Packaging costs continue to put pressure on beverage brands, but smarter packaging decisions can help companies protect margins, reduce waste and improve fulfillment efficiency.
From corrugated cardboard and paperboard to beverage can trays, protective inserts, freight and warehouse labor, packaging has become a major operating expense for beverage companies.
From corrugated cardboard and paperboard to shipping materials, warehouse labor and freight, packaging has become a significant expense for beverage companies.
The solution isn't always to find the cheapest box.
Instead, beverage companies should look at the total cost of packaging — including materials, labor, storage, shipping, product damage and fulfillment time.
For companies shipping cans and bottles, making small improvements throughout the packaging process can create meaningful savings as the business grows.
Why Are Beverage Packaging Costs Increasing?
Packaging costs are affected by a variety of factors, including raw material prices, manufacturing costs, transportation, energy and overall demand. The paper cost increases this year are not helping either.
For beverage companies, packaging costs can be especially important because beverages are heavy and require packaging capable of protecting products throughout the shipping process.
A typical beverage shipment may involve:
- Corrugated shipping boxes
- Protective inserts
- Can trays or dividers
- Void fill
- Tape
- Labels
- Warehouse labor
- Storage space
- Replacement products for damaged shipments
When all of these costs are combined, the true cost of packaging can be considerably higher than the price of the box itself.
1. Stop Looking at Packaging as Just a Box
One of the biggest mistakes beverage companies make is comparing packaging based solely on cost per box.
A $2 box isn't necessarily cheaper than a $3 box.
If the cheaper box requires additional dividers, bubble wrap, packing paper and several extra minutes of labor, it could actually cost more to use.
Instead, calculate your total packaging cost per shipment.
Total Packaging Cost =
Packaging Materials + Labor + Storage + Shipping Impact + Product Damage
This gives you a much better understanding of what your packaging is actually costing your business.
2. Reduce the Number of Packaging Components
Every additional packaging component creates another item to purchase, inventory and store.
A traditional beverage shipment might require:
Box + Divider + Bubble Wrap + Void Fill + Tape
A purpose-built beverage shipping solution can potentially eliminate several of those steps.
Whale Pod Shipper designs packaging specifically around beverage cans and bottles, helping brands simplify the packing process and reduce the need for additional protective materials.
Explore Whale Pod beverage shipping solutions
3. Don't Ignore Warehouse Labor
Packaging materials aren't the only expense.
Labor can be one of the largest hidden costs in fulfillment.
Imagine an employee spends an additional two minutes preparing every beverage shipment.
At 500 shipments per week, that's more than 16 hours of additional labor every week.
At 2,000 shipments per week, it's more than 66 hours.
A packaging system that saves even a small amount of time per order can create significant savings as your business grows.
Purpose-built packaging, including products such as beverage can trays, can help make the packing process more consistent and efficient. This will help offset the multiple corrugated price increases this year.
4. Right-Size Your Packaging
Generic shipping boxes aren't necessarily designed around beverage products.
Excess space can require additional protective materials and may increase shipping costs.
Purpose-built beverage packaging allows companies to design around the actual dimensions of their products.
Whale Pod offers packaging for a variety of beverage formats, including standard cans, slim cans and bottles.
Explore Whale Pod packaging products
The goal is simple:
Use the right amount of packaging to protect the product without paying for unnecessary materials and space.
5. Reduce Packaging Waste Without Sacrificing Protection
Reducing packaging doesn't mean simply using less material.
For beverage companies, under-packaging can be extremely expensive.
A damaged shipment can result in:
- Replacement product
- Replacement packaging
- Additional shipping costs
- Customer service labor
- Refunds
- Lost customers
The goal should be right-sized protection.
Packaging designed specifically for beverages can help keep products secure without relying on excessive amounts of filler material.
6. Consider Packaging That Serves Multiple Purposes
The best packaging doesn't necessarily perform just one job.
For example, a beverage tray can potentially help with transportation, organization, storage and presentation.
Whale Pod's Tray Pods combine a beverage tray with an outer shipping box, providing an alternative to traditional multi-component beverage packaging.
This gives beverage brands another way to think about packaging:
How many jobs can one piece of packaging accomplish?
7. Look at Wholesale Packaging Costs
As your beverage company grows, your packaging purchasing strategy should grow with it.
A startup purchasing a few cases of packaging has different needs than a beverage company shipping thousands of orders every month.
When evaluating packaging suppliers, compare more than unit price.
Consider:
- Unit cost
- Freight
- Minimum order quantity
- Storage requirements
- Lead time
- Labor requirements
- Product protection
- Packaging waste
For example, purchasing beverage can trays or other packaging components in larger quantities may reduce unit costs, but only if the inventory makes sense for your operation.
The cheapest packaging isn't necessarily the packaging with the lowest total cost.
8. Don't Forget Product Damage
Beverages create a unique packaging challenge because cans and bottles are relatively heavy and can experience significant handling during transportation.
A damaged shipment can quickly turn a profitable order into a loss.
Consider everything included in the cost of replacing a damaged order:
Product + Packaging + Shipping + Replacement Shipping + Labor
This is why protective packaging should be viewed as an investment rather than simply an expense.
These Bottle Pods from Whale Pod are boxes made to protect glass bottles during shipping.
9. Think Beyond Direct-to-Consumer Shipping
Beverage packaging isn't limited to DTC orders.
Brands may also need packaging for:
- Wholesale distribution
- Pallet shipments
- Retail
- Trade shows
- Sampling programs
- Subscription boxes
- Distributor shipments
- Product launches
Packaging that can work across multiple applications can simplify purchasing and inventory management.
10. Use Packaging as a Branding Opportunity
Reducing packaging costs doesn't mean your packaging has to look generic.
Packaging can also be part of your brand experience.
Custom printed trays can help beverage brands turn transportation and display packaging into a marketing opportunity.
Whale Pod offers custom printed can trays for companies looking to add branding to their beverage packaging.
Explore custom printed can trays
11. Packaging Should Scale With Your Business
The packaging that works for a startup shipping 20 orders a week may not be the right solution when that company reaches 2,000 orders a week.
As volume increases, small inefficiencies become major expenses.
Consider a beverage company shipping 1,000 orders per month.
If better packaging saves just 30 seconds per shipment, that's more than 8 hours of labor saved every month.
At 10,000 shipments per month, the same improvement saves more than 83 hours.
That's why packaging efficiency becomes increasingly important as beverage brands scale.
The Bottom Line: Calculate the True Cost of Packaging
Rising packaging costs aren't going away.
The beverage companies that manage those costs effectively will be the ones that look beyond the price of cardboard.
Instead of asking:
"How much does this box cost?"
Ask:
"How much does it cost us to get one beverage shipment packed, protected and delivered?"
That number includes:
Materials + Labor + Storage + Shipping + Damage
For many beverage brands, the biggest savings may not come from finding a box that's a few cents cheaper.
They may come from eliminating unnecessary materials, reducing packing time, improving product protection and simplifying fulfillment.
That's why beverage-specific packaging matters.
Why Whale Pod Shipper?
Whale Pod Shipper specializes in packaging designed specifically for the beverage industry, including sleek can beverage shipping boxes, 12oz and 16oz can shipping boxes, boxes for shipping case trays, and custom printed beverage can trays.
The goal is simple:
Protect the beverage.
Pack it faster.
Ship it smarter.
For beverage brands dealing with rising packaging costs, the right packaging system can turn a necessary expense into an opportunity to improve the economics of the entire fulfillment operation.