Sustainable e-commerce: How important is the “weight” in packaging

Sustainable e-commerce: How important is the "weight" in packaging

Sustainable e-commerce: How important is the “weight” in packaging

Over the past two years, the e-commerce sector has capitalized on a huge operational experience driven directly by the market.

What happened was significantly pushed by the pandemic, during which e-commerce and retail played an essential role for both the economy and society. These developments translate into significantly important numbers; for example, community reports show that in 2021 total European e-commerce has grown considerably compared to 2020 to exceed 700 billion euros with a growth rate of 13%.

In 2022, despite the current general situation, an estimated upward growth of around + 11% is expected, which will lead to more than 800 billion euros in turnover.

With these numbers, even the smallest and apparently insignificant shipping details become important and, when added together, are crucial to being able to stand up to the market and compare with the best competitors in the sector.

Creating a packaging with an attractive design, which knows how to amaze customers, is the first step to win them over and retain them; then enriching the emotional experience with the inclusion of coupons or thank you notes certainly facilitates the strengthening of the bond with the brand but, if we consider the above data, another important component becomes vital: attention to environmental sustainability.

E-commerce has significantly increased the demand for ecological products, significantly influencing even the packaging which no longer carries out a secondary mission but becomes in fact the only “physical” contact with the customer in the purchasing process.

It therefore represents an opportunity to build loyalty, to consolidate the perception of the brand and to differentiate itself from the competition.

Neglecting this aspect can become a double-edged sword. The advice is therefore to approach packaging by considering it not as a cost, but as a strategic opportunity for the business.

Having outlined this important aspect, it must then be considered that the numbers of the request also lead to the weight of the packaging. The latter, if properly studied, can bring enormous practical advantages on the packaging of the package and on shipping costs.

Weight reduction (in some cases we can even reach -50%) becomes essential if we then also have to consider the possibility of having to have the packaging returned for any complaint from the end customer.

Attention to filling materials, closure systems and packaging identification thus becomes a priority.

In this field, EVi offers several interesting solutions that provide for the absence of filling materials and the absence of sealing film or adhesive tape for fixing the packaging while still guaranteeing protection and safety; it should not be underestimated that, in addition to the costs for the purchase and disposal of a wide range of packaging and filling materials, these solutions also allow you to save volume during shipping which, adding to the reduction in the amount of packaging waste, considerably reduce CO2 consumption.

In conclusion, it can be said that, with a few simple details, enormous differences can be made by helping the environment, saving costs, while still guaranteeing safety and innovation.

For info www.evi-itaia.com

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