Custom Paper Bags are a great marketing and advertising tool in the hands of your customers. Brands can choose from a variety of Custom Shopping Bags including Custom Paper Bags, Custom Tote Bags and Custom Reusable Bags depending on their purpose and budget. Custom Paper Bags add significant brand recall and increase brand publicity along with adding a sense of comfort in the hands of your customers carrying your products and other items. Here are some of the key factors to remember the next time you’re ordering Custom Paper Bags:
1. Purpose
Review and outline the purpose how your brand uses Shopping you’re ordering Custom Shopping Bags including factors like how many items do your customers buy and carry on an average? What is the most common or largest product size that you need to fit in your custom printed paper bag? Any other important decision-making factors that will help you decide on the kind of Custom Paper Bags you’d like for your brand.
2. Size
The size dimensions include the Length, Width (Gusset) and Height of the bag and need to be decided based on factors like how many items are your customers most likely to carry, what is the size of the largest item your customers purchase, at what point would you like to offer a 2nd/3rd bag to your customer to be able to comfortably carry your products.
3. Strength
Choose from a variety of Paper Gauge (GSM) options from 80GSM – 400GSM which are the core strength measure of any custom paper bag. The higher the GSM, the stronger the bag. Use this formula to calculate what is the Weight Carrying Capacity: Number of Items X Average Weight of an Item. Each custom paper bag generally comes with advisory on it’s Weight Carrying Capacity.
4. Handle Type
Custom Paper Bags come with a variety of Handle options including Twisted (Paper), Ribbons, Rope, Die Cut or No handle. Select the right kind of Handle based on factors including how convenient is it for your customers to carry your products in accordance with the Weight Carrying Capacity, your brand perception and theme. For instance:
– Die Cut – good alternative to twisted handles and offer better grip whilst carrying
5. Color & Graphics
Custom Paper Bags are mostly popular in White and Kraft amongst other color options. Select from a Paper Bag Color along with 1/2/4 or more Color Printing in accordance with your branding and identity. Some of the commonly published elements include Your Logo, Brand Name, Website, Facebook Page, Twitter Handle, Instagram Handle, Hashtag, Slogans and Messages.
6. Design & Plates
When designing custom printed paper bags, it involves a process of approval beginning from a digital mockup, to samples and revisions if any and finally a production run. It’s always good to ensure your Custom Paper Bags design is sustainable and may not need changes very frequently which helps your brand – develop an identity and also Reduces repeat order costs since the original plate costs have already been borne once.
7. Durability
There are various options for you to to add durability to your custom paper bags including Bottom Board, Double Wall Paper Bags, Higher GSM Paper & Better Handle Qualities. To judge durability, order samples and test out the Custom Paper Bags in various conditions to ensure your custom paper bags are durable, reliable and won’t tear open or fall off from the hands of your customers.
8. Quantity
Custom Printed Paper Bags are generally ordered in bulk. Select from an appropriate quantity according to the number of customers/sales you perform, how many bags per sales you use, cost benefit from ordering in bulk vs smaller quantities and most importantly storage of the excess paper bags.
9. Storage & Distribution
One of the key factors when ordering Custom Paper Bags is to ensure you or your supplier have the necessary Storage to store short-term requirements as well as Excess Inventory without having to run a production too frequently. Further, if you have multiple Point-of-Sales then Distribution and Regional Availability of your Custom Paper Bags becomes an important factor for your supply chain to quickly replenish the appropriate quantity in the most feasible time and cost from the nearest warehouse.
10. Cost
All of the above factors including the Size, Paper Type, Quantity, Color & Graphics are key in calculating the Landed Cost of your custom printed paper bags, it is also important to remember how much or in what range are you looking to spend on your product packaging in terms of affecting your revenues. Select an affordable, feasible option which compliments your branding and identity and ensures you continue the same bag design for a long period of time which adds to the longevity and registration of your brand’s custom paper bags.
11. Sustainability
With growing demand of Custom Paper Bags and single-use plastic reducing in popularity, it’s important that we preserve our natural resources as much as possible. Select a supplier that uses Sustainably Sourced Raw Materials like FSC Certified Paper & 90% or 100% Post Consumer Content so that your customers shop responsibly whilst adding Sustainability as an element of your branding.
12. Recycling/Compostable
While all Paper is Recyclable and/or Compostable, it’s always a good idea to confirm with your suppliers to ensure that you have selected options which are environment safe and part of sustainable practices.
The author is an expert in Eco Friendly Packaging and is available for quotes and questions. Please email Nick on hello[at]canadabrown [dot] com for any more information.
Last Updated on November 17, 2023 by Packoi Team
In the past, plastic bags were the norm. However, since people found out about the devastating effects of plastic on the environment, customers have begun to call for more paper bags to be used in stores.
As a result, business owners have started changing their packaging to use kraft or brown paper materials.
If you want to apply the same change, keep reading.
This article will educate you on what you need to consider if you want to start using paper bags instead of plastic.
Although brown paper grocery bags are commonly used, there are other materials that you can opt to use.
The material you choose will influence the strength of the paper grocery bags. After all, customers buy goods at grocery stores in different quantities. You need to use a material that’s strong enough to carry a few items and a full load.
Brown paper bags aren’t the only material that you can use to make this happen. There are 4 paper grocery bags that you can choose from.
Since this is the most common, consider using brown paper bags as your top option. This is characterized by the color of the grocery bag. It’s not just one shade of brown. It could be light brown or yellowish brown.
