All About Rigid Boxes You Want To Know

Here at Max Bright Packaging, we believe in quality over convenience. When a business needs a decent way to package its products, we provide only the best. After all, if a company goes the extra mile and uses high-quality boxes for their items, you know that they are worth your time and money.

So, when we were setting up shop, we decided to opt for high quality, which is why we became a rigid box manufacturer. Obviously, there are plenty of businesses that handle flexible boxes and they do it quite well. However, flexible boxes simply do not offer the luxury, strength, and durability that rigid boxes do. There’s just no aesthetic appeal to them. They look and feel cheap.

Of course, many of our readers don’t really know what a rigid box is. Packaging is packaging, right, so why fuss over it? Well, that’s not the case. You see, regular flexible boxes are the ones that end up in a landfill right after the unboxing. On the other hand, a rigid box will not be thrown away so easily. In fact, the buyer of the product might even keep the rigid box and reuse it! Some put their personal belongings inside, others keep important documents, etc. A rigid box can and will be reused. So, what makes these rigid boxes so great? Well, that’s what we’re here to cover. In this article, we will go over some of the most important information related to rigid boxes. We will go over what their benefits are and why you should choose them over flexible packaging.

Rigid Boxes 101

A rigid box is exactly what its name suggests. It is a type of packaging that’s tougher, harder, and more rigid than the regular, everyday packaging you normally see. They also go by other names, including set-up boxes, premium packaging, and gift boxes. So let’s go over these other names as well:

• Set-up box: unlike a folding carton, a rigid box is already completely assembled and ready to use; it’s not flat, it’s fully set up, hence the name
• Premium Packaging: because of how they’re made and what they look like, rigid boxes often serve as carriers of luxury products
•  Gift boxes: a rigid box in packaging is the same as a gift bag in…well, bags; these are the types of boxes you will buy when packaging a gift for your friends or loved ones.

Typically, a rigid box would contain hard materials like paperboard. But it would also have interesting overlays, including:

• Fabric(or Textile)
• Embellished paper
• Artificial leather
• Thin lightweight wood
• Rubber
• Resin
• Exotic materials (ex. Dry herbs)

Various different brands use rigid boxes for their products, across multiple industries. As a rigid box manufacturer, Max Bright Packaging has served many of these clients. We have made boxes for cosmetics, skincare, cannabis, jewelry, watch, board games, and electronics, among other things. There are, of course, very good reasons behind businesses opting for rigid boxes. We will cover those reasons a little later in the article. The cool thing about a rigid box is that it comes with various branding opportunities. You can emboss or deboss a box, coat it in various materials or decorative elements, and even hot stamp it. The possibilities are almost endless.

Rigid or Flexible?

Once again, the clue is in the name. Rigid boxes are durable. They have a sturdy structure that doesn’t deform easily. Furthermore, they retain their shape during transport and keep the product inside safe from damage.

Flexible packaging is the exact opposite of all of the above. Usually, a flexible packaging box is a folding carton made out of paperboard. This material is incredibly lightweight, prone to damage, and quite flexible. Of course, there are a lot of good points to these types of boxes as well. After all, they are perfect for transporting lightweight material. Furthermore, you can flatten them and thus make them easier to transport, discard, or recycle. In addition, folding cartons are inexpensive, so as a manufacturer, you will save a lot of money by packaging your products in flexible boxes.

Naturally, in terms of aesthetics and sturdiness, flexible boxes simply cannot compare to rigid ones. But even set-up boxes aren’t the sturdiest option. For instance, if you need something even harder than a rigid box, you will want to get corrugated packaging. A typical corrugated box is made of sturdy cardboard, perfect for storing heavy, hard materials. These boxes are also more structurally sound than rigid boxes, but they are also quite hard to break down when you need to recycle them. And while we’re covering sturdy boxes, we should state that there’s a difference between rigid boxes and rigid packaging in general. Rigid packaging includes a wide variety of materials, such as metals, plastic, resin, wood, and glass. But since we are a rigid box manufacturer, we will concentrate exclusively on rigid paperboard boxes.

Different Types of Rigid boxes

Here at Max Bright Packaging, we focus on manufacturing two separate types of rigid boxes. Depending on your needs, either of these two will work for you.

Partial Finish

Partial finish refers to boxes that are not completely assembled, so to speak. Generally, you would have a complete, but bare chipboard box and foldable wrapping paper. The paper has creases and folds that match the dimensions of the chipboard box, so all you need to do is place the box on top of the paper and start folding. While doing the folds, you first glue the exterior walls of the box to the paper. Then you fold the ends of the paper on the inside of the box and glue them up.

