Product Packaging: How to Choose the Right Format

If you’ve ever stared at a sample box and thought Product Packaging How to Choose should be a design question, I get why. I’ve had that exact moment, standing in a warehouse aisle in Dallas with two prototypes in my hands and a very expensive headache brewing, while a freight quote on my phone showed a difference of $1,480 on a single pallet move from Chicago to Atlanta. Brand founders say it all the time, right up until the first freight claim, the first crushed corner, or the first round of returns changes the conversation. Packaging has a way of exposing the weak point nobody wanted to discuss. The pretty version is only half the job. The rest is buried in drop tests, carton counts, and whether a fulfillment team can pack 600 units before lunch without reaching for a second roll of tape.

Product packaging how to choose is really about selecting the outer system that protects, presents, stores, and transports a product. That system might be a folding carton, a corrugated mailer, a molded insert, a film pouch, a rigid setup box, or a combination of layers working together. I’ve seen brands spend $0.42 more per unit on a custom printed box and save $3.10 in avoided returns. I’ve also seen the reverse: a beautiful package that looked perfect on a pitch deck but added 14% to freight weight and slowed a warehouse in Louisville to a crawl. Honestly, packaging is one of the easiest places to fool yourself if you only look at the sample and not the math. That is why product packaging how to choose is never just about aesthetics.

The strongest packaging balances protection, cost, sustainability, and shelf impact. Most teams get that sequence backward. They start with color, then structure, then maybe protection if someone on the team remembers shipping damage. The smarter path is less glamorous and far more reliable: define the product, stress the package, compare the cost of failure, then decide how much visual polish the brand actually needs. Emily Watson’s way of looking at it is practical for a reason. Measure first. Judge later. That is the part that saves money. In this piece, I’m walking through product packaging how to choose step by step, with pricing realities, timeline expectations, and lessons gathered from supplier meetings in Shenzhen, Guangdong, and factory floors in Monterrey, Mexico.

Product packaging: how to choose starts with a surprising truth

The surprising truth is this: packaging often changes product returns, shipping damage, and perceived value more than the product label does. I saw it firsthand in a client meeting with a skincare brand in Los Angeles that was obsessed with a soft-touch sleeve. The sleeve was elegant, sure, but the real problem was that the inner tray let glass bottles rattle during parcel sorting. Once we fixed the fit with a 350gsm paperboard insert and a tighter cavity, damage fell from 4.8% to under 1% in six weeks. Same bottle. Same label. Different packaging outcome. I still remember the relieved silence in the room after the numbers came in. Very glamorous, I know.

Product packaging how to choose begins with understanding what packaging actually is. In plain terms, it’s the outer system that protects, presents, stores, and transports a product from the line to the customer’s hands. That can mean primary packaging like a jar, bottle, or pouch; secondary packaging like a printed carton or sleeve; and tertiary packaging like the shipper carton, pallet wrap, and corner boards that survive the truck ride from Shenzhen to Rotterdam or from Ohio to Phoenix. If one layer is weak, the whole system feels weak.

Why does that matter? Because packaging affects three departments at once. Brand wants the unboxing moment to look intentional. Operations wants the line to move at 40 cases per hour, not 18. Finance wants the landed cost to stay inside margin. Product packaging how to choose sits at the intersection of those priorities, which is why packaging design is never just a creative exercise. It’s a business decision with visible and invisible consequences, and the consequences show up in exact numbers: damaged goods, extra tape, and freight invoices that arrive three weeks later.

“The box isn’t the product, but it can make the product feel like a premium item or a bargain bin item in under three seconds.”

That sentence captures the whole argument. Good product packaging how to choose means balancing protection, cost, sustainability, and shelf impact. Not one. Not two. All four. And yes, sometimes the best choice is plain corrugated board with a single-color print. I’ve had clients resist that answer, then come back six months later after seeing the lower damage rate and the smaller freight bill. Funny how “ugly” becomes “strategic” once the returns start landing on someone’s desk in a stack of 47 parcels.

If you’re trying to decide where to start, gather the product facts first: dimensions, weight, fragility, shelf life, and whether the item ships individually or in bulk. One clean sheet of data saves more time than a dozen mood boards. Product packaging how to choose gets much easier when you stop guessing and start measuring, ideally in millimeters, grams, and shipper cube rather than adjectives like “premium” or “substantial.”

