The paper carrier bags are a necessary part of shopping activity. They are not only make shopping more convenient but also help merchants with their brand promotions. The most important is that paper shopping bags have a significant advantage on both environment and cost. When you are going to order paper carrier shopping bags, you can do further on brand feature building and reduce the cost through various custom options.
Paper carrier bag is the favorite of merchants
Table of Contents
The Paper Options
Selecting the paper material is the first step in customizing paper carrier bags; it affects many of the next available options. To choose the right paper needs to consider two points: types and basis weight.
Types
There are many paper types, and we’ve talked about some of them in the previous article. 3 paper types are popular for producing custom paper shopping bags:
Kraft paper. People usually call it brown paper. This is a common material, typically without any surface processed, and has less acceptable printing options. Its most significant advantage is the minimum cost; it is imperative to most merchants. If you got an awesome design, you could offset the disadvantage of its mediocre appearance.
White/Black card paper. It’s a special called by most Chinese paper packaging product manufacturers to these paper types. Actually, they are the thicker kraft paper which been bleached or dyed black. Due to the excellent brightness, glossiness, and whiteness, white card paper is suitable for any printing and gets a fine effect. And black card paper is often used to making the paper packaging with gold stamped. Both of them are the most popular choice in shopping bag customization, although the cost is a little higher than brown kraft paper.
Coated Paper. This is a paper that has been processed and has coated on the surface. Coated paper can realize your design perfectly, show the most beautiful appearance, and giving a high-grade sense. That is why most big brands use it for producing carrier bags. But the cost of coated paper is also higher a lot than other types.
White card paper can realize many awesome designs
Basis Weight
Basis weight is a unit of paper specification. Gsm is used universally and globally, and European and American countries prefer to use lbs for the measure. They both express how much the special paper weighs under a particular specification.
Paper with a heavier basis weight has a better tear-resistance and weight capacity, and the carrier bags they are made will be stronger. And they also get a better stiffness, are not easy to wrinkle, which affects appearance. Of course, the heavier paper cost more, and it also influences the shipping cost. You need to select the just suitable one for balancing the bags’ quality and price.
Surface Process
It is necessary to make some surface processes to the paper according to your design printing needs so that it can get the best result. Calendering, coating, and film-covering are the common process to the paper which for making shopping bags.
Typically, these jobs had done before the paper was producing into bags. Most of the time, they are just the sub-options of paper types. Take the card papers for an example, they have almost been though calendered, and you do not need to ask for the job again.
To the coated papers, different surface processes will bring different appearances. What we usually see are:
single-side coated paper
double-side coated paper
glossy-coated paper
matte-coated paper
wove paper
You can learn more about the differences and applications of coated paper types in this article.
Kraft brown paper bags typically with a reasonable price
Handle Options
The handles are what the distinction between shopping bags and other paper packaging bags be. They are making carrying become more convenient. There are many options about the handles in a customizing paper carrier bag order; the primary is about the connection types and materials. Except for the styles, the handles also influence the bags’ weight capacity a lot.
You can customize the paper shopping bags with various handles styles
Connection Stypes
Knot. Punch on the paper bags, let the handles across through the holes, and make a knot to prevent fall off. This connection way is often used on the flat nylon or cotton tape handles. But it is not so firm and has a challenge during production.
Shoe Buckle. Both ends of the handle are like the shoelace with a buckle(actually, they are just shoelaces.) It is not easy to fall off and is a popular option, especially for the sports brands’ clothes and sneakers packaging bags.
Glued. Gluing the paper handles on the inside of the bag and fixing them with an extra piece of paper. This connection way is also common because of the low cost, but it has a less weight capacity.
Embedded. Similar to the shoe buckle way, but it’s often used in the thicker shopping bags. Hide the buckles with the folded top edges and making look more beautiful.
Die-cut. Punch two big holes on the bag as handles. This option is also at a low cost, but it has weak weight capacity and is easy to tear, so few merchants like it.
Snap button. Punch tiny holes on the bag, then set the handles with snap buttons on them. It’s often used with cotton and ribbon handles.
Materials
Cotton. Rope or tape style, with good comfort and a reasonable cost.
Nylon. Rope or tape style, with generic comfort and a low cost.
Paper. Warping three-strand ropes into one or just one paper tape, with the lowest cost but a weak weight capacity.
Ribbon. Take ribbon tape as handles, instead of polyester sometimes, with a higher-grade appearance and a little higher cost.
Hey, I am Tracy, International Department Manager of Fujian JiRong Packing Packing Products Co,.Ltd. I have worked in the paper products industry for 8 years, rich in experience, and love to share any related knowledge. If you got any questions about paper packaging, freely reach me, I would try my best to help you and provide a one-stop solution.