Even when assembling it like this, you will still have parts of the box exposed. People will still see the chipboard on the inside of the box, since the wrapping paper only covers the outside and the top edges. Aesthetically speaking, this type isn’t always particularly attractive. However, people still order partially finished rigid boxes. They are rather cheap to produce, but retain the rigidity of a full-finish box.

Of course, you can always coat the chipboard with White or Kraft paperboard on one side. The process might take a while, but it will result in a rigid box with a neat design.

Full Finish

Any rigid box manufacturer worth their salt will tell you that full-finish boxes are the way to go. Everything, from materials to design, stands out with these boxes and they are absolutely stunning. Pay close attention to some of the leading brands in any industry and you’ll see that they almost exclusively use full-finish boxes to package their products.

Unlike partially finished boxes, nothing is left exposed with full-finish items. Every single piece of chipboard goes through a coating process. Moreover, there’s an extra layer of coating with each box. This layer is usually white, i.e. the industry default. But we here at Max Bright Packaging like to experiment with all sorts of colors to make that full-finish box a small piece of art. In addition, you can add any print you want onto the final layer of coating.

However, it’s not just about the coating. Full-finish boxes also use a different type of chipboard entirely. More often than not, said chipboard is at least 2-3 mm thick. It is also separated into different pieces, one for each section of the box. And on top of all that, the manufacturers do not use tape at all before wrapping the box.

Different Styles of Rigid Boxes

The cool thing about being a rigid box manufacturer is that you get to play around with various design choices for each box. Max Bright Packaging experts, for example, take several things into consideration when making a rigid box:

• Material
• Shapes
• Size
• Different ways of opening and closing the box
• Colors
• Coating materials
• Portability
• Reusability

In the list below, we will provide you with some of the most common styles that rigid box manufacturers fiddle with. You will surely recognize some of these designs and might even own a box or two that utilize them.

Magnetic Closures

Imagine opening a box by unsnapping two bits of cardboard that snap right back into place when you close it again. Few things can match that feeling of elegance and practicality rolled into one. That is exactly what magnetic closure boxes feel like, and Max Bright Packaging is happy to be manufacturing them.

Generally speaking, a magnetic closure box looks like a package with a lid that’s attached to one side. However, the flap on the other side comes with two magnets inserted between the layers of paperboard. Magnets of opposite polarity are inserted into the matching side of the box. The cool thing about such a system is that the box will close the same way, no matter how many times you open it. It retains a perfect, geometric shape and has a secure grip.

Lots of brands use these types of boxes because of how stylish and intriguing they are. Rigid box manufacturers can make either standard or collapsible closures. The collapsible ones can fold into themselves for easy shipping. Furthermore, they come with a tape that you can use to make them no longer collapsible when packing your product.

Tube Boxes(Round Boxes)

You must have experienced the following; you see a cylindrical paper container, so you desire to open it. And the second you hear that satisfying ‘thoomp!’ sound, there’s a smile on your face. It feels a little bit like popping bubble wrap. You have no reason to do it other than the satisfying little noise.

That dim, notable ‘thoomp!’ is just one of many positive features of tube packaging. Most tube boxes have no corners, since they are shaped like cylinders. Normally, such a box would contain important documents, like diplomas, paper sketches, mortgage papers, etc. That makes sense, since you don’t have to fold those papers or have them stacked in a folder. However, a tube box is perfect for other types of products as well. Lots of perfume manufacturers, for example, opt for tube packaging, as do food and drink brands. Pringles are the perfect example when it comes to salted snacks, as are Glenfiddich and Aberlour for Scotch whiskies. 

Drawer-style Boxes

We here at Max Bright Packaging absolutely love drawer-style boxes. The sensation of pulling the box out and revealing what it contains is beyond satisfying. It feels like opening an actual drawer, but much smaller and compact in scale.

Lots of brands opt for a drawer-style package. It’s sleek, smooth, and incredibly easy to open. Furthermore, it has a touch of elegance to it that regular boxes tend to lack. In addition, most of the rigid drawer-style boxes are made from smooth material that glides with no effort, and the sound that the gliding provides is incredible. It’s like listening to the magnet box pop open, but on a whole different level.

Over the years, these boxes had different names. Some of them include terms like slide, slipcase, or match rigid box. The last name, in particular, is given to them because they remind people of oversized matchboxes. That adds a whole new layer of greatness to these rigid boxes. It’s no wonder, then, that so many people use them to store small, important items.

Telescopic Boxes

A telescopic box is the typical packaging choice for most board games, as well as consumer electronics like smartphones, tablets, computer mice, etc. These are the go-to boxes for most major manufacturers, which is why Max Bright Packaging has a huge selection of them. Any rigid box manufacturer worth their salt will have this option in their arsenal. You may also find these boxes under different names. Some of those include:

• 2-piece rigid box
• Lid and tray box
• Topload box.

