What’s Wrong with the eBay Reusable Box?

1. Corrugated Waste

First and foremost as any corrugated manufacturer or first year designer will tell you, there is no corrugated design that is more wasteful in terms of corrugated usage andscrap than a high profile, die cut mailer, which is exactly what eBay has selected to use. Unlike for example an RSC style, the very nature of this mailer design creates scrap and the higher the profile of the mailer, the more scrap is generated. Ironically this design costs more trees (compared to other designs) which is what they are attempting to save.

2. Usage and Compliance

Personally, I am what you would call an occasional eBay buyer but I rarely sell anything through them. Sellers are quite likely to use these boxes for economic or eco reasons but can you count on the buyers to, as they say, “pay it forward”? It will be interesting to see how many of these boxes are still in circulation a few months from now and how much corrugated board is actually saved.

It is unfortunate but a large segment of the population will do the right thing for the environment, only when they have to or it provides immediate savings or gratification. As almost any curb side recycling program will demonstrate, a carrot and/or a stick can greatly improve participation

3. Overly Optimistic Eco Impact

As is often the case in situations and projections involving the environment, the estimate of how many people will use them and how many trees will be saved is probably a reach.

I have not seen a mention of a board weight but regardless of whether it is 32 ECT or 44 ECT, or something in that neighborhood, in 35 years of packaging design and testing experience, I have rarely seen a die cut mailer used the projected five times eBay is optimistically hoping for. Perhaps five cycles is feasible in an intra-company application but not one where it is shipping via a public delivery system with undetermined contents and undetermined packing and packaging enclosed. All of these are factors that can greatly impact the durability and there by the reusability of a shipping container.

What is Right about the eBay Container? The art design is beautiful. I am not sure how it will look after two or three uses but it is eye catching and communicates their green message perfectly. A two color screen on brown Kraft probably added cost unnecessarily and I know the printing inside and out likely added 30% or more to the overall cost but the layout and look is flawless.

More importantly, this box makes people think and the value of that is immeasurable. There is nothing that any of us can do that is more beneficial to the environment than reusing a product that has already been manufactured and delivered. That results in the greatest savings of raw material, water, energy, transpiration costs and yes, even trees.

I applaud this clever and timely effort by the people at eBay and hope other companies who ship using huge amounts of corrugated containers will learn from the example eBay has provided. We truly won’t know how effective it is for some time but we already know it has us talking about reusability and that is always a good idea.

If you’d like to read more about this topic, check into the following posts:
The Globe Guard Reusable Box – A Timely Green Packaging Solution
The Many Faces of Reusable Shipping Containers

ALL Cubic Box Sizes are included!

For the first time ever, every stock cubic box is on sale, ranging from our very tiny and popular 4” X 4” X 4” to our oversized 20” X 20” X 20”. In between those two sizes we also have available 5”, 6”, 7”, 8”, 9”, 10”, 12”, 13”, 14”, 16”, and 18”.

Remember, these are genuine Globe Guard boxes and are made of 100% post consumer waste, recycled content. They are the greenest boxes available and now at one low price, whether you are buying one bundle or twenty bundles.

Custom Printed Boxes Also Available

If one of these sizes works for you, or if you need something slightly smaller or larger, and you would like your logo or branding message printed on them, please let us know. We have run as few as fifty custom printed boxes but we usually recommend a minimum of at least two-hundred boxes to minimize the set up costs. When in doubt, ask and we will work to help you create a unique look that your customers will remember.

Even though all of these stock cube boxes are RSC style corrugated shipping boxes, we also offer stock and custom die cut mailers as well as HSC style, trays/ POP displays, sleeves, partitions  and just about anything you can do with corrugated or even paper board.

Let us know if you have any questions or if we can help you design a greener and lower cost shipping container for your eco minded customers.

Some Great Examples of Boxes Designed to Impress and Save Money

Pasolivo Oil – opted for a unique design that wraps around the box creating a lattice or gift ribbon look. They also went against conventional thinking and printed with white ink on a brown, natural Kraft box. The end result is a very natural, and unique white wash look.

Sennco Solutions – when they decided on a new company logo, there was no better way to promote it to their customers than to print it on all of their shipping boxes. We helped them to consolidate their box sizes, while minimizing their printing plate costs. They also discovered that by increasing the number of boxes they ordered, they were able to minimize the additional cost of the printing.