This material is made of kraft paper, a natural paper made from wood pulp that’s processed to look like sheets. These are then cut, folded, and glued into kraft paper bags.
Kraft paper is usually 80 to 120 grams with a high tensile force.
This paper bag is an excellent option because it’s reusable.
As a material, kraft paper is 100% recyclable. But before it gets sent to the recycling facility, some people use it for arts and crafts. With the right instructions, it can be transformed into something else that can be used around the house.
Apart from kraft paper, you can also use white paperboard to create your grocery bags. Brown paper bags may be the norm in grocery stores, but white paper bags can also be used.
These are processed the same way as kraft paper, but they’re bleached before they’re turned into sheets. Because of the treatments and chemicals used on it, the surface becomes smooth and firm.
This makes it feel more durable than brown-colored bags.
Not only that, but this is also reusable. It can be transformed into other useful things.
However, since the color of the bag is white, it’s prone to dirt and smudges. Sometimes, a dirty paper bag is thrown away instead of being reused.
A grocery bag is meant to carry both dry and wet produce. Since paper can easily get damaged by water, how can paper grocery bags be made more sturdy and durable?
This is where coating and lamination come into play. Paper bags can be coated or laminated so they cover the surface. This will protect it from being destroyed by moisture or water leaks.
It’s also why laminated paper bags are perfect for food orders. Customers won’t have to worry that the bag will break while they carry food items or wet produce.
Of course, it won’t protect the bag from being destroyed when submerged in water. But it’s good enough to carry frozen items.
This is a type of paper that’s gaining popularity lately because it’s a sustainable option. Brown paper bags are considered to be eco-friendly. Even the new paper bags have that reputation.
However, business owners can make a greater environmental impact by opting for recycled paper bags.
There are packaging companies that sell grocery bags made of recycled paper. When a paper bag is reusable and recyclable, it’ll help solve the environment’s problem with packaging waste.
Using this material can also improve the reputation of your business. People will come to know you as a sustainable company, and the odds that they’ll stay loyal to you will be greater because of it.
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The paper material of a grocery bag is the most important decision that you have to make. For some, the cost of paper is the determining factor in choosing the right material for paper bags.
But that’s not all. There are also technical considerations that’ll help you create the right grocery bag for your business.
For instance, standard brown paper bags that are used to carry lunch have specifications of 5 1/8″ x 3 1/8″ x 10 5/8“ (length x width x height). But paper grocery bags are bigger because it has to carry a heavier load. Its specifications are 12” x 7” x 17” (width x depth x height) and it can carry 75 pounds of items.
This is only one example of what you need to look into. Here are the others that you have to pay attention to so you can choose their material from a wide selection.
As mentioned, grocery paper bags have to carry a heavier load. Since customers buy different quantities at a time, you need to consider different paper bag capacities.
That means creating paper bags in various sizes.
There are a couple of things to consider there.
First, you must realize that the size of products doesn’t dictate their weight. A big paper bag full of chips won’t be as heavy as one half-filled with six cans of peas.
Also, consider the typical weight of products that people carry from groceries. The bag should carry the weight and not break.
What does this mean? Make sure you consider the size and weight capacity of the paper bag.
The gusset is the fold that’s found on the side of paper bags. This gives the grocery bag a greater capacity to hold products.
If you have found thick enough paper that can carry heavier loads, you can make the gusset bigger so the paper bags can stretch further.
But if it’s a thinner material, you can make the gusset smaller, so people will be forced to put fewer items inside.
The bottom of paper bags also affects the capacity that they can carry. There are two types of bottom folds that brown paper grocery bags use.
The first is the flat-bottom bag. In this case, the bottom fold follows the size of the gusset. So if the gusset is 7” when fully stretched, the bottom fold would be the same.
The second is the pinched-bottom bag. It has pointed bottoms that are folded and sealed. These are great for carrying flat items like cards or small products like candies, etc. Paper bags using this bottom fold may or may not have a gusset.
Another thing that you have to consider is the GSM or grams per square meter, of paper bags. This refers to the weight of 1 square meter of paper in grams.
The standard for paper bags is between 35 and 150 GSM. Ideally, the greater the GSM, the thicker the paper, and the greater the weight that a grocery bag can carry. It’ll be more costly, but you’ll find that a lot of manufacturers prefer the thicker paper because it’s easier to die-cut.
The bursting factor of paper bags measures the material’s strength against pressure before it bursts open. This helps identify how durable bags are. It’ll also help business owners determine how many items customers can cram into the bag before it breaks open.
The BF is typically 14 to 40 BF. But bags with less than 30 BF are acceptable.
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This is the most ignored measurement for paper bags. But in grocery bags, it should be given more importance since it carries
This measures the weight that the material will gain if the paper bags are submerged in water. If the COBB value is lower, the paper bags won’t absorb as much water.
MG is machine-glazed, while MF is machine-finished. This involves a process that puts the paper through rollers so one side is smoother with a glazed look. This is great for paper bags that have prints on them.
MG will give paper bags a shiny surface, while MF won’t.
Creating grocery paper bags starts with your choice of material. Do you want brown paper bags? Or do you want recycled kraft paper bags?
The choice is up to you. But before you make a decision, get to know your options first.
If you want more information about paper-based packaging, Packoi Printing has got a wide selection of designs and samples for you to choose from.
Give us a call so we can talk about it. We’ll get back to you with a fair quote as soon as possible.