Review packaging when something has changed rather than on a calendar: a new product or range, a shift from pallets to parcels, a new sales channel, a carrier re-rating, a move or a new 3PL, a damage or returns problem, a sustainability commitment, or peak planning. Each of those invalidates assumptions the current specification was built on.
Calendar reviews are the wrong trigger
An annual packaging review sounds disciplined and usually produces very little, because the year is not what changed anything. Packaging specifications go stale when a specific assumption behind them stops being true.
Reviewing against events rather than dates means the exercise happens when there is something to find.
The eight triggers worth acting on
| Trigger | Assumption it invalidates |
|---|---|
| New product or significant range change | That your box ladder matches your SKU sizes |
| Shift from pallets to parcels (or the reverse) | That the journey is what the pack was designed for |
| New sales channel or marketplace | That one outer suits every channel |
| Carrier change or re-rating | That your packs sit inside the right bands |
| Site move or new 3PL | That bench layout and supply continuity still hold |
| Damage or returns problem | That the protection matches the failure mode |
| Sustainability commitment | That the pack is recyclable in practice, not just in theory |
| Peak approaching | That reorder points are set for the volumes coming |
What changed, and which assumption it breaks.
The two that are most often missed
A change of despatch profile. Businesses that grow from trade pallets into direct-to-consumer parcels usually keep the packaging that worked for the pallet journey. A parcel network handles goods far more roughly and far less predictably, and prices on dimensions. The same product genuinely needs a different pack - see ecommerce packaging.
A carrier re-rating. Bands and surcharges move. A format that sat comfortably inside a threshold last year can be over it this year without anything at your end changing. See postal and parcel packaging.
Peak is a packaging planning problem
Most peak planning covers labour and stock and stops there. Packaging has two distinct peak risks: reorder points set on a normal run rate that will run dry in the busiest week, and printed or bespoke lines that cannot be produced at short notice because everybody else wants capacity at the same time.
Both are solved by building stock ahead and calling it off - see packaging stockholding. The review that matters is the one done before the season, not during it.
What a light-touch check looks like
Not every trigger justifies a full review. A twenty-minute check covers most of it:
- Has the box ladder changed, or has the range changed around it?
- Measure two or three high-volume packs against current carrier thresholds.
- Ask the pack bench what is slowing them down.
- Look at the last month of damage returns.
- Check whether any packaging line is close to running out or close to obsolete.
If any of those raises something, that is the point to run the full exercise - see packaging review and cost reduction.
Reviewing before you tender, not after
One sequencing point worth stating plainly. If you are about to go out to market on packaging, review the specification first.
Buying the wrong specification more cheaply is a much smaller win than buying the right one, and a tender run against an inherited spec locks the inherited spec in for another contract term. See packaging supplies.
The short version
- Review against events, not the calendar.
- A change of despatch profile is the most commonly missed trigger.
- Carrier re-rating can push a compliant pack over a band with no change at your end.
- Peak needs packaging planned ahead, not ordered during.
- Review the specification before you tender, not after.
Frequently asked questions
How often should we review packaging?
When something changes rather than annually. In a stable business that might be every couple of years; in a growing one it could be twice a year.
We are about to change carrier. Should we review first?
Yes - carrier thresholds differ, and a format that works with one can be surcharged by another. Reviewing before you switch means the pack matches the new bands.
Should we review before moving to a 3PL?
Ideally yes. The specification can then be handed over as a document, so the standard travels with the stock - see packaging for fulfilment.
Is it worth reviewing if our damage rate is low?
Possibly, for cost and carriage reasons. Low damage and high delivered cost is a common combination, and usually means the packs are over-specified.
How long before peak should packaging be sorted?
Far enough ahead that a production run can be made and held without competing for capacity. Discuss timings with us and we will be straight about what is achievable.