Packaging is where private-label projects lose the most time and money, and almost always for avoidable reasons: artwork approved on the wrong substrate, a barcode placed where the printer cannot register it, or a regulatory text block that has to be rewritten after the plates are made. This checklist covers the decisions that need to be settled before the first print run rather than after.
Sequence the work properly
The order matters more than the individual steps:
- Confirm the classification and the mandatory label content for each destination market, with your importer or regulatory advisor.
- Fix the product specification — size, count, absorbency tier — because the pack declares it.
- Agree the range architecture: how many SKUs, how they are colour-coded, how tier naming works across the range.
- Produce the dieline from the actual pack format and material, supplied by the printer or converter.
- Design on the dieline, not on a flat rectangle.
- Approve a physical proof on the production substrate.
- Print a pilot run and check the packed result before mass production.
Most rework traces back to skipping one of the first three steps and discovering the consequence at step six.
The dieline is not optional
A dieline is the flat cutting and folding pattern for the pack, including bleed, glue flaps, gussets and the exact position of seals. Designing without one produces artwork that looks correct on screen and distorts when wrapped around a three-dimensional bag. Ask the converter for the dieline of the exact material and format you intend to use, and confirm it is current — a dieline from a similar but different bag is a common and expensive mistake.
Keep the bleed and safety margins in mind: text placed near a fold or a seal will be distorted or clipped, and regulatory text is exactly the text you cannot afford to lose.
Print process and material
| Process | Typical use | Practical consequences |
|---|---|---|
| Flexographic | High-volume film bags | Lower cost per unit; plate cost per colour; fine gradients are harder |
| Gravure | High-volume, high-fidelity print | Excellent reproduction; high cylinder cost, so it rewards long runs |
| Digital | Short runs, multiple SKUs, test markets | No plate cost and fast turnaround; higher unit cost at volume |
Material choice interacts with print: polyethylene film, laminated film and metallised structures all take ink differently, and the same artwork will not look the same across them. Matte and gloss finishes change perceived quality substantially for a small cost difference, which makes finish a positioning decision rather than a technical one.
Barcodes and traceability
- Get a licensed GS1 company prefix in the name of the brand owner, not the factory, so the barcode stays with you if you change suppliers.
- Place the barcode on a flat area with adequate quiet zone; avoid gussets, seals and curves.
- Decide whether each pack size needs a distinct code — it does, since retail scanning is per pack.
- Confirm the print method achieves sufficient bar width tolerance and contrast; verify with an actual scan of the printed pack.
- If your market requires lot and date coding, agree where the code is applied and how it is verified.
Regulatory and information blocks
Every market specifies what must appear: product description, material composition where required, count, manufacturer or importer identity and address, country of origin, warnings, and disposal or flushability statements where applicable. Two habits reduce risk: keep a single controlled document listing the required elements per market, and have the factory confirm element by element that each appears on the proof. Generic assurances that "we include all standard information" are not a control.
Multi-market packs are tempting and usually a false economy unless the languages genuinely align. A pack that carries four languages in small type reads as cheap and creates more room for error than four separate packs.
Cost levers buyers forget
- Ink colours. Each additional spot colour adds plates or cylinders across the whole run; consolidating the palette across SKUs reduces cost more than negotiating the print price.
- Pack dimensions. A small change in bag width can change how many units fit per carton and per pallet, which moves freight cost more than the packaging cost itself.
- Standard versus custom substrate. A stock film structure is cheaper and faster than a bespoke laminate, and is often indistinguishable to the customer.
- SKU count. Each SKU carries its own plate and changeover cost; a range of eight SKUs costs disproportionately more than a range of five.
If your packaging is for wipes, the format discussion in Wet Wipes Sourcing covers seal integrity and moisture loss. For freight consequences of pack dimensions, see Incoterms and Shipping, and for the full cost picture Comparing Quotes on Landed Cost.