How product packaging works: function before finish

Here’s where many teams get tripped up. They judge packaging by the outer finish before they understand the function stack. Product packaging how to choose should begin with the layers that do the heavy lifting. Primary packaging touches the product directly. A shampoo bottle, a tea pouch, a food-safe jar. Secondary packaging groups or presents the primary pack. Think a folding carton, sleeve, or gift box. Tertiary packaging handles storage and transport: corrugated cases, pallets, stretch wrap, and void fill that survive forklift movement in Chicago, Shenzhen, or Tilburg.

Each layer has a job. Containment is obvious. Protection is less obvious until something leaks or breaks. Branding is obvious again, especially with branded packaging and package branding that customers photograph on social media. Compliance sits quietly in the background: ingredients, warnings, barcodes, traceability, recycling symbols, and sometimes country-of-origin copy. Logistics ties the whole thing together because if a package is too large, too slippery, or too slow to assemble, the fulfillment center pays for it every single day. A 12-second packing delay on 10,000 units is not a detail; it is 33 extra labor hours.

Material choice changes how each of those functions performs. Corrugated board is the workhorse for ecommerce because it compresses well, prints acceptably, and protects under normal transit conditions. Paperboard works nicely for lighter retail packaging and custom printed boxes where shelf appearance matters more than crush resistance. In practice, 16pt C1S paperboard, 18pt SBS, and 32 ECT corrugated are common starting points depending on the load. Plastic is still common where moisture or product integrity is critical, but the sustainability conversation around it has become much more specific. Glass communicates quality, though it adds weight and breakage risk. Flexible packaging can be efficient and lightweight, but it needs careful barrier selection if shelf life matters, especially for coffee, powders, or snack products shipped across humid regions like Singapore or Miami.

Print method matters too. Offset printing can deliver crisp color on carton stock. Flexographic printing is common on corrugated and some flexible structures. Digital printing can help with shorter runs, variable data, and faster proof cycles. Finishes such as aqueous coating, matte lamination, gloss varnish, foil stamping, and embossing affect not just appearance but durability and cost. A matte soft-touch finish may feel premium, but if the carton is handled by a high-volume warehouse, that coating can show scuffing faster than a tougher aqueous option. Product packaging how to choose means knowing that finish is not free; a foil-stamped, soft-touch folding carton can add $0.18 to $0.35 per unit at 5,000 pieces, depending on coverage and board stock.

I saw this up close during a supplier negotiation in Shenzhen, where a brand wanted a rigid box with foil, magnetic closure, and black soft-touch wrap for a subscription kit. The sample looked strong. The production version would have required a 19-day lead time plus air freight because the box exceeded the client’s dimension target by 8 mm and pushed the shipper into a pricier carton size. We switched to a paper-wrapped setup box with an embossed logo and a paperboard insert produced in Dongguan. The brand kept the premium look, but the landed cost dropped by 17%. That’s product packaging how to choose in the real world, especially when the alternative was a 2.8 kg volumetric weight penalty on every outbound case.

There’s also an operations connection people overlook. The best-looking box can still fail if it slows packing lines or raises freight costs. A package that fits beautifully on a retail shelf may still be a poor choice for ecommerce if it creates void space, adds dimensional weight, or requires manual assembly that takes 20 extra seconds per unit. product packaging how to choose should always include the packing station, the pallet, and the truck. In a warehouse near Chicago O’Hare, 20 extra seconds per unit on 8,000 monthly orders equals nearly 45 labor hours, before overtime.

For industry context and testing standards, I often point teams toward the ISTA transit testing standards and the broader material guidance from the Institute of Packaging Professionals. Those references help anchor packaging design decisions in reality rather than opinion, and they are especially useful when your supplier is quoting production from Kunshan, China, or a converter in Ontario, Canada.

Key factors in product packaging how to choose

If product packaging how to choose had a scoring sheet, I’d put five columns on it: fit and protection, brand positioning, sustainability, cost, and timeline. Every packaging decision touches all five, even if one of them is the obvious driver. Ignore one column and the whole score slips, often by a margin you only notice after the first 2,000 units ship from the plant in Foshan or Juárez.

