When you have a unique, delicious canned beverage that you want people to fall in love with, the process of attracting a loyal fanbase is infinitely easier when you have a great product plus eye-catching branding.
The right label can help make that possible, and the most effective label is a shrink sleeve label. Shrink sleeve labels seamlessly heat-wrap around a can, giving life to cans with high-quality designs that don’t have to undergo the messy process of ink and adhesive. To learn more on ‘Shrink labels vs Adhesive labels’ visit our blog today.
Your beverage can needs to stand out amongst competitors, and the eye-catching distinction of shrink sleeve labels can make that possible. Shrink sleeve labels can be designed to (literally) fit your specific needs, and Wildpack is the right partner to make that happen. This guide will explore shrink label materials, the different types of shrink sleeves, and pricing.
What are Shrink Sleeves Made Of?
Heat is used to conform shrink sleeves to their container shape, meaning only certain types of materials will work best. For example, applying heat to a paper label may cause it to burn or melt.
That’s why shrink sleeves are typically made from:
- Plastic
- Polyester
- OPS – Oriented Polystyrene (OPS)
- PETG HS-LV – Polypropylene Terephthalate Glycol (PETG)
During the labeling process, the shrink sleeves are loosely fit over cans and bottles and heated to about 190 to 200 degrees Fahrenheit. When heated, the materials shrink to form to the outside of the can.
Depending on what type of shrink material is used, the sleeve will have more or less shrinkage. Materials with greater shrinking percentages form to the bottle more attractively. These types of labels will also be less vulnerable to tears or gaps between the container and the label, which can cause storage and shipping headaches.
Types of Shrink Sleeve Labels
The type of shrink sleeve label you use will depend on the size and shape of your product’s bottle or can.
Luckily, shrink sleeve technology is flexible and shrink sleeves are able to easily conform to all types of container sizes and shapes. When browsing potential shrink sleeve labels, there are typically four types you can choose from:
- Full-body – A full-body label is one that wraps around the entire container. This type of shrink label is attractive to businesses and consumers alike because of its ability to showcase bright colors, intricate designs, and meaningful copy over virtually 100% of the product. Additionally, its inconspicuous seams leave 360-degree designs unmarred.
- Partial-body – Shrink sleeve labels that cover less than the full can are known as partial-body sleeves. Usually, the label will be centered around the middle of the product and are more like an adhesive, or pressure-sensitive, label in terms of function. These are often used on larger containers to save on expenses.
- Neck band – Neck band labels help provide tamper-proof security to bottles or cans by wrapping around the container, as well as the lid. These are often perforated and will usually rise just over the edge of the bottle’s cap. That way, customers have an added sense of security when it comes to finding your product on the shelf and bringing it home. Neck bands can be found on both full- and partial-body shrink sleeves, and are cheaper than other tamper-proof methods.
- Combination packaging – Items like beverages or ramen that are sold in bulk are typically held together by shrink sleeve labels. Product information can be added to these labels just like ones that go on individual items.
Benefits of Shrink Sleeve vs. Printed Cans
When printing on a can, printed ink labels can become transparent or low-grade, affecting the quality of the design. In order to maintain the integrity of the label’s colors and prints, business owners often need to pay extra to ensure a high-quality print.
However, shrink sleeves are known for their bright colors and flashy designs and can be less expensive than print labels. In fact, shrink sleeves offer a number of benefits compared to printed cans that make them stand out against the stacks of products found in grocery store aisles and refrigerator cases, including:
Visual and textural uniqueness – Compared to printed cans, shrink sleeves are less commonly seen on the shelves of supermarkets and big box stores. This differentiation is a huge asset when it comes to persuading first-time buyers to pick up your drink, turn it around in their hands, admire the design, and make their purchase. In fact, you can customize the look and feel of your shrink label with texture and sheen customizations, such as spot matte, flood matte, and glossy. If customers like your drink—and of course they will—your design will have made an impact.
Fast turn-around time – A shrink sleeve order can be completed in a matter of weeks, often in under two months. On the other hand, the lead time for printed cans can be up to six months.1 This is in part because printing on cans is still very popular for large brands, meaning that the time spent on the waitlist alone significantly cuts into your beverage’s time on the shelf.