Stonyfield Farm – for a special promotion they chose Globe Guard boxes for their eco consistent message and printed their return address and even the postal indicia directly on the box to minimize labor and labeling. They also decided to reinforce the standard Globe Guard eco message by adding their own use and disposal message on the highly visible side panels.

Earth Turns.com – without a lot of additional expense, two PMS colors can be duplicated for a first-class and consistent image. Earth Turn’s easily recognizable brand is important to them, so how could anyone possibly print this unique brand image in one color or colors that do not match how they look elsewhere in their marketing?

Custom Printing a Box Typically Adds Less than 5% Per Color to Cost

Most people are surprised when they can print their boxes for not much more than they are currently paying for boring brown boxes. Yes, a second or third color adds cost, but after many years we can tell you that in most cases, that is less than 5% per color, so even an elaborate three-color design is likely to add less that 20% to the box cost.

Most customers print two panels, the two that are not obscured by the tape that will eventually be used to tape the box closed. However safety messages and other information can be easily printed on the top flaps where the boxes are usually opened. As I suggest to customers, ink is inexpensive so once you decide to print, don’t hold back. Eliminate costly labels and/or the labor consumed to add additional, often-time handwritten markings and messages.

Keep in mind that printing plates are required but they too are less expensive than most people imagine. Plates vary in cost, depending on the image and box sizes, but they are a onetime expense, normally in the $200 to $300 range per color. Plates are also the customer’s property to be used elsewhere or for other purposes. We are always eager to help with the artwork design so that the same plates can be used for multiple and varying box sizes.

Creating an “Image of Difference”

Thanks to the Internet and a tough economy, regardless of what we sell, our markets are becoming crowded and tougher. Standing out is a challenge but graphics on packaging are relatively inexpensive ways of retaining current customers and capturing new business as well.

With our experience and capabilities, we can help you take the fear, headaches and cost out of the process.

New Eco Friendly Corrugated Mailer

I keep saying that most of our Globe Guard products began as customer requests and the four new items we’ve added this week are great examples.

GG-M1493, 14.5” X 9.5” X 3” Globe Guard Die Cut Mailer

A lady in California makes a high quality green product and was eager to ship it in something other than a plain RSC style corrugated shipping box. She asked for more of a “presentation” box and we designed one that fits her products like a glove. She was thrilled with the sample we provided because it shows off and protects better compared to other options.

GG-39, Globe Guard 13” X 13” X 6” RSC style shipping box

We stock a 13” x 13” x 13” high box but sometimes too much of a good thing is not good and definitely not green. The taller box fit a customer’s product well but she only needed a box half as tall for smaller orders. The solution was this new 13 X 13 X 6” high shipping box and convincing us to add it to our stock list was the easiest part.

GG-38, Globe Guard 9” X 6” X 2” RSC style shipping box

A customer in Maine sells beautiful jewelry and was in search of a low profile box that was NOT a die cut mailer. The ideal size for her was 9x6x2 and we decided the size would fit well into our low profile shipping box assortment. We combined our orders and we both benefitted from the longer box run.

GG-7, Globe Guard 7” X 7” X 7” RSC style shipping box

A customer pointed out that we had just about every cube box possible except for the 7” cube he needed. We agreed it was an oversight and immediately added it to stock, once again reducing his cost with the larger box quantity.

It would be incorrect to say we are “willing” to add new box sizes to our lineup. The fact is that we not only encourage it, we actually look for good excuses to do so. If you want or need a green box but you don’t see what you need on our green packaging store web site, PLEASE let us know. You may the customer that helps us to add an item that others will also appreciate and buy.

New Eco Friendly Shipping Boxes

8 x 6 x 6 Eco Friendly Box with Partitions

Creating a High Profile in Low Profile Packaging

It’s no secret we spend considerable time developing and promoting our Globe Guard brand of sustainable, eco friendly packaging products. We realize one of the best ways we can accomplish our objectives is to continuously enhance its value to our customers by helping them get their packaging done in as environmentally responsible a way as possible.

Four New Boxes Added to the Globe Guard Green Packaging Web Store

We are pleased to announce the addition of the following to our Globe Guard 100% PCW, recycled content, box sizes.

• 8” X 6” X 6” RSC style, 32 ECT shipping box
• 9” X 5” X 5” RSC style, 32 ECT shipping box
• 14” X 12” X 6” RSC style, 32 ECT shipping box
• 20” X 14” X 4” RSC style, 32 ECT shipping box

We realize not everyone needs a tall or cube box so when you add these four new sizes to the variety of sizes we already have, we are confident we can fit most products and applications with the right box for the job.

