Five cardboard box alternatives for online order fulfilment

The advantage of soft mailers is they make it much easier for items to be delivered through your letterbox (provided they were suitably sized in the first place). This avoids the risks involved in leaving parcels on the doorstep, and the inconvenience of reacting to a “While you were out…” notice.

For non-fragile items with no hard corners, like clothing or soft furnishings, mailing bags are a great option. Traditionally available in plastic, there are now 100% paper options available if you are looking to improve the sustainability of your packaging.

For more fragile items, or items with rigid corners that could incur damage, use a cushioned envelope. They are available in a variety of linings including bubble wrap or paper fluting, and we can also provide options padded with recycled paper. All of them offer excellent cushioning to protect your products from knocks and drops in transit.

For items like books or video games, consider using solid board postal envelopes. The rigid outer provides good product protection.  Envelopes are gusseted to expand to a width of 30mm, making them suitable for use with a variety of items.

Not quite a box and not an envelope… a postal wrap falls somewhere in between. Cleverly designed, these wraps fit tightly around flat profiled items. They are great for items such as books, board games and jigsaws. And no additional packaging is requires as they close neatly with a self-sealing strip.

Use postal tubes for longer “odd” shaped items – not just posters! Products such as umbrellas, golf clubs, flask bottles and cooking utensils work well. They come with a plastic end cap to hold your products in place. We recommend closing with tape too if you are shipping heavy items.

If you are looking for box alternatives for eCommerce to meet your product range, contact Macfarlane Packaging today.