We manufacture custom paper packaging across five capability areas: printing, structures, materials, surface finishing and services. Most buyers arrive knowing what they need to package, but not which combination of specifications suits their product, order volume and destination market.
This page explains what each option means, when it is appropriate, and what to ask us about it. If you already know what you need, send your dimensions, quantity and target market — we reply within one business day.
What we manufacture
Everything is produced to order in our own factory. We do not resell goods made elsewhere or relabel work purchased from another converter.
Custom paper boxes
Lid and base boxes, magnetic closure boxes, drawer boxes, folding cartons, rigid boxes, retail display boxes, custom-shaped boxes and internal inserts.
Custom paper bags
Gift bags, shopping bags, kraft bags, food packaging bags and reusable bags.
Paper tubes and cylinders
Tea tubes, wine tubes, spirits packaging and cosmetic cylinders.
Labels and stickers
Adhesive labels, barcode labels and custom die-cut stickers.
Calendars and books
Wall calendars, desk calendars, notebooks and book jackets.
Structural design
Dieline creation, insert engineering and material recommendation from our engineering team.
Printing
Printing method determines both your unit cost and how faithfully we reproduce your colour. There is no single appropriate method — the correct choice depends on quantity, colour specification, substrate and deadline.
CMYK four-colour
Cyan, magenta, yellow and black in overlapping halftone screens produce continuous tone. Cost advantage grows with quantity as plate preparation is spread across more units.
PMS / Pantone spot
Pre-mixed inks with defined formulas. If your brand guideline specifies Pantone 186 C, spot ink reproduces that value across runs without the variation inherent in four-colour builds.
Digital printing
No plates and no plate preparation cost. Modern digital presses reach quality levels not available commercially several years ago, though colour gamut and substrate range remain narrower than offset.
Offset lithography
Plate preparation cost is recovered across the run. Offset offers the widest substrate range, sharpest reproduction at volume and the most stable colour consistency when combined with G7 calibration.
Choosing between them
- Quantity under 500 units Digital avoids plate setup entirely and is usually the lower-cost option at this volume.
- Quantity above 1,000 units Offset spreads fixed setup cost across enough units to reach a lower unit price.
- Pantone spot colours specified Offset with spot plates holds the specified value more consistently than a four-colour build.
- Full-colour photographic artwork Either method works. We produce a proof so you can judge the actual reproduction.
- Textured or specialty substrate Offset offers more freedom, as ink lay-down on textured surfaces is more forgiving.
- Short deadline for a new design Digital starts after prepress alone, with no plate manufacturing wait.
- Reorder of an existing design Offset, since plates may still be usable and per-unit cost is lower.
A practical sequence for many brands: run a digital sample to validate the market, then move the production run to offset once volume justifies the setup cost.
Structures
Structure determines how the product is held, how the customer opens the package, and how much material is used. The wrong structure adds material cost without adding protection.
Lid and base box
Two pieces, ships flat, lowest unit cost. Shoes, apparel, small gifts and subscription boxes.
Magnetic closure box
Closure mechanism, opens without effort. Cosmetics, jewellery, electronics and premium gifting.
Drawer box
Slides open and creates a staged reveal. Premium gifts, watch and pen packaging.
Folding carton
One-piece glued board with high volume efficiency. E-commerce, cosmetics, confectionery, pharmacy.
Rigid box
Chipboard wrapped with paper or fabric. Watches, instruments, spirits and luxury goods.
Custom shape box
Die-cut to a specific outline. Retail displays, seasonal packaging and novel formats.
Paper tube or cylinder
Cylindrical with high shelf presence. Tea, wine, spirits and cosmetics.
Mailer box
Designed for shipping, often self-sealing. Apparel, accessories and subscription kits.
Paper bag
Carries the brand at point of sale. Retail shopping, gift bags and food takeaway.
Inserts
Insert material is often the deciding factor in how a product feels inside its box.
- EVA foam Good protection and high perceived quality, can be moulded to the product shape. Not recyclable with paper streams.
- Moulded paper pulp Recyclable with paper and appropriate for lower weight products. Textured finish suits eco-positioned brands.
- Honeycomb board Expandable paper structure with good strength-to-weight ratio, fully recyclable.
- Paperboard inserts Lowest cost, suitable for light products and internal organisation rather than protection.
Every structural recommendation we make is verified with a physical sample before bulk production begins.