Current box sizes include: 8” X 6” X 3” tall, 9” X 8” X 4” tall, 10” X 10” X 5” tall, 12” X 9” X 4” tall, and 12” X 10” X 6” tall.

Need a Unique Eco Friendly Box for a Unique Eco Friendly Product?

Regular readers may tire of hearing this but I hope they understand we draw new readers constantly who may not have heard this before: over 50% of the boxes we sell are custom size, custom grade and/or custom printed. Unlike many internet packaging suppliers, we understand and can help customers design custom packaging for their unusually shaped or configured products. We are also experts at combining a wide variety of substrates and products to -

• Minimize cost
• Maximize recyclability
• Minimize packaging waste by weight and volume
• Maximize reusability
• Minimize the negative impact on the environment

Let us know what your toughest most difficult challenge is and we will likely help you develop a low cost, green solution.
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Visit the Globe Guard ® Green Packaging Store for -

Green Shipping Boxes
Eco Friendly Packaging Materials
Special Deals on Eco Friendly Shipping Supplies

See our revolutionary, patent pending Globe Guard® Reusable Shipping Box!

A Few Questions to Consider:

• What if reusing packaging products was easier?
• What if one corrugated shipper box could do the work of two or more boxes?
• What if your box inventory took up half the space?
• What if you had to replenish that inventory half as often?
• What if your customer return process was more customer friendly as well as more efficient and lower cost for you?
• What if product exchanges or loaners could be accomplished with the same packaging?
• What if you could easily communicate your commitment to green with something as simple as a corrugated shipping box?
• What if your customers appreciated you shipping their orders in a box that can easily be reused, saving them money?

As they say, “stay tuned” for the answers to these and many other sustainable packaging questions. Coming soon:

New Products and Unique Packaging

Sometimes the challenge is how to economically create custom packaging for a new and unique product and not break the bank doing it. In other words, protecting a product during shipment and making it affordable, even when the volume is relatively small. One way to do it is to combine stock and custom products rather than working with all custom items and eliminating some or the entire cost of dies and tooling.

Here are two recent examples:

Custom partitions and pads with stock RSC shipping boxes

Pente5 is a fast growing manufacturer of organic extracts which are all packed in glass bottles. They needed to create a four pack shipper case as well as a six pack shipper case for a new product launch.

We had no choice but to create custom pads and partitions for them but we intentionally designed them to fit two of our stock boxes. The finished product turned out great and we were able to avoid a higher cost custom box. This also minimized the amount of inventory they would have to buy and stock for their new product.

Custom inserts with stock die cut mailers

Spectrum Technologies is a manufacturer of weather monitoring devices and a good friend and neighbor. Their office is literally across the street from our facility and they asked for our assistance to create a three pack for a new, unusually shaped product.

We were pleased to discover our stock 9” X 6.5” X 2.75” die cut corrugated mailer fit the three products perfectly. Then all we had to do was design an insert that would immobilize the products during shipment. The insert fit perfectly into the stock box and the cost was minimized for the product and the tooling as well.

Green packaging solutions often require flexibility and creativity

There are many suppliers who sell only stock products and others who push everything into custom packaging but we see the advantage of combining the two whenever possible. We make green, custom packaging affordable and would like to help you with your packaging challenge.

Extra Tall and Extra Long Shipping Boxes Now Available

Now Offering Extra Long and Extra Tall Corrugated Shipping Boxes

Unusually long products deserve unusually long green shipping boxes

These are not your average 30 to 40% recycled content boxes – these are our standard (for us) 100% PCW boxes. Globe Guard boxes remain one the greenest boxes available and ideal for so many applications ranging from golf putters to curtain rods. Often times, these extra long products are particularly challenging because not everyone stocks these sizes and lengths so we are very glad to be able to now carry them for you.

Our Stock Box List Is Growing Green

Our Globe Guard Products web store has been open for only eight months and our stock box list has doubled in that time. We expect it to at least double again in the next year and we would like to include your sizes on our list. Let us know what sizes you regularly buy or wish you could find, and you may find it soon available from us.

We sincerely appreciate our customer’s feedback and guidance and continue to work hard to be your number one source for green packaging products.

What Is Globe Guard Products?

