There’s a problem with seasonal packaging: it has an expiration date. Halloween boxes need to be designed, printed, shipped, and received well before October, when retailers are filling their shelves. When brands begin Halloween packaging in the month that they’re selling it, they generally incur rush fees or add a sticker to a stock box. The schedule is where it all comes in and out in the manufacturing of seasonal product packaging by Empress Packaging for brands throughout the USA.
Count backwards from the date on the shelf.
First, begin with the day the product needs to be available on the shelf or in the fulfillment center, and then take out receiving windows, freight, production, proofing, and artwork approval. Shelves come back on September 1, and it takes 6 weeks to produce plus freight, so artwork needs to be approved around July 20. Numbers are different, but the process is the same. Most seasonal issues start at the proof stage, so get artwork approved early and request a written production schedule.
Plan for November 1
The box reading “Happy Halloween” is dead stock the following morning. A neutral base box, with the seasonal part printed on a sleeve, belly band, or sticker, can be used in conjunction with the box. By the end of the season, holiday boxes adorned with dark colors, black, deep purple, and burnt orange, with no date markings,appear on the shelves.
What print method is best suited to a seasonal print run?
Digital printing does not require plates and is ideal for short-run work and multiple designs. Flexo and offset are lower per-unit cost at higher volumes, requiring plates and longer set-up. When a few hundred units of a package are printed in a few variants of Halloween, the package tends to be digital, and if a design is printed at large volume, the package tends to be offset. Before making a decision, request quotes at different volumes.
Fall Boxes for Ecommerce
Halloween orders are during the busy season for carriers, and all of them charge demand surcharges in the fall, so price ecommerce boxes that are too big before you make a decision. Print the inside of the mailer with the seasonal message and leave the outside blank so that the box can be used again after the season.
Test a sample for how it will fare in the season.
The busy weeks of the year are the ones for seasonal shipments, and seasonal displays are handled by crowds. Send a sample with the actual product, send it to yourself, and then inspect the corners, print, and closure when it arrives. A defect in a sample represents an afternoon lost and a defect in a pallet represents an entire season lost.
When a rigid box is deserving of its place,
Candles, chocolate, and beauty minis are some of the items that tend to be sold in more expensive gift sets during Halloween. Tiering is done with luxury packaging boxes in black rigid board with foil, but rigid makes a longer process than a folding carton, so make an early choice. A sleeve, made over a common retail packaging box, is the quicker way.
FAQs
Q: When’s the best time to begin designing Halloween packaging?
A: After the product line has been established, spring starts to open up space for proofs, production, and freight.
Q: What can I do with a seasonal box after Halloween?
A: Yes, as long as the date and holiday words are on a removable sleeve or sticker. The next promotion can be carried on a neutral base box.
Q: What is the minimum size of a seasonal run that is worthwhile to print?
A: Digital printing reduces the entry level. Request pricing from the supplier at 2-3 different quantities.
Q: What do I need to send in for a quote?
A: Include your shelf date, quantity, product size, and artwork. The supplier can then work back from that date to come up with a production schedule.
Get a free quote on seasonal boxes.
Empress Packaging will determine the production schedule from the date send back your seasonal product packaging date, product size, and quantity. Get a no-cost quote at empresspackaging.com or contact query@empresspackaging.com or call (888) 900-7629.
