Supplying retail means packing for somebody else's process. The retailer's specification fixes case size, pallet pattern and labelling before you start. The commercial opportunity is usually not in the case at all, but in the part-case and single-unit packs nobody has ever specified.
- Packing for a process you do not control
- Shelf ready, and why the perforation decides it
- The packs nobody specified
- Transit and presentation pull apart
- Promotions run to a date that cannot move
- Multi-retailer supply
- Wholesale is a different despatch profile
- What to send us
- A first step for retail and wholesale suppliers
- The short version
- Frequently asked questions
Packing for a process you do not control
A retail case has to arrive square on a pallet configured the way the depot handles, be labelled where their scanners expect it, and open in one movement so a colleague can merchandise it. None of those are negotiable, and the parts of the specification that look arbitrary are usually the parts a rejection hinges on.
That means the specification document comes first. Designing a pack and reconciling it with the standard afterwards is an expensive sequence, and it happens on most new listings.
Shelf ready, and why the perforation decides it
Shelf ready packaging exists to cut the time between a case arriving and the product being on a shelf. Whether it achieves that comes down almost entirely to the perforation: a case that tears cleanly leaves a tidy tray and gets merchandised in seconds; one that tears raggedly gets unpacked by hand or put out looking damaged.
That is a board and die specification rather than a design one, and it is worth testing physically rather than approving on a drawing. See retail packaging.
The packs nobody specified
Most suppliers have a well-specified full case and nothing defined below it. Part-case picks, single units and samples get improvised at the bench, which is where a surprising proportion of both damage and labour quietly accumulates.
| Format | Usually specified? | What happens if not |
|---|---|---|
| Full retail case | Yes - by the retailer | n/a |
| Shelf ready case | Yes - by the retailer | n/a |
| Part case / broken case | Rarely | Improvised; damage and slow picking |
| Single unit despatch | Rarely | Retail case used in a parcel network |
| Sample and trade show | Almost never | Presentation inside no transit pack |
| Promotional / seasonal | Sometimes | Ordered too late for the date |
The formats a supplier usually needs, and which get specified.
Transit and presentation pull apart
Board heavy enough to protect a stacked pallet prints less well and costs more; board chosen for print quality may not arrive square. The usual resolution is to specify the outer for the journey and put presentation into an inner, a tray or a printed face that is not carrying load.
Where the case itself has to do both - as with shelf ready - the compromise should be made deliberately and tested, rather than discovered at a depot.
Promotions run to a date that cannot move
Promotional and seasonal packaging has to exist before the order lands, not be ordered when it does. Printed and bespoke work carries setup and lead time that will not compress to fit a promotion window.
That makes it a stockholding question rather than a purchasing one: the run gets made ahead and called off against the delivery schedule - see packaging stockholding and Packaging Lead Times: What to Expect and How to Plan.
Multi-retailer supply
- Different retailers specify different case dimensions for the same product.
- A base specification with retailer-specific outers is usually cheaper than separate packs throughout.
- Barcode and date-code positions differ and are not interchangeable.
- Pallet configuration differs, which affects case design upstream.
- Holding printed outers per retailer is a real stock commitment - plan it rather than discovering it.
Wholesale is a different despatch profile
Wholesale sends the same product as a full case to one customer, a broken case to another and a single unit to a third. A specification covering only the full case leaves two thirds of the despatch profile unaddressed.
Defining the part-case pack explicitly is usually the single most valuable thing a wholesaler can do to its packaging, and it costs very little - see packaging supplies.
What to send us
The retailer specifications you work to, your case and pallet configurations, your despatch profile across full cases, part cases and singles, and any rejection notices - those state the reason, which makes them unusually useful evidence.
See retail packaging for formats and packaging review and cost reduction if the question is what the whole range is costing.
A first step for retail and wholesale suppliers
The opportunity in this sector is usually below the full case rather than in it, because that is the part nobody has specified.
- Split your despatch profile into full cases, part cases and singles, and find the proportions.
- Look at what part-case picks are actually packed in. This is almost always improvised.
- Check single-unit despatch. A retail case in a parcel network is a common and expensive default.
- Test a shelf ready perforation by hand rather than approving it on a drawing.
- Diary your promotional packaging backwards from the delivery date - see Packaging Lead Times: What to Expect and How to Plan.
The short version
- The retailer specification is the starting document, not something to reconcile later.
- Shelf ready lives or dies on the perforation, which is worth testing physically.
- Part-case and single-unit packs are where unspecified improvisation costs money.
- Specify the outer for the journey and put presentation into an inner.
- Promotional packaging must be made ahead of the date it is needed.
Frequently asked questions
What is shelf ready packaging?
A case designed to be opened and put straight onto a shelf as a tray rather than unpacked unit by unit. The perforation decides whether it works.
Can you work to our retailer's packaging specification?
Yes - send it over with the product details. Where the specification and the journey genuinely conflict we will raise it rather than build a pack that satisfies the document and fails in transit.
How should broken cases be packed?
With a defined smaller pack rather than whatever is to hand. Most wholesale damage and a good deal of bench time come from part-case picks that were never specified.
We supply several retailers with different specifications. What is the best approach?
Usually a base specification with retailer-specific outers, rather than entirely separate packs. It limits how much printed stock you have to hold per customer.
When should we order promotional packaging?
Early enough that the run exists before the order lands. Printed work carries setup and lead time that will not fit inside a promotion window - see Packaging Lead Times: What to Expect and How to Plan.