I often times have to remind myself that we are constantly adding new readers who may not have all the background information on what we do and why. Over two years ago when we first started our business, we often heard that green packaging products were difficult to find, very expensive and only available in large minimums. We decided to correct all that and today we offer our Globe Guard boxes in one bundle (15 to 25 boxes depending on size) minimums, make ordering easy via our web store and our prices are competitive with the largest non-green stock box suppliers in the nation.

For more information on us and our products, please visit our Globe Guard About Us page, this excellent article published on Sustainable is Good or this podcast interview you may find interesting.

Or you can simply call us at 815-609-3600 and we will be glad to help you with your green packaging needs.
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Visit the Globe Guard Green Packaging Store for -

Eco Friendly Shipping Boxes
Green Packaging Materials
Special Deals on Green Shipping Supplies

Lower Minimums for Larger Green Shipping Boxes

Bundle Weight

A 25 count bundle of our GG-27, 5” cube boxes only weighs all of 5 pounds. That is obviously a very light weight, convenient bundle for shipping and handling. However, a bundle of our new GG-31 box which is 22” X 22” X 12” in size, happens to weigh almost 67 pounds when bundled in 25’s. Technically that large bundle can still ship via UPS or FedEx but becomes much more difficult to handle in our facility or yours.

Purchase Quantity

Sometimes you need a large box for a particular need but you may not need twenty five of them. Large boxes get expensive due to size so it doesn’t seem fair to force a customer to buy more than they really need or want, in order to use our eco friendly 100% PCW Globe Guard boxes. Our goal from the beginning was to make green shipping boxes available and affordable to everyone and that includes small volume, over size box customers.

Customer convenience combined with customer safety is our greatest concern so this change made sense from both perspectives.

How Will the Bundle Counts Change?

There may be some exceptions when box width and height are factored in but generally, all stock Globe Guard boxes that are 16” or less in length will remain in 25 box bundles. Any boxes 17” or longer will be bundled and sold in 15 box units

What about Shipping Costs?

Unless a customer instructs us otherwise, we will continue wrapping bundles together to reduce shipping costs for them. Combining bundles always results in shipping cost savings but a customer can tell us if their preference is lighter weight bundles for ease of handling and we will be glad to comply.

Globe Guard Box Exceptions

Please keep in mind this change is for Globe Guard stock shipping boxes only. Die cut boxes will remain in 25 or 50 bundle quantities, as is appropriate for their overall size.

Also, custom shipping boxes that usually ship on pallets anyway, can be bundled in any quantity the customer chooses. If no preference is stated, 25 per bundle will remain the default box count but custom boxes can easily be custom packaged per your preference.

Please call us if you have any questions and thank you for making Globe Guard 100% PCW shipping boxes the green choice for green products and green businesses.
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Visit the Globe Guard Green Packaging Store for -

Eco Friendly Corrugated Boxes

Continuous improvement is a well worn phrase that means a lot of different things to different people. Even though the packaging industry is launching brand new green products on an almost daily basis, this post is more about redesign and enhancement of existing products, rather than new product innovation.

Here are two perfect examples of manufacturing taking a good, green product and making it better and greener.

Globe Guard 100% PCW Corrugated Board

Globe Guard Shipping Boxes Now Easier to Reuse

Keep in mind that our 32 ECT board is still 32 ECT so there was no weakness being addressed or strength gained. This is an improvement made to provide a little more outward/in puncture resistance and for cosmetic reasons. Our boxes look better for a longer period of time and possibly improve the possibility of them being re-used. Re use is good and this is a significant green improvement to what was already an excellent, industry leading product.

Globe Guard 100% Recycled Paper Mailers

Globe Guard Mailers Now 100 Percent Recycled

Regardless, these paper mailers were 40% recycled content before and are now 100%, which makes their product much more marketable as a sustainable packaging solution because less virgin fiber is used and that saves trees. 100% is always better than 40% and today, many green minded customers will accept nothing less.

Is the Green Packaging Market Maturing?

Not likely. It is barely an adolescent and it is growing and changing nonstop. In some product areas, like bio plastics, it is still in its infancy and on the verge of major breakthroughs with tremendous positive environmental impact potential. The corrugated, paperboard and packaging paper industries are also introducing their second and third generations of products, all designed to use less of our natural resources, with “cradle to cradle” design being the ultimate goal.

In sustainable packaging, much like our Chicago weather, if you don’t like what you see; wait, because it will indeed change very soon.
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Visit the Globe Guard Green Packaging Store for -

Eco Friendly Corrugated Boxes

Eco Friendly Shipping Supplies

Special Deals on Packaging Supplies

and more!