Who Holds the Purse Strings?
Bags and totes are staples of the promotional products industry. You see them at every grocery and retail store, as part of most awareness programs, and on all trade show floors. With heated debates on the environmental and economic impact of one-time-use and reusable bags, the salability of these once omnipresent products is questionable. Learn how to navigate bag bans and responsibility trends with the help of some of the industry's top bag salespeople.
Hanging by a Plastic Thread
According to The Wall Street Journal's October 8, 2012 piece "Should Cities Ban Plastic Bags?", the biggest push to remove plastic bags is not based on the environment, but the economy. Plastic bag cleanup is expensive, many times costing cities millions just to properly recycle them. On the con-ban side, the piece points out that plastic bags are a minimal part of city cleanup (just 1 percent in San Francisco and Toronto). Regardless of prices or percentages, the bans or taxes on plastic bags are expanding to more cities across the United States and other countries, so you need to know how they will affect your revenue.
As catastrophic to the industry as plastic bag bans sound, they have barely halted bag sales. "Honestly, our sales of plastic bags have not been greatly impacted," said Christopher Duffy, senior vice president of marketing, Bag Makers, Union, Ill. "This is primarily because many bans target bags made of a specific mil thickness or lower-those very thin bags most often used by retailers," he explained. "Bag Makers sells very few of these bags that fall within these lower mil thicknesses and our 'thicker' bags are not subject to the bans."
The bans may affect repeat orders of lower mil plastic bags, but they may also encourage end-buyers to purchase higher price point bags. "Bans have mainly increased sales for paper shopping bags," said Debbie Mahoney, vice president, Sacs and Boxes 2. She added that the St. Joseph, Missouri-based company also saw an uptick in cotton bags. "[Cotton bags] can become a point-of-purchase instead of a giveaway, which will also help increase profitability instead of being a cost," she said. Duffy agreed and noted that the appeal of alternative materials goes beyond grocery or retail stores that might be selling them. "Many organizations see such bans as an opportunity to impact their communities by using reusable bags to reduce the overall number of plastic bags from even getting into circulation," he said.
But switching materials does not mean completely avoiding bans or regulations. "End-buyers need to be careful if purchasing the nonwoven or even woven laminated bags to replace the regular plastic bags, as these too sometimes contain polyethylene or other banned substances," Mahoney warned. She advised distributors to check local regulations to see which substances are banned in their areas. Refer to the Plastic Bag Ban Report for information on bans and current legislation.
Next: Selling responsibility responsibly
Reaping the Harvest of Responsibility
Navigating bag bans is difficult enough, but then you have to make sure your totes and backpacks are responsible too. What exactly does the word "responsible" mean when it comes to promotional products? Sustainable practices, QCA accreditation, American manufacturing and ecological products are some key points (though the list can be expanded). The current responsibility buzzword is not "eco-friendly" as it was a few years ago, but "reusable." "Eco-friendly bags (mostly perceived as bags made with recycled or sustainable materials) are continuing a steady pace of sales, however, it appears that bags with 'reusable' characteristics are the growing trend," Duffy noted. He listed USA-made and QCA accreditation as the other top responsibility trends. "Requests for USA-made bags are increasing as the social trend in this area continues, but also for the faster lead times they can offer," he said. "As an overall quality source, suppliers with QCA accreditation continue to gain more traction because they're recognized as leaders in the core areas of quality and product safety," he added.
It's not always easy to find bags that are reusable, USA-made, QCA-certified and budget-friendly, but Duffy pointed out it is more about perceived value than price. "I believe that [responsible practices] do impact buying decisions, as many buyers are consciously thinking about the end-user of the bag and how it will be used and perceived," he explained.
Finding products with high perceived value involves keeping an eye out for interesting new products, such as cotton grocery totes. "New cotton shopping bags and totes from India are sure to make a splash in the American markets as soon as they are already widely used in Europe," Mahoney said. "There are many options to choose from, including organic cotton which is free of pesticides, Fair Trade bags that are manufactured in a plant with high ethical standards where the workers are treated fairly and paid good wages," she added. "Plus they are reusable, biodegradable, washable and will be used again and again to increase brand awareness."
Next: It's all in the details
And Now the Nuts and Bolts and Seams
It's good to know where bags stand with current regulations and sustainable options, but once you get past mil requirements and responsibility trends, you need to look at the style of bags and who you are selling them to. So here is a handy style and market guide for 2013.
COLORS
Mahoney mentioned that Pantone's Color of the Year has an influence on popular hues for bags. "Emerald is the color of the year, so I expect to see more color options in bright greens," she said. "I believe it was tangerine last year, so oranges, too, and then nonprofit signature colors such as pink and teal are in demand." Duffy added pinks, limes and bright blues. "Bold colors continue to be a popular choice for 2013," he said.
IMPRINTS
Duffy said choosing an imprint option is simple: Go with full-color. "For the best marketing results, full-color imprinting is the way to go," he said. "While many bags are imprinted with a straight-forward, one-color imprint, how many end-buyer marketing programs are actually designed for just one color? Very few," he pointed out. "The use of vivid colors and bold designs can really get eyes on the marketing message."
Mahoney agreed, noting the popularity of colorful screen prints. "Screen printing euro tote style bags is also a new way to get multiple colors and tight registration but on a lower 300 piece minimum," she said. She listed other imprint trends as well. "Depending on the bag style, the trend has been towards ink, with screen printing and flexography still being very popular," she said. "This works for cotton, nonwoven and paper shopping bags." She added foil stamping as another option for shopping bags.
If your client wants something that stands out more than full-color, Mahoney and Duffy suggested full customization in the form of all-over imprints or complete bag design. "Designing a bag from scratch-from dimensions to imprinting to design elements-offers a truly distinct marketing impact and lets the end-buyer create a very specific, tailored, and robust marketing presentation," explained Duffy.
MARKETS
Promotional programs with a variety of products are wonderful. You take a pen, a towel and a T-shirt, imprint them with some jazzy logo and give them out to customers to celebrate the millionth Facebook like or a 50-year anniversary. But you know what would take that promotion to the next level? A bag to carry those imprinted wares. "Bags and totes fit in almost any category," stated Mahoney. "My recommendation would be to tailor the product to the need," she added.
According to Duffy, the biggest need for bags is for fundraising. "We find that bags are very popular for fundraising programs. Whether it's for a charity, school, community group, or nonprofit, bags are a low-cost item that can yield great results," he said. He listed health care, education and local businesses as the top targets for fundraising bag sales.
- Companies:
- Bag Makers
- Sacs & Boxes II