Custom Shipping Tags

Strings, Loops and Ties

Tags can be supplied with or without fixings. Pre-strung tags have a length of cotton string, twine or elastic already threaded through, which saves time when tagging in volume. Wire ties twist around handles and bag necks quickly. Loop locks and plastic fasteners suit retail and clothing. Ribbon suits gift tags and premium products.

If you tag different items, you can order plain tags and add fixings yourself, or order a mix of pre-strung and unstrung tags in the same design.

Elastic loops are handy for items that change shape, such as rolled rugs or bundled cables, because they grip without needing a knot. Wire ties suit sacks and bag necks, where a quick twist holds the tag firmly through handling, loading and unloading.

For premium gift tags, a satin ribbon in a brand colour turns a simple card tag into part of the presentation. Bottles and jars that are tagged rather than labelled use bottle neck tags with elastic.

Sizes and Layout

The traditional tag shape is a rectangle with clipped corners at the hole end. Common sizes range from small gift tags around 70 x 35 mm to large warehouse tags around 160 x 80 mm. Choose a size that leaves enough space for the information that will be added by hand or printer.

For warehouse tags, a simple layout with labelled boxes, such as order number, destination, date and contents, makes handwriting neat and consistent. Colour coding by destination, department or product type helps staff sort items at a glance. For gift tags, keep the front for your logo and the back for a message or a blank to-and-from area.

Numbered tags, printed with sequential numbers, are useful for tracking, cloakrooms and returnable equipment.

Two-sided printing is useful for warehouse tags, with sender details on one side and a blank address panel on the other. For gift tags, a printed pattern on the back makes the tag look finished when it turns on its string. Gift tables use the smaller round hang tags for gifts on a ribbon.

Yards, Nurseries, Rails and Gift Tables

Warehouses and distribution centres tag pallets, sacks and bundles. Garden centres and nurseries tag plants and trees. Timber and building merchants tag timber and materials. Clothing brands and boutiques use hanging tags as price or care tags. Event organisers use them as luggage and cloakroom tags. Gift brands, florists and hamper makers use printed tags on ribbons and handles, and schools and clubs use them for kit and equipment.

Online gift shops add printed tags to every order as a finishing touch, and wedding planners use luggage-style tags as place cards or favour tags. Museums and archives use tags to label stored objects that cannot take adhesive. Garments on a rail use our clothing hang tags for rails with a swing tag fastener.

Writing, Stamping and Printing Info

If staff will write on tags, choose an uncoated stock and avoid lamination, which resists pen. For stamping, uncoated manila takes ink well. If you will print details on a desktop or thermal printer, tell us the printer type, and we can supply tags on sheets or in a format your printer handles.

Pre-printed variable data, such as numbers, barcodes or names, can be added at production. This is handy for cloakroom tickets, asset tags and event luggage tags.

Thermal printers need a compatible stock, so send us your printer model and the tag size it accepts before ordering. We will then match the stock thickness and coating so details print cleanly and do not smudge when handled. Boxes that take a stamp directly can use general purpose labels for stamping instead of a tag.

Decide How the Tag Is Fixed, Then the Hole

Shipping tags are drawn from the fixing backwards. A wire tie needs a small reinforced hole; a cotton string needs a larger hole with a patch; an elastic loop needs a hole near the edge; a cable tie on a pallet needs a slot. Tell us how your yard or warehouse fixes tags and we size and reinforce the hole for it. Choose the card by the conditions: 300 gsm manila for a dry stockroom, synthetic stock for anything that sits outside or in a chiller. Decide the size from what has to be written on it; a 120 x 60 mm tag takes a destination and a reference in marker, a larger one takes a printed form. Artwork is a logo and any ruled fields, sent as vector files, and the free proof shows front, back and hole position. A custom quote comes by email within one working day, small runs are quoted per job, and tags are produced in 4–7 working days after approval with free tracked delivery to UK mainland addresses. Parcels that are closed as well as tagged use our logo stickers to seal the parcel.