MOQ versus launch budget
Five thousand boxes is a lot before you have sold one. The number that matters at launch is the one you can actually fund, not the one that gets the best unit price.
PRIVATE LABEL
Private Label Nasal Strips for Brand Owners
Launching a brand is mostly a sequencing problem: how much you commit before you know it sells, and which parts of the product you actually own. This page is about getting both right — starting at 500 boxes rather than 5,000.
What Usually Goes Wrong for New Brands
Four failures that cost more than a slightly higher unit price.
A stock specification is a fast start, but it is not yours
Putting your artwork on an existing product gets you to market quickly. It does not stop someone else ordering the same product. Owning it means your own substrate, shape and adhesive.
Tooling is the cost nobody puts in the first email
A bespoke shape needs a cutting die. The problem is rarely the amount — it is finding out about it after you have already committed.
Weeks lost to artwork and sampling are launch window
Every week spent waiting on a prototype, or redoing artwork that did not fit the strip shape, is a week of launch window you do not get back.
What We Do About Each One
Five controls, all of them aimed at getting you to a first sale sooner.
Start at 500 boxes, not 5,000
Put your artwork on a stock specification from 500 boxes. Move to your own printed boxes and display units at 5,000 boxes once demand is proven — the approved specification carries over, so the second step does not restart development.
Specify the parts that make it yours
Substrate — non-woven, satin or PE. Adhesive grade. Shape and size. Colour, from 15+ stock shades or Pantone-matched. Your print on the strip. Packaging from pouches to counter display units.
Tooling quoted before you commit
Standard shapes run on dies we already hold. Where a bespoke shape needs a new die, it is quoted at the enquiry stage as a line item you approve — not discovered after artwork sign-off.
Artwork adapted in-house, at no charge
Send high-resolution artwork and our design team adapts it to the strip shape and the pack at no charge. Printed prototypes take 3–5 business days, so you see your own product before you pay for production.
Your artwork stays yours
The HLK name does not appear on your pack, and your artwork is not reused for another buyer. If you want a product nobody else can order, that needs your own shape, substrate and adhesive — which is the step after a validated private label.
Your Route
Three steps, in ascending order of commitment. Most brands stop at the second.
First order
Private label on a stock specification
From 500 boxes. Your artwork on a product we already run. The fastest way to a first sale under your own name, with no development cycle in front of it.
Once it sells
Your own printed packaging
From 5,000 boxes. Printed boxes, inserts and counter display units. Tooling and artwork set-up need volume to spread across, which is what sets the number.
When you want a product nobody else can order
Full OEM
Your substrate, shape, adhesive and pack. Cutting dies made to your specification, and where a new die is needed it is quoted at the enquiry stage.
Read the full OEM and private label process, or see what can be specified across the whole product range. Selling on a marketplace, supplying a pharmacy chain, or buying as a distributor? Each buyer type has its own route under solutions.
Where to Start
Three things worth doing before you ask anyone for a quote.
The free sample kit Six things arrive in the box, including a print and colour proof with your own artwork. Open → What actually drives the MOQ Why 500 and 5,000 are the two numbers, and which one you should be aiming at. Open → Launching a brand in Europe The sequencing most first-time brand owners get wrong, and what it costs them. Open →
In Their Words
Two brand owners, on the two things this page is about — consistency and lead time.
Visited the facility in person before placing our first order. The production lines are clean and organized, QC is thorough. We've been working with HLK for 18 months now — consistent quality every batch.
It's a fantastic visit to HLK Tape factory. We inspected the whole production line of mouth tape and nasal strips. Product quality meets EU standards perfectly. Stable lead time and flexible OEM customization make HLK our most reliable Chinese manufacturer for European market. We are glad HLK Tape has obtained the EU Top-Seller Supplier qualification under EU Picks Program.
Turns out, every big-name nasal strip brand is made in the same place - and now we are working directly with them.
Tell Us the Price Point, Not Just the Product
Market, channel, target price point and rough launch volume. With those four we can recommend a specification that actually hits your price — which is the part most first launches get wrong.
Not ready to talk? Start with the free sample kit.
Private Label FAQs
What brand owners ask before a first order.
What is the smallest first order?
500 boxes on a stock or private label specification. Fully custom packaging starts at 5,000 boxes because tooling and artwork set-up need volume to spread across. If you want to test before either, samples start from 10 pieces and the stock sample kit is free for qualified buyers.
Can I have my own strip shape?
Yes. Cutting dies are made to your specification. Where a new die is needed, we quote it at the enquiry stage so it is a line item you approve rather than a surprise after artwork sign-off. Standard shapes run on dies we already hold.
Do you charge for adapting my artwork?
No. Send high-resolution artwork and our in-house design team adapts it to the strip shape and the pack at no charge. Full-colour printing, Pantone matching and logo placement on both the strip and the box are all included in that.
How long from artwork approval to delivery?
A printed prototype takes 3–5 business days to produce. Once you approve the sample, mass production runs 7–15 days. Transit then depends on the mode you choose — sea, air or express.
Will my design be sold to someone else?
Your artwork is yours, it is not reused for another buyer, and the HLK name does not appear on your pack. Be clear about one thing though: a stock specification itself can be ordered by others. If you want a product nobody else can buy, that needs your own shape, substrate and adhesive.
I have never launched a product before. Where do I start?
Ask for the sample kit first and test the range before committing to anything — that is what it exists for. Then read the MOQ guide to see what actually drives the number, and tell us your target market and target price point so we can recommend a specification that hits it.
More questions? Visit our full FAQ page or contact our team.