When you initially chose your packaging supplier, the company probably seemed like the perfect fit for your organization. They provided exemplary customer service, could sufficiently meet the needs of your company, and offered competitive pricing.
However, as your business has evolved, you may have noticed that your packaging management service has struggled to keep up. The issues may have started off small, but they may have quickly become more severe. These significant challenges have left you wondering if it is time to seek out a new partner.
If this sounds at all familiar to you or your business, then it may be time to move on from your current packaging supply chain service provider and partner with a more dynamic packaging solutions company.
But if you’re still not quite sure if you are ready to make the switch, here are seven signs to help you confirm whether you’ve outgrown your current packaging supplier.
1. Packaging Supply Shortages Have Become the Norm
While your packaging management service undoubtedly juggles many responsibilities, ensuring that you have enough packaging materials on hand should always be its top priority.
Even the best packaging supply chains will occasionally experience material shortages when faced with unprecedented challenges, but these occurrences should be the exception, not the norm.
If your business frequently enables packaging supply shortages, the problem can likely be attributed to one of two major issues. Either your supplier simply cannot provide enough materials to meet demand, or they are not holding agreed-upon stock to accommodate short lead times as your supplies run low.
A larger, more sophisticated supplier would be able to consistently provide your business with the packaging supplies it needs when it needs them.
2. Material Quality is Inconsistent
Having materials in stock is great, but having supplies that stack up to your quality standards is equally important, if not more so. This is particularly true when it comes to branded packaging.
When you put your brand’s logo and imagery on a package, the materials must be high-quality. Otherwise, those custom-designed packages will actually have a negative impact on your brand’s image, not a positive one.
Unfortunately, smaller suppliers can sometimes produce materials that exhibit inconsistent quality. These discrepancies are more likely to occur if the supplier has lax quality control practices.
On the other hand, a large-scale supplier will use stringent, multi-layered quality assurance protocols to ensure that your products always meet or exceed expectations.
3. You Still Manually Count Stock
If you and your staff are still manually counting stock, you need to ask yourself why.
Manually counting stock is a major waste of time. Not only is it inefficient, but manual counting practices leave the door wide open for inventory errors that make accurate forecasting and stock checking virtually impossible.
If your company still manually counts its stock of packaging supplies, it is definitely time to switch to a partner that provides vendor-managed inventory or VMI. A packaging supply chain service provider that offers VMI will track your stock and ensure that you always have enough supplies on hand to fulfill customer orders.
Working with a VMI partner offers several other advantages as well, but we will explore those after revealing the seventh sign you’ve outgrown your current supplier.
4. Package Waste Has Become a Major Headache
Storing an excessive amount of packaging materials on-site can introduce several problems. Not only does this approach consume a large percentage of your warehouse space, but it also contributes to packaging waste. The same problem arises if your vendor stores months’ or even years’ worth of packaging supplies in their warehouse.
When packaging supplies are stored for an extended period of time, they are exposed to moisture, dust, and other environmental contaminants that can make them unusable, which costs you money and also increases your impact on the environment in the long term.
A packaging management service that focuses on maintaining agreed-upon stock levels while also practicing just-in-time fulfillment can help you avoid package waste, allowing you to conserve resources while simultaneously ensuring that you always have access to the volume of packaging materials that is necessary to fulfill orders.
5. You Overstock as a Precaution
If you have ever experienced a packaging supply stock-out, you know just how detrimental it can be to your business. Productivity grinds to a screeching halt, delaying orders.
In order to prevent a repeat occurrence, you probably did what most savvy warehouse managers do — overstock your warehouse. While overstocking your packaging supplies can guard against a stock-out, it can also contribute to package waste and cause unnecessary congestion in your facilities.
Ditching your underperforming supplier for a new one is a more practical solution. Switching to a new packaging management service provider can help you put your packaging supply stock-out nightmares behind you without having to load your warehouse to the brim with excess supplies.
6. Your Supplier Can’t Keep Up When Demand Peaks
Like most businesses, your organization undoubtedly experiences peaks in demand a few times per year. During these surges, you likely consume far more packaging materials than normal. The question is, how does your current packaging supplier fare when you up your order volume?
If your supplier struggles to keep up, it is definitely time to make a change, especially if you have been with your current provider for several years.
A visionary packaging supply partner will use forecasting technologies to predict seasonal fluctuations in demand. They will then take the necessary steps to ensure that they have adequate packaging materials on hand to meet your needs.
7. Your Packaging Management Service Provider Doesn’t Offer VMI
The most obvious sign that you have outgrown your supplier is that they don’t offer vendor-managed packaging inventory. A VMI supplier will handle everything, including:
- Managing and holding packaging supply stock
- Planning troughs and peaks in demand
- Managing packaging lifecycles
- Providing just-in-time delivery
Top packaging management service providers do even more to deliver maximum value for your business. For instance, Korpack provides VMI services via our intuitive replenishment system. This system utilizes data to recalculate order points for your business, which ensures that there is always enough inventory to meet your demand.
If you are ready to partner with a dynamic packaging solutions company that can keep up with the needs of your business, contact Korpack for more information and to discuss the kind of supplier partnership your business needs.
