Why Big and Small businesses are moving away from plastic bubble wrap and replacing them with Honeycomb Paper Wrap in eCommerce packaging.

The role of eCommerce packaging has evolved over the years from centring just on packaging the product to incorporating customer experience, brand identity and safe delivery.

ECommerce businesses have leveraged their ability to directly influence customers’ sensory experience and tap into their emotions and values using visual appeal and texture by creating packaging solutions that sell their product to the customer from the “first moment of truth”.

While the quality of the product being sold and delivered remains the utmost priority, the retail experience of the eCommerce landscape has changed with more emphasis on product packaging to stand out from competitors and convert customers into long-term clients.

Many packaging solutions such as corrugated boxes, paper bags, plastic boxes, poly bags, padded mailers, rigid boxes, and custom boxes have been used by eCommerce businesses to package, store, and transport their products to customers.

Over the years, big and small businesses have utilised plastic bubble wrap for their eCommerce packaging as a convenient and effective solution for fragile items during shipping and storing due to its soft cushion and protective quality.

However, in recent times, many big and small businesses have begun moving away from plastic bubble wrap and replacing them with Honeycomb Paper Wrap in eCommerce packaging.

There are different reasons why businesses are moving away from plastic bubble wrap and replacing them with Honeycomb Paper Wrap, and below are some of these reasons.

Coles and Woolworths have stopped REDcycle (recycling of soft plastics).

In the wake of more concern and emphasis on the environment, many eCommerce businesses have started utilising more eco-friendly materials for their product packaging.

Plastic bubble wraps are made entirely of single-use plastics, which harms the environment. Coles and Woolworths have stopped the REDcycle (recycling of soft plastics) collection program, so soft plastics are very hard to recycle now.

On the other hand, honeycomb paper wrap is made entirely with 100% biodegradable and recyclable materials, which makes it the best eco-friendly alternative to plastic bubble wrap.

Also, it is made of high-strength kraft paper, which consists of individual bands of kraft paper together in a continuous loop of hexagonal cells that provides a soft cushion to absorb shock and protective packaging for products.

Similarly, they expand easily and can be stretched by up to 40-50%, providing lightweight protection for delicate products in transit and storage.

Space saving by using honeycomb kraft paper instead of bubble wrap.

Another reason why many big and small eCommerce businesses are replacing plastic bubble wrap with honeycomb paper wrap is because it provides more space saving.

The kraft paper wrap has a compact design similar to a beehive's inner structure. This ensures that the honeycomb paper wrap requires 80% less storage space than the plastic bubble wrap, thereby saving more space than it needs.

Likewise, honeycomb paper wrap comes in compact rolls, easily assembled on warehouse shelves to save storage space.

For example, 100m rolls of 500mm wide plastic bubble wrap are equivalent to about 0.25 cubic metres, and for such storage space, you can store 4-5 rolls of 450 metres of 500mm honeycomb kraft paper wrap.

This means you can store up to 20 times the amount of honeycomb kraft paper as you can store plastic bubble wrap.

This is an excellent advantage for many big and small eCommerce businesses as it enables them to save huge costs on renting storage spaces for their packaging solution.

Costs of each form of packaging.

The cost of each form of packaging is also a huge reason why many eCommerce businesses are moving away from plastic bubble wraps and replacing them with honeycomb paper wraps.

With the limitations on the use of plastic, plastic prices are steadily rising on a global scale. In contrast, paper bubble wrap is getting more affordable due to its widespread adoption and usage.

Typically, the manufacturing process for honeycomb paper wrap requires fewer materials compared to plastic bubble wrap. For example, a single roll of honeycomb paper wrap can store up to 250m of paper wrap, which makes it more cost-effective for businesses in terms of unit cost comparison.

In addition, due to the space-saving benefit of honeycomb paper wrap, it is a beneficial alternative for eCommerce companies to reduce the cost they incur when using plastic bubble wrap. They can efficiently do compact packing, reducing the shipping and handling fees incurred.

Honeycomb paper wraps are flexible and easy to use. They allow eCommerce businesses to quickly package their products, including fragile or odd-shaped goods, without scissors or tape, saving extra costs and packaging time.

For customers, purchasing products from companies that use honeycomb paper wrap in packaging is a preferable to companies that package their products with plastic bubble wrap.

This is because while it provides aesthetic benefits, it also allows them to save huge costs due to its environmental benefits. They do not have to spend more money trying to recycle it and can reuse the packaging material over time.

We at Awesome Pack have a wide range of Honeycomb Kraft Paper Wraps (aka Hex wrap) available that may suit your business. We have Honeycomb padded mailers and various paper wraps to suit.

What products are suitable for using honeycomb paper wrap when shipping?

As many big and small eCommerce businesses transition from plastic bubble wraps to honeycomb paper wraps, they must know the products suitable for using this packaging solution when shipping.

A diverse range of products can be packaged suitably using honeycomb paper wraps due to their compact design and lightweight, flexible, and shock-absorbing properties.

Fragile items such as glasses, cups, vases, and photo frames are suitable to be packed with honeycomb paper wraps due to their soft cushion and high shock absorption capacity.

Furthermore, the honeycomb paper wrap provides lightweight protection while stretching and expanding easily, which makes it the best packaging solution for delicate products, including ceramics, when shipping.

Products which are awkwardly shaped are also suitable to be packaged with honeycomb paper wraps. They are incredibly flexible and malleable, enabling them to form around the handles, irregular edges and other components of the product neatly while offering adequate protection.

Heavy and large products like large ceramics can also be packaged using honeycomb paper wrap. Due to the high strength of the kraft paper and its compact design, the honeycomb wrap is durable and strong enough to protect such products from damage when shipping.

Big and small eCommerce businesses can use this quality to significantly reduce the shipping weight of their heavy products when transporting them.

Similarly, honeycomb paper wraps do not change in dimensions with temperature variations. They are humidity resistant, and businesses can utilise them to package products shipped to locations with extreme or fluctuating weather conditions.

Conclusion

As the eCommerce industry becomes more eco-friendly and customers become more environmentally conscious, it is only right that honeycomb paper wrap becomes the ideal alternative packaging solution for both big and small businesses instead of plastic bubble wrap. You can check out Awesome Pack's Complete range of Honeycomb Kraft Paper Wrap here.

 

Always bringing you value to your eCommerce journey,

Awesome Pack Team

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