Product fit and protection

Start with the product, not the box. Measure the finished unit in three dimensions, then add real clearance for inserts, tape, seals, and any movement inside the pack. Weight matters because heavier items crush lighter board grades. Fragility matters because glass, ceramics, and pressed powders behave very differently in transit. Temperature sensitivity matters because adhesives, films, and certain coatings react badly to heat or cold. Leak risk matters because a tiny seam failure can create a whole pallet of losses. A 250 ml amber glass bottle in a 16pt carton needs a different structure than a 90 g soap bar in a 24pt tuck-end box.

For fragile items, product packaging how to choose should focus on cushioning, structural strength, and snug fit. A 1/8-inch foam insert may be enough for one item and totally wrong for another. I’ve watched a client try to save $0.06 per unit by removing an insert, only to spend $2.70 on average per damaged order. That math never favors the cheaper-looking solution. I still remember the look on the operations manager’s face when we ran the numbers. Not cheerful, especially after the first 126 replacement shipments went out of a warehouse in Indianapolis.

Brand positioning

Your package sends a signal before the customer reads a single line of copy. Premium brands usually need tighter tolerances, cleaner print registration, and a more refined tactile finish. Budget brands often need simpler structures with fewer components. Eco-forward brands may prioritize recycled content, reduced material use, and easy recycling at end of life. Industrial products may care more about stack strength, label clarity, and pallet efficiency than about a glossy finish. Product packaging how to choose means aligning the physical signal with the promise on the website, whether the product is sold in Seoul, Austin, or Berlin.

I’ve seen branded packaging rescue a weak product story, and I’ve seen it fail when the package overpromised. If the unboxing feels luxurious but the item inside is flimsy, customers notice the mismatch. Strong package branding works best when the exterior matches the actual value proposition. Personally, I think authenticity beats over-decoration almost every time, especially when the exterior cost jumps from $0.22 to $1.10 per unit for a feature the customer touches for four seconds.

Material and sustainability

Sustainability claims deserve scrutiny. Recyclable does not always mean widely recycled. Compostable does not always mean accepted locally. Post-consumer recycled content can help, but the percentage matters, and so does the source. Product packaging how to choose should include what the customer can realistically do with the package after use, not just what looks good in a sales deck. A carton labeled 100% recyclable in Oregon may still be inconvenient in rural regions with limited material recovery access.

If a paper-based option meets the product’s needs, that may be a cleaner route than heavier mixed-material packaging. But not always. A mono-material plastic pouch with good barrier properties can sometimes reduce total material use versus a larger multi-layer system. Honest packaging design starts with end-of-life realities, municipal infrastructure, and the product’s shelf life. For waste and materials data, I recommend checking the EPA recycling guidance. It is a better filter than a slogan printed in green ink.

Cost and pricing

Visible price is only part of the equation. Product packaging how to choose requires looking at tooling, setup, insert cost, freight weight, labor, storage, and damage rate. A $0.18/unit folding carton at 10,000 pieces can become more expensive than a $0.26/unit corrugated mailer if the carton needs a separate shippable shipper and more labor to assemble. That happens often enough that I now ask clients to model total cost, not just print quote. I’ve seen a box quoted at $0.14 look cheaper until a custom insert, foil plate, and 2.4-ounce weight increase pushed the total to $0.41.

Here’s a practical comparison I use when brands are weighing packaging options:

Packaging option	Typical unit cost	Strength	Best for	Trade-off
Single-wall corrugated mailer	$0.22-$0.48/unit at 5,000-10,000 pcs	Good	Ecommerce, subscription boxes	Less premium shelf feel
Folding carton	$0.12-$0.35/unit at 10,000+ pcs	Moderate	Retail packaging, lightweight goods	Needs a shipper for transit
Rigid setup box	$0.85-$2.40/unit depending on structure	Very good	Premium presentation, gifts	Higher freight and storage cost
Flexible pouch	$0.08-$0.32/unit	Variable	Lightweight goods, food, consumables	Barrier and sealing must be tested

Those figures are directional, not universal. 350gsm C1S artboard, 18pt SBS, carton board grade, print coverage, inserts, and MOQ all move the numbers. But they help frame product packaging how to choose in practical terms instead of vague “affordable” language. A 5,000-piece run in Shenzhen may price very differently from a 2,000-piece domestic run in Columbus, Ohio, even if the visual result looks similar.

