What Is a Holster Soap Box?
A holster soap box is a single piece of board that wraps around the bar and locks with a tuck tab at each end. The long sides stay partly open so the shopper sees and smells the soap without opening anything. Most holsters also carry a die cut window on the face that shows the bar. Because the wrap uses less board than a closed carton you pay less per unit and still get a full printed face. A side by side look at the two rival styles shows where a holster fits best.
How Does a Holster Box Differ From a Sleeve or a Tuck End Box?
A holster sits between the other two styles because it closes the ends that a sleeve leaves open. It still leaves part of the long sides bare where a tuck end box closes all six faces.
| Style | Coverage | Board | Cost order | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Holster | Face, back and both ends with the long sides partly open | SBS 300 to 350 GSM or kraft 350 GSM | Middle of the three | Bars you want shoppers to see and smell |
| Sleeve | Face, back and long sides with both ends open | SBS 300 to 350 GSM or kraft 350 GSM | Lowest of the three | Bars already wrapped in paper or film |
| Tuck end box | All six faces closed | SBS or kraft, E flute for multipacks | Highest of the three | Shipping, gifts and humid stores |
Choose custom soap sleeves when your bar is already wrapped in paper and only needs a printed band around it. Once you settle on the holster the next job is to cut it to the bar so it grips.
How Do You Size a Holster So the Bar Does Not Slide Out?
You size a holster from the largest bar in the batch by adding 3 mm to its length and width and 2 mm to its height. Hand cut bars vary by 2 mm or more from one loaf to the next. A box cut to the average bar pinches the big ones and lets the small ones drop through the open sides. A 4 oz bar of 3.5 x 2.5 x 1 in becomes an inside size of 92 x 67 x 27 mm. The tuck tabs then press against both ends of the bar and hold it in place without glue. With the size locked the board you pick decides how the holster looks and how well it keeps its shape.
Which Board and Label Panel Suit Holster Soap Boxes?
SBS at 300 to 350 GSM suits full color holster soap boxes, and natural kraft at 350 GSM suits a plain handmade look. Kraft prints best in one or two dark inks, and our kraft soap boxes page covers that board in detail. The back panel carries the net weight, the ingredients and your contact line because the logo and the window fill the face. Keep the window at least 6 mm from any fold so the board does not tear when the tabs close. An aqueous coating on the inside face stops fragrance oil from leaving a dark ring on the wrap. With the board and both panels settled the order takes one form and a short wait.
How Do You Order Custom Holster Soap Boxes Wholesale?
Send the bar size, board and quantity through our quote form and a dieline and price come back within the week. Pricing runs from $0.50 to $3.50 per box depending on size, board and quantity.
- Minimum order is 100 boxes per size and design and it comes down on rigid, corrugated and larger sizes
- Price breaks arrive at 500 and 1,000 units on one artwork and not across mixed designs
- Production takes 8 to 10 business days for folding carton and 10 to 12 for rigid and wrapped
- A plain sample takes 3 to 5 business days and a printed one takes 7 to 10
- No setup or tooling fees apply because the die and the plates sit inside your unit price
- Shipping is free across the United States on every order we take
Test a plain sample with your largest bar before the print run, and find every other style on our custom soap boxes page.
The Customized Boxes