PD26 part 2: Boxes

So just heard back from vendor on the quote with 4 puzzles to a box and the pricing with the boxes is substantially more than without -almost double. I get there's more work and materials involved on their end as well as shipping weight and tariffs, so I'm not disputing their numbers but it jumps this small "addon product" to a whole other level budget-wise. Disadvantage of not doing boxes is losing the professional ascetic of the finished product that mirrors the existing line, also losing convenience of ready-to-sell as is.

The poly-bag pricing I'm comfortable with and I looked at our packaging company and we can order blank boxes for less than $2 per box (including shipping) with no minimums. I'm thinking similar to our shipping boxes but thinner cardboard. We can print labels on-demand when item is sold. Risk is if printouts look bad or don't adhere well day of.

The key would be decorating the boxes professionally and we'd loose the poly wrap -unless we figure how to do it ourselves. I wish we could get the boxes in black to match our existing boxes but we do promote green so the kraft color isn't off brand. We'll make it work. I just need to think about how to approach the design to compliment the existing boxes.

Weighing the advantage of ordering the puzzles in bags only, besides pricing, is flexibility. With their boxes the pricing is almost what our existing puzzles cost us but will the puzzles be enough perceived value for the price? How much would you drop for a party favor? If we do our own boxing we can add to the experience to warrant the retail pricing. We could offer custom quantities or add in other products (frames, posters, etc.) to make product unique. Pricing for the boxes is pennies difference to tweak the box sizes -its roughly the same price to make the boxes the same size as our current puzzle boxes (which fit our shipping boxes) or to go a little larger to add 4 frames. The frames could elevate the experience as a ready to go gift for your party guests or an art combo for your wall.

In addition to sticker shock making us reassess our approach, there's also current events. The Supreme Court just ruled that the tariffs are unconstitutional. So if we wait to place our order, could prices drop? Or at least lower the 12% shipping fees substantially? As excited as we are to get rolling, we're going to pace ourselves to see how this plays out before placing an order. It's good to explore all our options as well in the meantime...