Timeline and supply chain

Timelines can make or break a launch. A straightforward custom packaging project may move from brief to first sample in 7 to 12 business days if the dieline is ready and the artwork is simple. Production can take another 12 to 20 business days depending on material availability and quantity. Add shipping, and you may be looking at 4 to 7 weeks total. More complex work, especially custom printed boxes with specialty finishes, can take longer, and a production run in Yiwu, China, will not move at the same speed as a small converter in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Product packaging how to choose includes planning for proofing, sample revisions, transit, and seasonal demand spikes. I’ve seen brands miss a launch because they forgot to account for a holiday factory shutdown in Guangdong. I’ve also seen a supplier hold a project for four days because the customer kept changing carton dimensions by 3 mm. Those small changes ripple through tooling, fit, and freight. Packaging people are somehow expected to be both scientists and mind readers. We are not, tragically, mind readers, and we definitely are not immune to a missed Chinese New Year cutoff date.

Product packaging how to choose: step-by-step process

The cleanest process I know is also the least glamorous. Gather facts, shortlist formats, test them, then approve. Product packaging how to choose becomes much less stressful when you treat it like a sequence of decisions instead of a single artistic moment, especially if the launch window is 21 days and the factory in Dongguan is already booked for a large cosmetics run.

Step 1: define the product requirements

Write down the basics. Size. Weight. Fragility. Shelf life. Leak risk. Whether the product is shipped individually, packed in a master carton, or displayed in retail packaging. Add anything unusual such as sharp edges, temperature sensitivity, or special labeling requirements. This sounds obvious, but you’d be surprised how many teams send a briefing with only a product name and a logo file. Product packaging how to choose needs more than that, and it needs numbers: 120 mm by 85 mm by 48 mm, 340 g, liquid fill, and a barcode on the back panel.

Step 2: identify your packaging goals

Ask the hard question: what problem is packaging supposed to solve? Lower damage rates? Faster fulfillment? Stronger unboxing? Better shelf visibility? Lower material use? Product packaging how to choose works best when the goal is specific. “Make it better” is not a goal. “Reduce breakage below 1% while keeping unit cost under $0.40” is a goal. “Cut packing time by 8 seconds per order” is a goal. “Hold up in humid warehouses in Houston and Singapore” is a goal.

Step 3: shortlist formats and materials

Now compare realistic options. Corrugated mailer, folding carton, rigid box, pouch, tray, sleeve, or blister. Consider the minimum structural performance first, then the visual layer. This is where many teams get seduced by packaging design before the structure is ready. I’ve sat in supplier meetings where someone fell in love with a magnetic closure, only to discover the product weighed 42 grams and didn’t need that level of packaging. Product packaging how to choose is about fit, not indulgence, and a 24pt tuck box with a paperboard insert can sometimes outperform a $2.10 rigid box for a tenth of the cost.

Step 4: request samples and test them

Never skip samples. Test them with the actual product, not a foam mockup or a weighted substitute. A decent test plan includes drop testing, stack testing, vibration testing if the product is fragile, and a quick unboxing check from the customer perspective. If you sell ecommerce products, use a transit-oriented test method like the ones associated with ISTA package testing. You don’t need a lab for every decision, but you do need evidence. A $25 prototype sent from Los Angeles to Nashville can reveal a flaw that a 500-piece pilot order would hide until it became a $5,000 problem.

When I visited a fulfillment partner in Ohio, the team showed me three box styles for the same candle set. One looked premium, one packed fastest, and one survived the best. The winner was the third option because it reduced breakage from 3.2% to 0.6%, and the slight increase in assembly time was still cheaper than the return rate. That’s the kind of trade-off product packaging how to choose should uncover, especially when the candles were shipping in winter to Minneapolis at 12 degrees Fahrenheit.

Step 5: review artwork and production specs

Before final approval, check every technical detail: dieline, bleed, barcode size, copy accuracy, recycled-content claims, seal directions, and print tolerances. Make sure the box closes correctly, the insert fits, and the final art won’t shift under production constraints. If you are using custom printed boxes, ask for a physical proof or at least a digital proof with exact dimensions. A 2 mm shift can ruin alignment on a logo border, and a bad barcode can delay a whole launch by a week. I’ve seen a UPC printed at 75% size fail scan tests in a distribution center near Atlanta.

