves a specific purpose and meets the needs of brands from the relevant industry. Popular ones among them include:
Now let’s delve deep into a few of these boxes in detail:
Custom Mailer Boxes are a famous choice owing to their sleek design, self-locking nature, and the ease of use they offer. This makes them a great choice, especially in the online or eCommerce sector. Most of the time, you may see their common usage in box subscription services or by online retailers.
The best thing about custom printed mailer boxes is, that they don’t need any glue or tape for assembly. Their structure comprises of a hinged lid that easily folds over the base and tucks to the box’s front side. Overall, the box is both sturdy and presentable, made of high-grade corrugated cardboard in different thicknesses such as E-flute (1/16 inch) for lightweight products, and B-flute (1/8 inch) for heavy items. The box comes in single, double, and triple wall configurations, with their breakdown as follows:
Most of the cosmetic or apparel brands opt for lightweight and thin corrugation, while electronics or fragile glassware brands opt for thicker corrugation. Customize these boxes with your brand’s logo, specialty finishes, custom prints, unique colors, and artwork, and make them truly yours. With top-notch digital, offset, and screen printing upon them, brands can lend great experiences. Further, these boxes are ideal for shipping, storage, and gifting purposes, and never violate the norms of sustainability.
Tuck boxes or tuck end boxes, whatever you call them, are a great packaging choice, especially for retail items. The distinctive box flaps tuck into the box to provide the best closure, whether from the top, bottom, or both sides. These boxes are one of the most versatile choices for packing light to medium-weight items, and thus brands such as cosmetics, electronics, small tools, and beauty products, are the best use-case examples of these boxes.
These tuck end boxes are made of paperboard or cardboard with thicknesses ranging from 14pt to 24pt for retail items, and corrugated board is used for providing safety to heavier items. Finish them off with matte, gloss, spot UV, and embossing or debossing, and see the magic yourself! Custom tuck boxes come in certain variations like Custom Reverse Tuck Boxes, Custom Straight Tuck End Boxes, Custom Tuck End Auto Bottom Boxes, Custom Tuck End Dispenser Boxes, and Custom Double Wall Tuck Top Boxes. We are going to give an overview of each of them here:
We hope you have gained enough comprehension of what mailer and tuck boxes are. It’s time to slide into some more box styles that are quite popular among businesses. These include:
These boxes are mostly used for premium product displays and in cases where extra protection is required for high-end items like perfumes, chocolates, and electronics. The sliding effect of the sleeve over the tray creates an elegant unboxing experience that stays with consumers for long.
These custom rigid boxes types are used for packing luxury items and come with a separate base and lid that creates a premium unboxing experience. The boxes come in a pre-assembled state and cannot fold flat. Made of thick paperboard (usually 36pt or higher), they lend a great safety along with a premium feel and are best fit for displaying jewelry, watches, or tech accessories.
Custom gable boxes come with a distinctive gable-like top, and have a built-in handle for added convenience. Their one-piece structure is best suited for takeaway food, party favors, and gift items. These boxes not only have a light weight but are also attractive enough for directing impulse purchases to the relevant brand.
These boxes are curved and pillow-shaped, mostly used for packing small and light items like soaps, jewelry, cosmetics, and gift cards. Their minimal look and easy assembly is what attracts the buyers. The pillow inside helps to keep the product intact during delivery and transit, thus providing a secure closure.
As the name suggests, these boxes are specifically made to entice buyers with an eye-catching product portrayal, displaying products directly at the point of sale. Counter display and floor display boxes are the most common types of these boxes. They normally come open-faced or partially covered to allow partial or complete product visibility, as per the brand’s needs, and are mostly placed near checkout counters for impulse buying.
These boxes are available in multiple thicknesses and are made for safe shipping of bulk items or fragile goods. Their structural strength makes them the best fit for domestic and international transport. Made of strong and thick corrugated material, these help safely ship your precious items to the consumers’ doorsteps.
Each of these box styles has its own intended function. The kind of material, thickness, and coating of each box varies depending upon the usage. For instance, rigid boxes might use 36pt board with fine linen or velvet finish, while display boxes will require a light corrugated board with top-quality printing, which might lure the customer into noticing them.
There are several factors involved in box style selection such as the product weight, the method of distribution (retail or shipping), branding needs, customer interaction, and budget. A heavy-duty mailer box that offers branding options may be the best design choice if you are shipping products directly to customers. Custom tuck end boxes look professional and workable in stores. Rigid boxes or sleeve boxes are quite helpful in giving an elegant and luxurious unboxing experience.
Knowing the types of boxes by style allows brands to design packaging that protects products while enhancing brand image and customer satisfaction. Whereas, investing in the right ones helps increase product safety and reduce shipping costs, allowing brands to create a lasting impression on customers.
Style is equally important in the packaging world, just as the practicality. From the elegant mailer boxes to the flexible and customizable range of tuck-end boxes and other boxes, each box type serves a purpose tailored to the product type and brand image. Learning about each of these boxes and others will help you make informed and balanced custom packaging decisions, reduce operational costs, and ensure a memorable brand presence.
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