Packaging for candies and bonbons

[tralfaz]

Any suggestions for good quality, sturdy boxes and packaging for candies and bonbons?  Most of what I find online tends to be lightweight and kind of flimsy.

[pastrygirl]

Do you have a reseller permit?  Glerup has various 'luxury' boxes:  https://glerup.com/boxes/luxury-set-up-boxes/

 

more sources here

 

[tralfaz]

Thanks pastrygirl.  Thant's quite a list.  I hunted around here for a post and couldn't find much, so this is a great help.  I don't have a permit but I'm considering possibilities.  I'm planning to "retire" next year and I'm exploring options.

[pastrygirl]

You're welcome!

 

Trying to find something that fits your aesthetic, product, and budget all at once can be a challenge.  Glerup has a showroom in South Park, they'd probably let you look if you're in town.  Some places will send samples, a lot don't.

[Jim D.]

After spending a long time searching for packaging that would work for me and that I really liked, I turned to having custom boxes made.  I decided on rigid rather than folding boxes--and that is a major decision to be made early in the process.  Most box manufacturers will not accept small orders, the minimum usually being somewhere in the 1000-piece neighborhood, but I finally found two that would work with me.  I won't mention the first because their customer service turned out to be unacceptable (my very early Christmas order was pushed down on the production schedule to make room for larger customers, and too many boxes arrived damaged), but the second one has been a success, Brimar Packaging in Ohio. They have a minimum of 500 pieces and do very good work.  I've included a photo of the boxes I had them make.  When I introduced a new box size, I sent them a sample tray that would fit inside the box, and they did all the measurements and made the box.  It turned out that finding appropriate trays to hold the chocolates was the hard part of packaging.  I spent a huge amount of time determining the largest size of bonbon I make--or ever would make--before I made a large tray order.  Then I took Andrey Dubovik's online course and discovered the wonderful cocoa pod molds that are just a couple of millimeters longer than my tray cavity size!

 

Some people (@gfron1is one) have found a vendor in China who does the whole design process of packaging, but I don't have information on that.

 

[tralfaz]

Thanks Jim D. for the info.  I'm pretty far from getting custom boxes, but it's good to know my options.  I'll have to break some bad habits going from amateur to pro.  Since I hand shape or cut my centers, one type will be 1" balls and (shaking my head) I made some triangle cheesecake things that were just so tall and so awkward to stuff in the box.  They looked good on a tray though.  But you pointed out good stuff.  Don't make things that won't fit in the box.  I used to own and operate a pizza joint.  I know the practical stuff.  If I do go from hobby to retail I'm going to make some choices.

 

I do have a soft spot for good boxes.  Ever had chocs from Kreuther in NYC?  The box itself is awe inspiring.  The photo doesn't look like much, but the box is a piece of art.  What's inside is pretty darn good too.  BTW  back in my crafty pre-arthritis days I used to make fancy little boxes out of card stock.  The right package adds to the whole experience.

[Jim D.]

I had not heard of Kreuther, but I agree about the box--it is, as you say, a piece of art.