Behind every successful business, there is a creative mind that understands the art of branding. And, the most important part of creating a brand identity and launching a product under it is designing the perfect packaging with a private label. When importing from China, adding a private label to the products is a great business strategy.
Small business owners, as well as big brands, are focusing on adding a customized touch to the Chinese products to attract more customers and boosting sales.
How Can Your Private Label Help Create a Brand?
Look around you and you’ll notice one-year-olds asking for burgers when they see the huge, rounded yellow “M”, teenagers coveting the shoes with the swoosh, or even old men lusting over the car with the black prancing horse on a yellow background. You have instantly guessed that we are talking about the private labels of McDonald’s, Nike, and Ferrari. And, this shows the role of private labels in creating a brand.
A brand is often represented by a special pattern, called the logo. The logo is a private label that the company adds to its products to help customers distinguish them from the rest. You don’t have to own a billion-dollar business to build a brand identity. You can add your private label on the products manufactured in China and sell them under your retail brand. This would make your business stand out and attract loyal customers.
Hopefully, you have checked out our articles:
Assuming that you are already familiar with the benefits of having a private label for products imported from China and selling them under your brand, here is a guide to walk you through the process of labeling and help you explore 11 ways to add a private label to your products.
We have also added the estimated costs of each labeling technique as well as which technique would go well with which kind of material and logo. So, here we go:
1. Screen Printing
Let’s start with the most frequently used method of labeling products: Screen printing. It is a famous printing technique that can easily add the private label on the product as well as the packaging. One obvious benefit of opting for this technique is that it works with a variety of materials, from plastic to glass, metal to rubber.
If you are planning to import over 500 samples of a Chinese product, such as toys, mugs, jars, and stuff of this sort, we would recommend you to add your private label through screen printing because it will help you save big.
Not only it is cheap, but a number of Chinese suppliers are also happy to print your label on the manufactured products free of cost if you have placed an order of around 2000 pieces. If you plan on getting a continuous supply of the same product from China, it is best to request the Chinese manufacturer to develop a printing plate for your brand name or logo.
This will cost you as low as $60 and an additional printing cost of $0.02. Even if your Chinese supplier does not provide screen printing services, you can always get the job done by any affordable Chinese printing supplier.
However, you must remember that screen printing might not be an ideal labeling technique if your private label or logo is multi-colored or textured or has gradient details. In this case, you might have to look for other options.
2. Engraving
Your customers might have requested you for gift items engraved with someone’s name, initials, or a special message. Not only does laser engraving look absolutely sophisticated, but it also allows you to take customized orders, which are more profitable. Also known as laser printing, engraving is a technique that results in a high-quality private label. When importing gift items, like jewelry, frames, mugs, and pots, you can laser print your logo, quotes, symbols, or patterns on them.
Engraving doesn’t require any plates (unlike screen printing), and your Chinese supplier would charge you less than a dollar to engrave a name or a message on a single piece. If you wish to have your company’s logo printed on all products of the bulk order, the supplier might charge you $0.01-$0.15 per piece, depending on the complexity of the laser print.
3. Thermal transfer
As the name suggests, this technique would involve heat to print your private label. Temperatures of 140℃ to 180℃ are required for Thermal transfer printing, which makes the process a bit trickier and pricey. Also, this technique would not work for all products as not every material can sustain that temperature. You would have no problem using this technique is your product or packaging is made up of wood, glass, leather, steel, EVA, PP, PE, or ABS.
However, if you have gradient, multi-colored, intricate details on your label, a thermal transfer is your best bet. Chinese companies would charge you $100 to create the printing plate and around $0.04 to print a typical 7x7cm size logo. The charges would vary based on the size of the logo.
4. Woven Label
When importing fabric, ready-made clothes, shoes, or bags from China, woven labels are a favorite. Woven logos look classier than the printed ones on such items. Getting a private label woven into a jacket, a hat, or a canvas bag would definitely look unique. Usually, these labels are sewn at the edge of the fabric, but you can also add them on unconventional places for an innovative touch. Woven labels would also go well with imported camping tents, canopies, and furniture. Such a logo would last longer than its printed counterparts.
The price will depend upon the size of the logo and the number of pieces ordered. But, just to give you an idea, a 3cm by 4cm woven label for a 1000-piece order would cost you around $0.1 per piece.
