Athletic Brewing ships non-alcoholic craft beer in kraft corrugated boxes with consistent teal custom print across three different sizes — a clean packaging system that scales without losing brand cohesion.
Athletic Brewing operates in a complex shipping environment: canned beverages are heavy, need to be protected from crushing and abrasion, and arrive in variable quantities depending on the subscription tier. The multi-size corrugated system with consistent teal print is the right operational answer — it's scalable, brand-consistent, and provides adequate protection for canned goods in transit. The teal-on-kraft color choice is clean and distinctive. Teal reads as premium-adjacent in the beverage category without requiring the full print investment of a multi-color program. Against the kraft background, it creates enough contrast to be recognizable while keeping unit cost low. The absence of an interior moment is expected for beverage shipping — there's not a natural way to create an unboxing experience when the product is stacked cans. Athletic Brewing's opportunity is in the insert card: a growing non-alcoholic beer brand has a story worth telling, and a simple insert card about the brewery's mission, the athlete founders, or a recipe card would add brand depth without meaningful cost.
Estimates based on mid-volume DTC production runs (5,000–25,000 units). Actual costs vary by supplier, volume, and spec.
| Component | Est. Cost / Unit |
|---|---|
| Corrugated shipper (teal single-color, multi-size) | $2.50–$5.00 |
| Void fill for can protection | $0.30–$0.80 |
| Estimated total packaging cost | $2.80–$5.80 / unit |