Stock packaging is how 90% of private-label brands launch and how the smart ones stay until they have data. The factory or packaging supplier holds an inventory of standard components in standard sizes, finishes, and colors. You pick from the catalog. You pay the catalog price per unit. You skip the $10,000-50,000 tooling investment and the 6-12 week tooling lead time.
What's typically available stock:
- HDPE bottles for capsules/tablets: 60cc, 100cc, 120cc, 150cc, 200cc, 250cc; white or amber; standard 33-400 or 38-400 cap finishes
- PET cosmetics bottles: 1oz, 2oz, 4oz, 8oz, 16oz; clear, frosted, amber; 20-410 or 24-410 finishes
- Glass cosmetics jars: 1oz, 2oz, 4oz, 8oz; clear, frosted, amber, cobalt blue; 58-400, 63-400, 70-400 finishes
- Beverage bottles/cans: 12oz, 16oz, 32oz cans; 12oz, 16oz, 20oz PET bottles; 8oz, 12oz, 16oz glass
- Pouches and stick packs: Standard fitments, stand-up pouches, flat-bottom pouches in incremental sizes
- Folding cartons: Templated dielines that fit standard bottle/jar sizes
The trade-off is differentiation. A stock 60cc HDPE bottle is identical to thousands of other supplement bottles on the shelf. Brands using stock packaging differentiate through label design, secondary packaging (carton, sleeve), and color choice within the available catalog.