Ecommerce: boosting labels and packaging industry

It is estimated that there will be 1.92 billion global digital buyers in 2019. With an estimated global population of 7.7 billion people, it’s about 25 percent of the world’s population! Since this number is rising rapidly, it is expected to reach 2.14 billion people in 2021. Undoubtedly, ecommerce has changed the way people buy, but it is a boon for the labels and packaging industry as well.

Packaging is an important part of any ecommerce business. They are always looking at ways to improve it. Many e-commerce businesses are now using corrugated boxes, instead of just wrapping the product. This ensures safe delivery of the product as well as effective promotion of the brand. Besides, if the product is delivered in top shape, there are fewer returns and customers are satisfied, leading to more future orders, thereby increasing the overall business for the ecommerce portal.

With bigwigs like Amazon, Flipkart, etc, offering foods, beverages and other grocery items online, there has been an increasing demand for packaging of such products. Another important trend is the demand for innovative packaging with radio frequency identification (RFID) and smart features optimized for last-mile delivery.

Besides, personalised packaging is also driving a lot of sales. For example, Amazon offers customised chocolate boxes for gifting, which is a big hit with online shoppers. Since warehousing and shipping costs are huge, retailers are now looking at optimum package sizes. As the products sizes are so different, they need different size packaging for their needs.

Moreover, commitment to sustainability is also on the priority list, so ecommerce players will look for easy-to-return packaging (resealable plastic mailers, corrugate with tear strips, etc).

All these trends indicate that label and packaging industry will continue to grow for the next few years due to increasing and changing demands of retailers.

Happy reading!

Sonal Khurana
sonal@smediagroup.in