5. Sticker Label
If you are one of the minimalists who believe less is more, sticker labels are meant for you. They give a clean and crisp appearance to a product and are easy to apply. Almost every type of material can get a sticker label and this certainly is among the low-cost options. Finding a sticker vendor in China is no rocket science. You can design sticker labels in a variety of shapes and sizes.
You will get stickers for 3000 pieces in just $40 to $50. However, getting stickers less than the MOQ would be a bit difficult. So, if you are getting less than 3000 pieces labeled with stickers, we would suggest buying 3000 stickers and then saving the remaining ones for later use. Your Chinese supplier will love to keep the stickers safe for you in hopes of getting another order in the future.
6. Customized box
Don’t we just love receiving gifts in customized, fancy boxes? This method to add a private label works with almost every product. While walking through the wholesale markets of China, one gets inspired by the sheer number of shops dedicated to selling boxes. It is the most-coveted packaging and labeling style, which makes it the most expensive on this list too. However, it is totally worth the price. Even a counterfeit product from China would give authentic vibes when sold in an expensive-looking box.
If you’ve invested a considerable amount in importing goods from China, don’t think twice about investing a little more and presenting them in customized boxes. It would add great value to the product and increase its overall price.
Designing and making boxes is a booming business. You can get these boxes in a range of prices depending on the material and technique used to make them. And you can buy sturdy, hard boxes used to handle fragile or delicate products in as low as $0.75 per box, and a corrugated, light-weight box for around $0.16. You can also go one step ahead and design your own customized boxes. Hiring freelance designers to help you with the logo and box designs is easy on Fiverr or upwork.com.
7. Machine Embroidery
This technique of labeling is restricted to fabric or leather. You can get your logo machine embroidered on every piece of clothing, hat, or bag that you are importing. Machine embroidered labels can be classified into two major categories: First category is when the private label gets embroidered right onto the product and the second category is when the label is embroidered on a separate patch, which is then sewn on the product.
The first type is more suited for simple and bigger designs and a 4cm by 5cm logo would cost you $0.2. If your logo is tiny, colorful, and intricate like flags, badges, and car companies: go with the second type. For the second type of embroidered labels, you must place an order of at least $50 and pay $0.12 for a 5cm by 6cm logo.
Machine embroidered labels will last longer and appear more refined when compared to the screen printed ones. Since you will get better quality with this technique, get ready to pay a bigger amount for these.
8. Molding
If you want the label to become a part of the product, it’s best to try the molding technique. The logo is added to the original mold of the product itself. In this way, when the product is manufactured, the logo gets labeled on it directly. This one is a preferred method for metal and polymer-based products. The resulting label is more refined.
You can get a brand new mold made within a maximum of 20 days. Molding is one of the expensive techniques as it demands the development of a new mold altogether. This is suitable for importers who have a running supply chain and intend to buy in bulk on a continuous basis. For plastic products, the mold will cost you in a range of $1000 to $3000, and for metal products $500 to $1000.
9. Paper cardboard
If getting a customized box seems like a burden on your overall budget, and adding tags and stickers are too cheap for it, consider getting your private label printed on paper cardboard. You can add your brand name, product details, and logo on the cardboard and then pack your product in it. It will look chic and will be light on your pocket.
You can find this type of packaging in products that should be visible to the customers, such as crockery, tools, utensils, and socks. It would cost you as low as $0.03 per unit.
10. Hang Tag
If you are running low on the budget, you can always choose to put your logo on hand tags. This style of adding a private label is frequently used for importing toys, clothes, and jewelry from China. The tag can be prepared with cardboard, plastic, or metal, as per your choice and budget. The most economical of all tags would be the one made with ivory cardboard, which is also the material used to print business cards for Chinese suppliers.
11. Printed Polybag
Polybags are another popular yet cheap type of packaging. Getting these bags printed with giving you a two-in-one solution for your labeling and packaging needs. This might be the least fancy way of having a private label added to your product, but some products are too small and sold in bulk, such as stickers or certain stationery items. A printed polybag is created with a printing plate worth $80/color and does not expect a MOQ less than tens of thousands. If you are not planning to import such a huge quantity, check out the options listed above.
Importing a private label from China is a vital and cost-efficient cog in your branding strategy. We hope this article helps you get the best deal possible.
