FAQ
Questions, answered.
Specific answers to the questions buyers actually ask. Each answer leads with the answer (built for AI answer engines).
Getting started
Tell us three things: what you're packaging, roughly how many you need, and when you need them. Message us on WhatsApp or send the contact form, and we'll reply within three business days, usually sooner. From there we confirm what's possible at your quantity, quote it, and walk you through artwork. You don't need finished files or final numbers to start the conversation.
Less than you'd expect. For a quote we need the product, an approximate quantity, and your deadline. Artwork can follow later: a high-res logo and your brand's background colour is enough to begin. If you already have print-ready files, send them and we'll check them before anything goes to print.
Yes, if the logo itself is finished. Octopak is a packaging partner, not a design studio, so we don't create a brand or logo from scratch. Bring a high-res logo and your background colour, and we turn it into print-ready files: checking it, advising on print method and finish, and fixing file-level issues like resolution, colour profile, and dieline fit. If you already have print-ready artwork, we check it before it goes to print.
MOQ and pricing
It depends on the product: paper bags from 1,000, coffee cups and pouches from 5,000, and other customised lines generally from 10,000. Vacuum bags are stock items, so there's no print minimum at all. Higher quantities lower the unit price. If your numbers sit below these, tell us anyway and we'll say honestly whether it's workable.
Read more in our Print & Materials Guide: Print methods overview →
Unit price falls as quantity rises. A large share of the cost on a printed run is setup (plates, dielines, and make-ready), and that cost spreads across the whole order, so doubling the quantity never doubles the price. In practice, the step up from your minimum to the next quantity break is usually the cheapest per-unit improvement available to you. We quote the breaks side by side so you can see where they fall before you commit.
Octopak doesn't offer design as a paid service, and doesn't create brands or logos from scratch. Turning your logo and background colour into print-ready files is part of the job and doesn't cost extra. Setup charges depend on the product: coffee cups don't carry one, but some other products may have a one-time setup fee on your first order. Whatever applies to your job is itemised in the quote up front, not added after you commit.
Lead times
Six to eight weeks from mockup sign-off, all in: production, shipping, and customs included. The clock starts when you approve the mockup, not when you first message us, so artwork rounds before that don't eat into the estimate. We tell you the timeline up front, not after you commit.
Read more in our Print & Materials Guide: Print methods overview →
Sometimes, depending on the product and where the factory schedule sits. We can speed up shipping with air freight or a mixed air-and-sea arrangement, which costs more; the exact cost depends on the arrangement. Tell us the date you need stock in hand and we'll say honestly whether it's achievable before you commit to anything, rather than promise a date we can't hold. Vacuum bags are stock items and ship far faster than any printed run.
Files and artwork
Vector files (AI, EPS, or PDF) for logos and line art, or raster files (TIFF or high-quality JPEG) at 300 dpi minimum for photography. Brand colours as Pantone codes where you have them. If your files aren't in these formats yet, send what you have. We'll tell you what's workable and what needs redrawing.
A dieline is the flat template showing where your packaging is cut, creased, and folded: the unfolded shape of the finished item, with every fold and glue tab marked. Yes, we provide one for your product and size, so artwork sits in the right place before it goes to print. Design on top of it, and keep logos and text clear of folds and seams.
Yes. Nothing goes to print until you've signed off. A digital proof is the standard step, already built into the timeline, so it doesn't add time on its own. A physical mockup is available on request and adds one to two weeks, at a cost that depends on the product.
Print methods
It depends on the product. Octopak works with a network of specialised printing partners, so the method is matched to what your packaging and artwork need rather than limited to one process in-house. The common options across packaging are flexographic, offset, digital, and screen printing, plus finishes like foil stamping, embossing, and spot UV. Coffee cups, for instance, are printed with a single fixed method, so there's no choice to make there. We'll tell you which apply to your job when we quote it.
Read more in our Print & Materials Guide: Print methods overview →
It follows your quantity, your material, and your artwork. Flexo is cost-effective on large runs on kraft and uncoated stock and handles bold, solid colour well. Offset gives sharper detail and more consistent colour, which suits photographic artwork and big quantities. Digital skips plates entirely, so it suits short runs and fast turnarounds. Screen printing lays ink down thickly, which is why it works on totes and textured surfaces. You don't have to decide alone. Tell us the product, the quantity, and the look you're after, and we'll recommend the method.
Sustainability
The honest answer is that packaging touching food carries real constraints, and not every material can be made from recycled content or composted at the end of its life. We offer both certified stocks (like FSC) and standard uncertified options, so you can choose based on what your brand and budget need. We'd rather tell you exactly what a material is and isn't than sell you a claim it can't support.
Read more in our Print & Materials Guide: Sustainability, honestly →
It depends on the lining and on the facilities available locally. A paper cup needs a liner to hold liquid, and that liner decides whether the cup can be recycled, composted commercially, or neither. What Singapore can actually process matters as much as the material itself. We'll tell you what your specific spec can and can't claim, so nothing goes on your packaging that you can't stand behind.
Vacuum bags
Yes. Vacuum bags are the one line we hold in stock rather than produce to order, in three standard sizes, so they ship quickly instead of running on a six-to-eight-week production timeline. They're plain rather than printed, and are used by food production kitchens, central kitchens, and sous vide operations.
Vacuum bags come in three standard sizes, small (150 x 200mm), medium (200 x 300mm), and large (300 x 400mm), held in stock, so there's no print minimum and no production wait. Minimum order is 100 bags, with free delivery on orders over $300. Tell us the size and quantity you need and we'll confirm availability the same way we would for any stock item.
Still have a question?
Message us on WhatsApp or email hello@octopak.com. We reply within three business days, usually sooner.