Last spring we took a close look at ecoEnvelopes, and talked to founder Ann DeLaVergne to learn more about her path to success bringing a new product to market. Seven years and seven patents later, ecoEnvelopes is available as an alternative to a reply envelope. But what about corrugated boxes? Why do they have to be tossed out after just one use? Dennis Salazar, President, and Lenora Salazar, Vice President, of Salazar Packaging asked each other the same question. Let's let Dennis tell the story.
It was such a sore spot for us that boxes are thrown out because of the way they look, even though they still have plenty of life in them. In most cases the interior is very clean and we thought it would be great if you could just turn the box inside out. We now both laugh about it, but we actually solved the problem while we were driving down the expressway chatting. I just couldn't seem to overcome a couple of problems and we started talking about it. The solution was so simple. I had been struggling for months trying to find a way to reuse the glue flap and Lenora said, "Don't reuse it, just add a second one." That was the answer! We did a lot of testing to find the right combination of perforation and board thickness. By having two glue tabs we avoided weakening the corner with the perf. Early prototypes were hand made and once the designs were fine-tuned we tested them in an actual production setting. There is a lot more testing and prototyping than most people think about. For instance, we originally put the instructions for reuse on the bottom of the box. Then we found that’s more than likely where they’re going to be covered with tape or scuffed away. So now we put them on the inside minor flap. When the box is cut open, the instructions are clean, easy to read, and right in front of the user. We wanted to make the box as easy to reuse as possible. Now, in just seconds, you can actually turn a box inside out and use it again.
Watch this video to see how it works. Learn more about Salazar's patent-pending reusable Globe Guard boxes here.