There are a lot of (r)evolutions and hypes within the packaging industry. Sometimes a hype, in other cases a true breakthrough. SIOC or Ship in own container is one of those breakthroughs. The concept is clear: you combine your product packaging with your shipping packaging in just one safe parcel. The idea is not that revolutionary, and long before Amazon (who reinvented the whole concept), some companies already experimented with the concept, or just did it out of logical reasoning. But why can it be interesting for you to start shipping SIOC?
Save costs
One of the most obvious and straightforward reasons why companies start to ship SIOC is obviously to save costs. It's simple and clear that using one box is cheaper than two. And when you're not working with a tailor-made box system like Slimbox, you might even need filling material twice.
Efficiency
As you will have to pack your product only once, you'll obviously save some extra time as well.
Sustainability
Shortest possible paragraph 🤣 : Shipping in one box is more sustainable than shipping in two boxes. You need one box less, no filling material, and you ship less air."
So we did it? We finally found the holy grail?
No, certainly not. There are some factors that we have to take into account to apply SIOC in a good way or to decide to ship with a classical combination of product packaging and shipping box.
Broken goods: Even if your shipping box is not the right size, you will still ship safer (with fewer broken goods) than with SIOC. This doesn't apply when you're shipping with your own created Slimbox packaging, of course. As you can see in the MAAAT/Loomy case below, the flexibility of the Slimbox allows you to create super safe, tailor-made boxes, where, like in this case, the inlays and air chambers protect your product a lot better than just using two boxes.
Returning goods: If the receiver of your parcel is not happy with the product and wants to ship it back, the original package will not be reusable anymore as there will already be a sending & returning label on it. No problem if you have a Slimbox; you just make a new, tailor-made SIOC and bring it back in the market without any signs of use.
Sioc as a 3PL?
Not obvious, as most of the 3PLs are not receiving bulk products, or do not have the option to produce their own perfectly fitted packaging. Not so for MAAAT. MAAAT is more than a 3PL as they're also involved in the assembly or even production process of their customers.
That's why for them, and their customers, SIOC is easily applicable and they can immediately benefit from the advantages as they can easily deploy their Slimbox to create perfectly adapted packaging for the products of their customers, even if the product specifications and dimensions vary or if they're producing and shipping in smaller batches. The personalization of the box gives an extra customer experience & branding touch. But no one better than Annelies of MAAAT to explain their vision on SIOC.
With their Loomy package, they prove that SIOC is even applicable for fragile products. The key here is to use the flexibility of the Slimbox and apply the right box type. Here, they decided to pack the product with inlays and chambers integrated into the box. Nice extra: this is a self-integrating box which doesn't need to be taped or glued.
Well done MAAAT & Loomy!