Smaller order minimum – Companies that cater to much bigger brands make their printing process worth their time by requiring that you reach an order minimum, sometimes one that doesn’t fit with a small-scale beverage company’s business plan. Shrink sleeve labeling businesses often cater to smaller companies, giving you the one-on-one attention you and your product deserve.
Stand-out colors and designs – Shrink sleeves are printed digitally, meaning they aren’t bound to the same color limitations as a printed can. With a printed can, you oftentimes have to limit the number of colors you use. Even then, colors can lack opacity and the aluminum container can show through the label. This might be remedied with additional fees by the labeling company, but with shrink sleeve labels, a solid white backing is standard. That means the colors pop just like they’re supposed to.
Cleaner and sleeker designs – Along with the benefits of more color options and hues that stand out on traditional aluminum prints, shrink sleeves also enhance the overall appearance of your product, while graphics on printed cans can end up with low opacity and will often have an unappealing outline where inks have separated.
How Do Shrink Sleeve Labels Affect the Environment?
If you’re an eco-friendly company looking for a sustainable option to label your products, whether you’re selling CBD coffee or tea-based products, there are shrink sleeve options that can align with your company’s ethos and care for the environment at the same time
- Eco-friendly options – While many sleeves are made of plastic materials, they are not recyclable. But, some labeling companies offer shrink sleeves made of biodegradable materials, such as polylactic acid. However, because shrink sleeves can be removed without leaving residue, the cans and bottles can be recycled more easily. The sleeves themselves are not recyclable but the cans still are. The use of plastic labels on aluminum cans does not stop those aluminum cans from being recycled, according to Mr. Scott McCarty, Director of Strategic Communications at Ball Beverage Packaging North & Central America. “Ball Corporation is a provider of metal packaging for beverages, foods and household products, and of aerospace and other technologies and services to commercial and governmental customers,” according to the firm’s website. Mr. McCarty indicated that the plastic sleeves simply “burn off” as the aluminum cans are melted, and at the current volume of aluminum cans with plastic labels, this does not create a fire hazard.
- Less waste – Beverage companies know a lot about experimentation and adaptability. Those things combined with the fast pace of a small- to medium-sized business means that different products will become more important or more profitable at different times. Shrink sleeves allow small businesses to do smaller runs, meaning that they aren’t wasting products that didn’t sell as well or throwing out cans that were misprinted.
How Much Do Shrink Sleeve Labels Cost?
The costs of shrink sleeves vary by type and size. For example, partial-body sleeves use less material than a full-body sleeve, meaning that they’ll typically cost less. Other factors that impact the cost of shrink sleeves include:
- Number of products in a run
- Amount of detail in the design
- Whether the sleeves are matte or glossy
However, applying shrink sleeve labels typically costs between 3.7 and 5.7 cents per can.2 Read our guide on ‘How shrink sleeve labels are applied’ to learn more.
Wildpack Is Changing Labeling one Can at a Time
Knowing what are shrink sleeve labels is just one part of the journey. But knowing how to make your cans pop with a shrink label? Now we’re talking.
As alcoholic beverages like cocktails, wines, and spirits see an even greater shift towards cans, it’s important to stay on top of changing trends so that customers find themselves reaching for your product again and again.
And, as important as it is to keep an eye on the market and our competitors, we know that you don’t get anywhere by doing the exact same thing as everyone else.
That’s why it’s our mission at Wildpack to bring innovation to the label design and sleeving game. If you’re a small or midsize brand in need of striking, gotta-have-it labels, Wildpack has your back. We offer a 4 to 8 week turnaround time and unmatched reliability.
Whether your order is 2,000 cans or 1 million, we’re here to help you get your products on the shelves (and off, just as fast!).
Ready to learn more? Visit Wildpack today.
Sources:
- Craft Brewing Business. The Pros and Cons of Printing on Cans vs Using Can Sleeves. https://www.craftbrewingbusiness.com/featured/the-pros-and-cons-of-printing-on-cans-vs-using-can-sleeves/
- BXP Magazine. More than Just a Label: Shrink-Sleeves Elicit Consumer Emotions. https://www.bxpmagazine.com/more-than-just-a-label-shrink-sleeves-elicit-consumer-emotions/
