Are you looking for a handful of reasons to start using flexible packaging for your products?

You can find over 30.7 million small businesses that are active in the US. Not all small businesses create and distribute products, but those that do have a variety of packaging to choose from. Among the different types of packaging, flexible packaging is one of the best to pick.

In this guide, we’ll discuss the benefits of flexible packaging for small businesses. Keep reading to learn why you should consider flexible packaging for your products.

1. You Offer Consumer Convenience

Let’s start by talking about how flexible packaging can improve customer experience. Rigid packaging, like boxes, tends to take up a lot of space. This can be difficult for consumers who need to pack your product in their luggage or keep them on the go.

With flexible packaging, you’re increasing the convenience that your products have. They become easier to store or pack in a tight bag or small refrigerator. They are also lighter and use up less space.

Packaging with re-closure and dispensing options let you increase its convenience. Some people prefer products that have re-closure features, like cheese spread, for example. You should also consider child-resistant closure for medication and chemicals, cosmetics, and more.

2. Extend the Shelf Life of a Product

Does your business distribute consumable products like food and drinks? Using packaging with flexible film can increase your food product’s shelf life. Flexible packaging has barrier properties that keep products from spoiling early.

Remember that not all products that go to the shelves get bought before the next re-stocking. Sometimes, your food or drink products go bad before they reach the cashier. This results in more food waste, which is already a problem in the US.

Did you know that 30-40% of the food supply in the US becomes waste? When you increase the shelf life of a product, you help decrease food waste. You also protect the product from going bad early and help them stay on the shelves longer.

3. Consumers Get Ensured Product Security and Sterility

Let’s say you’re buying cotton pads or wipes at the supermarket. You have two choices: one is a brand that packaged the pads in a plastic box container with openings at the edges. The other brand uses secure flexible packaging with a sealer or zipper.
Between the two, you’ll most likely buy the brand with flexible and re-sealable packaging.

This is an extreme and obvious example. Yet, you must know that consumers want to get ensured a product’s security and sterility. These two factors are vital if you distribute food, cosmetics, medication, and similar products.

Compared to other packaging types, flexible packaging offers improved packaging protection. Unlike boxes or other types of packaging, it won’t open by accident or during transit. This keeps the product sterile and secure.

4. Keeps Your Product Fresh

The next item on our list of the benefits of flexible packaging involves keeping a product fresh. Flexible packaging won’t only preserve the sterility of a product. It can also maintain a product’s quality and keep it fresh.

Some products lose their freshness or effectiveness when they get exposed to light. Some products may go bad or become inefficient when they get exposed to moisture or vapours. Thus, you won't have to worry about your products getting exposed to the elements.

5. Flexible Packaging Eases Shipping and Handling

Another big advantage of using flexible packaging is that it’s easier to transport them. As we mentioned, flexible packaging takes up less space. Because the packaging is flexible, you can fit more of the product in a container.

A truckload of flat pouches has more products than a truckload of rigid containers. You can also say the same when handling your products. It’ll take a sales rep in a store more trips from storage to fill a shelf with the products that have rigid containers.

Even consumers will enjoy the lightweight nature of flexible packaging. They can add more of it to a shopping cart, which can improve customer experience. It’s also easier for them to fit products with flexible packaging in a pantry or shelf.

6. Show Off Your Brand in a Packaging With Good Shelf Appeal

Let’s talk about how your products will look on shelves. There are flexible packaging options that allow customers to see the product inside them. This is a smart choice for food product packaging.

Do you want to know the specific types of flexible packaging? A few examples of the most common and favoured types of flexible packaging include:

• Sachets
• Pouches
• Wrappers
• Packets
• Envelopes
• Stick packs or flex sticks
• Bags

There are many unique ways to add designs for packages like pouches, stick packs, bags, and more. The key to customizing product packages is to keep in mind their value for the customer. Don’t design product packages that have unnecessary features or layouts.

7. Flexible Packaging Creates Less Waste

Food waste isn’t the only type of waste you produce less of when you use flexible packaging. You can also reduce the waste used by packaging companies with flexible packaging.

Flexible packaging uses less water, fossil fuel and reduces greenhouse gas emissions.

Compare it with plastic canister and steel can packaging. In greenhouse gas emissions alone, plastic canisters produce four times more gasses. Steel can packaging creates seven times more greenhouse gases.

Other than using fewer resources, some types of flexible packaging are recyclable. If the product packaging had a re-sealable top, consumers might even reuse it for other things. One of the best examples includes bags with zippers.

Enjoy the Benefits of Flexible Packaging for Your Products Today

Those are the top benefits of flexible packaging for your products. We hope that our guide helped you learn more about finding the right packaging for your products. Remember that you don’t need to be a big company or business first to use these benefits.

Did you enjoy reading our guide on the benefits of using flexible packaging? Are you looking for a company that'll help you design and choose the best packaging for your products? Reach out to us today and let us know what you need.