Product packaging how to choose is easier when you write down a decision matrix. I often score each option from 1 to 5 on protection, cost, brand fit, sustainability, and production speed. The highest score does not always win, but the scorecard exposes trade-offs quickly. It also stops the conversation from drifting into “I just like this one more,” which is how a lot of packaging budgets quietly disappear.

Cost, pricing, and process timeline: what buyers miss

Most buyers look at the unit price first. That’s understandable. It’s also incomplete. Product packaging how to choose has to account for true cost, and true cost includes freight, labor, storage, damage, and the time spent fixing problems. A cheaper box that requires 12 extra seconds of assembly can quietly become the most expensive option in the room, particularly if your monthly volume is 15,000 units and your packing site is in Dallas-Fort Worth.

I once worked with a nutraceutical brand that wanted a lower quote on a carton by shaving board thickness from 18 pt to 16 pt. On paper, that saved $0.031 per unit. In practice, the thinner board buckled during pick-and-pack, and the client had to overpack cases to protect the product. Freight went up. Labor went up. Returns went up. The “savings” disappeared in a month. I was not especially popular in that meeting when I said the quote wasn’t actually the win they thought it was, especially after the warehouse manager showed me the 2,400 damaged units from the first production lot.

Pricing is driven by a handful of variables:

• Material thickness and grade — 14 pt, 16 pt, 18 pt, 24 pt, or specific corrugated flute choices like E-flute, B-flute, or C-flute.
• Print complexity — one-color flexo versus full-color offset or digital.
• Coatings and finishes — aqueous, matte lamination, gloss varnish, foil, embossing, spot UV.
• Tooling and setup — dieline creation, cutting dies, emboss plates, and sample runs.
• Volume and MOQ — 1,000 units will rarely price like 10,000 units.
• Freight weight and cartonization — bigger packages cost more to move, especially on lanes from Shanghai to Los Angeles or from Toronto to Dallas.

Minimum order quantities change the economics dramatically. A project at 2,000 units may require a different packaging strategy than one at 20,000. In my experience, smaller runs usually favor simplified structures, fewer embellishments, and standard box footprints. Product packaging how to choose is easier when you recognize that the best low-volume solution is not always the same as the best high-volume solution. A 2,500-piece order can carry a setup fee of $180 to $450, while a 25,000-piece order can spread that cost so thin it barely registers.

Here’s a realistic timeline example for a custom packaging project:

Stage	Typical duration	What happens	Common delay
Brief and requirements	2-4 business days	Dimensions, goals, target cost, format selection	Missing product specs
Dieline and artwork prep	3-7 business days	Structure drawing, brand copy, print layout	Late design changes
Sampling and proofing	5-10 business days	Physical sample, digital proof, revisions	Fit issues or color tweaks
Production	12-20 business days	Printing, cutting, finishing, inspection	Material shortage
Transit	3-10 business days	Domestic or international shipping	Customs or port congestion

That means a project can move quickly or drag, depending on how ready the team is. Product packaging how to choose benefits from disciplined project management just as much as it benefits from good materials. If the art file is missing bleeds or the product dimensions keep shifting, the schedule slips. I’ve watched a one-week packaging delay turn into a three-week launch delay because marketing had already booked inventory photography in Brooklyn and paid for paid media. Nothing sharpens attention like a calendar problem.

One more thing people miss: storage. A rigid box can look excellent, but it eats space fast. Warehousing 5,000 units of a bulky package can cost more than storing 5,000 flat-packed cartons. When a buyer compares packaging options, I always ask for carton dimensions, pallet counts, and estimated cube. Product packaging how to choose should always include the storage footprint, because 18 pallets in New Jersey are a different budget line than 9 pallets of flat-packed cartons.

Common mistakes when deciding product packaging how to choose

Some mistakes show up constantly. They’re so common that I can usually predict them before the first sample is even ordered. Product packaging how to choose goes sideways when the decision is based on opinion, not product data, or when the team only compares sample photos from one factory in Shenzhen instead of testing two or three realistic options.

First mistake: choosing packaging from a mood board. A mood board can help align the visual direction, but it can’t tell you whether a carton will survive a 36-inch drop or whether a pouch will seal at the right temperature. The package has to function before it can impress. A brushed black mockup that fails compression testing in 24 hours is still a failure.