Usually, there are two types of telescopic boxes. The more popular of the two is the so-called full telescopic box. With this package, the lid goes all the way down, with its edges matching the lower edges of the base. Most modern smartphones come in these cases, since they offer a slow opening speed and a snug, strong fit. You can reuse such boxes many times, well past the warranty date on your smartphone.

The other type is the partial telescopic box. Here, the edges of the lid only partially cover the base. That way, you will be able to open the box quickly and with little difficulty. Most shoeboxes use this type of system.

Shoulder Neck Boxes

A shoulder neck box is one of the most interesting options that manufacturers like Max Bright Packaging can offer. Normally, these boxes come in layers, with the mid-section being narrower and thinner than the base and the lid. These boxes provide a unique unpacking experience, and manufacturers can customize them based on the product and the client’s wishes.

The layered look provides a sense of mystery to the observer. They want to open the box and see what lies inside. Lots of brands opt for such boxes, including watch manufacturers, jewelers, and even modern smart device makers.

Book-style Boxes

There is a popular, if not somewhat childish, trend of buying ‘fake books’ to stash liquor in them. However, that did spark a different, elegant trend of creating rigid boxes that look like books. Max Bright Packaging experts certainly enjoy this trend and for good reason.

Buying a box that looks like a hardcover book feels refined and sophisticated. Imagine packaging a scented candle or a pricy necklace in what looks like a leather-bound volume. These boxes can come with a flat spine, but if you want the feel of a real book, curved spines are also an option. You can even stylize them with your own ‘titles’ and ‘blurbs’ for some extra creativity.

Inserts

Sometimes, a product will fit so well in a box that you can package it right then and there. But in the vast majority of cases, the box will not accommodate the product’s shape. For example, the box can be square while the pocket watch you intend to sell is round, with a long chain. So, in order to prevent the product from shifting around the packaging, you need something to stabilize it. In short, you need a packaging insert.

Inserts come in various shapes and sizes, and we here at Max Bright Packaging make them out of various materials. Plastic inserts are the most common, but they look and feel cheap. We tend to recommend other, more elegant materials such as paperboard, molded pulp, corrugated cardboard, or foam. Each of these inserts has its own benefits and issues, so we recommend doing a bit of research. That way, you can figure out which insert works best for you and the product you intend to sell.

The Benefits of a Rigid Box

While we did touch upon several benefits of rigid boxes throughout the article, we didn’t cover them all. With that in mind, here’s a handy list that shows why both manufacturers and customers enjoy this type of packaging:

• Rigid boxes look and feel elegant when you compare them to regular packaging boxes
• A typical rigid box will be quite durable, so people will reuse it
• Most rigid boxes perfectly fit the aesthetic and the feel of the brand
• A customer is more likely to shop for a brand that has consistently high-end packaging options
• Reselling an old object in its original packaging will only increase its value
• Buying a rigid box reduces your carbon footprint since it will not end up in a landfill immediately after you open it.

Potential Drawbacks of a Rigid Box

As amazing as rigid boxes are, they are far from perfect. That might seem like an odd thing for a rigid box manufacturer to state, but those are the facts. So, when buying rigid boxes for your product, you will have to keep a few things in mind.

Firstly, rigid boxes are pricy. Most cardboard packages, both light and heavy, tend to cost less to produce. Since making a rigid box is a complex process, a single item can cost up to ten times what a regular box might. Furthermore, because most of these boxes don’t fold away, shipping them will take up more room and more vehicles, i.e. your shipping expenses will go up.

Additionally, there’s the issue of product sizes. Rigid boxes are perfect for small and even medium-sized products, like action figures. However, if you want to package a large product, they tend to be less resilient to tearing.

Alternatives to Rigid Boxes

If by any chance you don’t want to use rigid boxes, Max Bright Packaging does have some alternatives to offer. In fact, we’ve already covered two of the best alternatives to rigid boxes earlier — folding carton boxes and corrugated cardboard packages.

Folding carton is perfect for light products, plus it’s easy to ship, easy to assemble, and costs less than other options on the market. Corrugated boxes can be far more durable than rigid ones, which is perfect for large products. Furthermore, they also cost a fraction of what a rigid product might. Some of the best corrugated options include roll-end boxes with tucked tops and roll-end boxes with full-on lids.

Rigid Boxes at Max Bright Packaging

As a rigid box manufacturer, Max Bright Packaging focuses on bringing you top-of-the-line items. We will craft the perfect rigid box for your business needs, combining practicality with elegance and artistic vision. With our rigid boxes, you will see your business bloom and your products will sell by the truckloads. After all, an excellent product in excellent packaging is always a winning combination.