Materials
Board types
FSC kraft paper
Unbleached with visible fibre and a warm tone. The most frequently specified option among brands with environmental positioning. Available in a range of grammages.
White cardboard
Bright white surface that takes colour cleanly and prints both sides evenly. The default for cosmetics, confectionery and retail display.
Greyboard or chipboard
Rigid core used in hard boxes, typically 1.5 to 3mm, wrapped with printed paper, fabric or leatherette.
Corrugated board
Available as E-flute around 1.5mm, B-flute around 3mm, C-flute around 4mm, and BC-flute double wall for heavier items.
White-top kraft
Kraft with a white surface layer, allowing colour printing on the outer face while retaining a natural edge.
Recycled board
Post-consumer content with visible fibre, appropriate for brands making documented recyclability claims.
Specialty papers
Textured, metallic, cotton, laid, craggy and other decorative stocks are available for premium positioning. These typically require offset printing rather than digital, because ink absorption and surface texture affect digital ink lay-down.
Material traceability
We can supply board with a supplier certificate traceable to your specific order. Where a certificate is claimed on the packaging itself, we document which chain-of-custody reference applies.
Note that FSC chain-of-custody certification covers the fibre content. Inks, adhesives and lamination films fall outside that scope. If you intend to make a claim on the pack, it should state what is actually certified.
Surface finishing
Finishing is applied after printing and is what the customer touches first. It affects perceived quality, durability and how the artwork reads.
| Process | Effect | Considerations |
|---|---|---|
| Matte lamination | Diffuse, non-reflective surface | Colours appear deeper; shows fingerprints less than gloss |
| Gloss lamination | High reflectance, vivid colour reproduction | Scratches and fingerprints visible under retail lighting |
| Soft-touch lamination | Textured, velvet-like surface | Higher cost; amplifies board surface irregularity; not suitable for overprinting |
| Spot UV | Glossy raised layer over a matte base | Requires accurate registration between the varnish screen and matte lamination |
| Hot foil stamping | Metallic gold, silver, copper or holographic | Adds cost per unit; tooling cost for new designs |
| Embossing | Raised detail above the surface | Can crush board if pressure is excessive |
| Debossing | Recessed detail pressed into the board | Subtle, suits formal and premium finishes |
| Silkscreen | Precise single-colour application | Suitable for technical marks and variable data |
| Anti-scuff coating | Transparent protective layer | Suited to packaging handled frequently in retail |
Practical considerations
- Colour shifts between laminated and unlaminated output. Approve colour on a finished sample rather than a flat proof.
- Soft-touch is applied first. Spot UV or foil goes on top; soft-touch cannot be printed over directly.
- Spot UV requires registration. Poor alignment between the varnish screen and matte lamination is visible, and we reject it at inspection.
- Anti-scuff coatings reduce marking. They suit packaging subject to frequent retail handling without changing appearance.
Services
Structural design
Dieline creation, insert engineering and material recommendation. Our engineers design against your product dimensions rather than asking you to choose from a catalogue.
Artwork prepress
We check resolution, bleed, trapping, colour profile and total ink coverage before plate preparation. Issues at this stage carry no additional cost.
Prototyping
Physical samples for structure, size, material and finish verification. Where the schedule allows we produce the actual production unit.
3D mockups
Rendered visualisation of the finished box, useful when stakeholders need to approve appearance without waiting for a sample.
Export logistics
We coordinate FCL, LCL and air freight and provide documentation your customs broker requires.
Confidentiality
We work under NDA where required.
Lead times and order quantities
- 1
Express — 7 days
Digital runs and simple structures, typically up to 500 units.
- 2
Standard — 15 days
Normal production window for offset runs in the low thousands.
- 3
Bulk — 30 days
Large volume orders, multi-colour jobs and complex structures.
These are standard production windows. Actual lead time depends on structure complexity, order size, artwork readiness and current production scheduling. We confirm a specific delivery date in the quotation.
Minimum order quantity varies by structure. Folding cartons accept lower quantities because they need no tooling. Rigid boxes and custom shapes carry higher minimums because of dieline tooling and makeready. We confirm the MOQ when quoting.
What to send us for a quotation
- Product dimensions Length × width × height, or diameter × height.
- Quantity Your expected order quantity, even if approximate.
- Destination market Affects documentation requirements.
- Artwork or reference image If you have it. If not, describe the product and we will propose a structure.
Design and structural support are provided at no cost with a quotation request.