Poly mailers or parcel mailing bags are quite popular in the e-commerce industry. They are cheap, lightweight packaging solutions perfect for shipping non-fragile items.
The retail industry is very competitive. It’s all about getting more profit with minimum expenses. A lot of e-commerce companies tone down shipping costs to get a positive return on their customer acquisition cost.
And one smart way to do this is by choosing packaging material with will protect the items at a reasonable transport cost. Therefore, most e-commerce companies use postage bags to ship products. Poly mailers strike a perfect balance to keep the items safe without adding huge shipping charges.
Different types of parcel mailing bags
Although poly mailers are available in many colours and are customisable as well, they are mostly available in four types:
Bubble padded poly mailers:
True to their name, these parcel mailing bags come with a bubble-padded protective wrap inside the packets. They provide additional protection and are a little on the expensive side. Mostly used by lifestyle e-commerce companies to ship cosmetics and high-end products. The padding creates a cushioning effect against starches, dents, and other damages.
Plastic postage bags:
These are regular poly mailers quite effective for shipping non-fragile products. There are white parcel bags, grey mailing bags, pink mailing bags—basically, you can choose from a range of different colours. Most e-commerce brands use these for shipping apparel, beddings, stuffed animals, and other non-breakable items.
Expansion parcel mailing bags:
These are heavy-duty poly mailers that have padded bottoms to ship heavier products. They are composed of strong polyethene. Groceries, books, dairy, medicines are often shipped in these bags. They prevent items from moisture damage. They are tear-resistant as well. So, obviously, they are on the expensive side of things!
Eco-friendly poly mailers:
As brands are becoming more eco-conscious these days, the popularity of eco-friendly mailing bags is also increasing. These are 100% recyclable poly mailers, ideal for companies that focus on minimising packaging waste and mindful consumption.
Unfortunately, not a lot of distributors have recyclable poly mailers. Packaging suppliers like Wellpack Europe have a selection of these eco-friendly poly mailers at an affordable price.
What can you ship with poly mailers?
So, most established companies pretty much have a decent idea of what they can ship through poly mailers. But for start-ups, it can be a little difficult to figure out.
If a product isn’t going to break or get damaged if thrown into a pile of other boxes, it is ideal to ship in a parcel mailing bag.
Of course, that excludes glass, delicate jewellery, electronics, and food items.
Most companies use poly mailers for:
Apparels: Shirts, dresses and other clothing items cannot get crushed, thus making them perfect for poly mailer shipping. Besides that, fabric-based products like bedding, cushions, curtains, mats, etc, can be parcelled in these bags.
Selected cosmetic or health items:
You cannot ship perfumes and moistures made of glass cases to be shipped in poly mailers. However, things like facemasks, face creams, suits well for bubble padded poly mailers. They will protect the items from getting crushed. Other than that, many companies use parcel bags for shipping vitamins, protein powders, supplements and other products which are already packed in sturdy bottles.
Stationery products:
For these bubble-lined poly mailers or expansion poly mailers are generally used. You can ship magazines, dairies, books, pens, pencils, etc, in these poly mailers. The bubble lining helps to prevent any dents and rips on such products.
Some important points to remember:
Before you start shipping items in poly mailers, here are some factors to consider:
- Check the distributor before placing your order. Spend a little extra if you must but get good quality products. Cheap poly mailers will tear easily.
- If you are using standard size poly mailers, make sure that the product fills the bag well. use peanut foams or bubble wraps to fill any void spaces. This will make the process go faster without any delays in the post office.
- Consider investing in self-sealing parcel mailing bags. This will save you the cost of buying tons of packing tapes.
- NEVER use poly mailers to ship any fragile item. Even if it is completely lined and durable—mailing bags are not suited for breakable products.