Second mistake: ignoring fulfillment realities. Warehouse teams care about palletization, carton counts, case pack efficiency, and whether a package can be scanned quickly. I once watched a team select a beautiful retail pack that fit the shelf perfectly but caused a 19% increase in packing time because the closure mechanism required manual folding. The brand loved it. Operations did not. I think I heard a forklift driver mutter “of course” under his breath, but maybe that was just me projecting. In a warehouse in Newark, 19% is not a small inconvenience; it is overtime.

Third mistake: overinvesting in premium finishes while underinvesting in protection. Foil and emboss can add sparkle, but they do nothing for a cracked bottle or a dented tin. Product packaging how to choose has to prioritize the failure mode that costs the most money. If breakage is the biggest risk, solve that first. If the loss rate is 6% and the foil adds $0.24, the foil can wait.

Fourth mistake: assuming sustainability claims are enough. A box with recycled content is not automatically the best choice if it collapses in transit or uses more material than a leaner alternative. Product packaging how to choose should look at actual end-of-life pathways and total material usage, not just a label on a sales sheet. A package that claims compostability but ends up in landfill in 92% of U.S. counties is not much of a solution.

Fifth mistake: skipping prototype testing. I can’t say this enough. A package that looks perfect in a PDF can fail spectacularly in the real world. Test the sample. Make the warehouse team open it. Ship it through the same channel your customers use. Then revise it if needed. It is cheaper to fix a bad sample than a bad production run, especially if the production run is 12,000 units and the plant is already in motion.

Here’s the uncomfortable truth: brands often pay for packaging twice. Once for the first version, and again for the version they should have ordered. Product packaging how to choose wisely avoids that second bill, which can easily run into the low five figures once reprints, freight, and labor are included.

Expert tips and next steps for smarter packaging decisions

If I were advising a new brand tomorrow, I’d keep the process simple and disciplined. Product packaging how to choose works best when you compare options against a scorecard rather than chasing opinions from the loudest person in the room. I’d rank each option across five factors: protection, cost, brand fit, sustainability, and production speed. Then I’d force the team to explain why a lower-scoring option still deserves consideration. That usually flushes out hidden assumptions before they turn into expensive surprises.

Another tip: build packaging around the most expensive failure mode. If breakage is expensive, prioritize structure. If returns are expensive, focus on fit and clarity. If shelf invisibility is expensive, invest in retail Packaging That Stands Out without overcomplicating the structure. Product packaging how to choose gets a lot clearer when you ask, “What failure costs us the most?” A $0.09 insert can be cheaper than a $3.40 replacement shipment, and the spreadsheet tends to agree.

Ask suppliers for the technical details early. You want dielines, material specs, board caliper, coating options, print tolerances, and proof procedures. Don’t wait until the final round to ask. That’s how revisions pile up. Suppliers can often spot problems in the first brief if they have dimensions and target pricing from the start. I’ve seen a good supplier in Dongguan save a brand 10 days by flagging that the original insert design would require a custom cutting tool that wasn’t necessary.

Set aside a small testing budget. A few samples, a few transit tests, and a couple of customer unboxing reviews are usually far cheaper than one failed production run. In practical terms, I’d rather see a brand spend $300 on sample iterations than lose $3,000 on rejected goods or avoidable freight damage. Product packaging how to choose should always include room for learning, because a 3% revision rate in prototyping is normal, while a 3% failure rate in production is painful.

Here are the next steps I recommend before you request quotes for custom packaging products:

1. Gather exact product dimensions, weight, and fragility notes.
2. Write one sentence describing the packaging goal.
3. List your must-haves, such as recycled content, retail display, or ecommerce durability.
4. Set a target unit cost and a realistic MOQ range.
5. Ask for samples from at least two packaging options.
6. Review artwork, barcode placement, and compliance copy before approval.

If you’re still early in the process, a good next move is to review Custom Packaging Products and match the format to the product rather than forcing the product into the wrong format. I’d also suggest keeping one internal document that tracks package dimensions, cost, lead time, and testing results so the next reorder doesn’t start from zero. A single spreadsheet with 14 columns can prevent a lot of repeat mistakes.

Product packaging how to choose is not about finding the fanciest box. It’s about choosing the format that protects the product, supports the brand, fits the budget, and arrives on time. That balance is rarely perfect, but it can be very good. And in packaging, very good beats pretty every time, especially when the package is traveling 1,200 miles in a trailer and still has to look deliberate on arrival.