# 8: Packaging

- Show: [Thoroughly Considered](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/thoroughly-considered)
- Published: 2016-01-28
- Length: 50m
- Episode: 8
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/thoroughly-considered/2016-01-28-8-packaging
- Listen: http://relay.fm/tc/8

## Summary

Dan Provost and Tom Gerhardt of Studio Neat discuss the strategic role of packaging in their direct-to-consumer business, contrasting their minimalist, mail-optimized designs with Apple's high-end retail packaging. They detail specific solutions for products like the Neat Ice Kit and Cosmonaut, explaining how they balance custom printing with off-the-shelf components from suppliers like U-Line to manage costs and assembly labor. The conversation highlights the trade-offs between aesthetic delight and operational efficiency, particularly when dealing with third-party fulfillment centers and shipping constraints.

## Chapters

- [0:04](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/thoroughly-considered/2016-01-28-8-packaging#t=4) Introduction: Studio Neat and the Philosophy of Packaging
- [1:07](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/thoroughly-considered/2016-01-28-8-packaging#t=67) Apple's Cable Packaging and Communicating Care
- [5:03](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/thoroughly-considered/2016-01-28-8-packaging#t=303) Studio Neat's Packaging: Neat Ice Kit and Glyph
- [10:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/thoroughly-considered/2016-01-28-8-packaging#t=600) Online-Only Constraints vs. Retail Display
- [15:18](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/thoroughly-considered/2016-01-28-8-packaging#t=918) Fulfillment Logistics and Shipping Rates
- [20:20](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/thoroughly-considered/2016-01-28-8-packaging#t=1220) Design Process and Apple Store Requirements
- [25:35](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/thoroughly-considered/2016-01-28-8-packaging#t=1535) Materials, Aesthetics, and the Cosmonaut Tube
- [32:21](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/thoroughly-considered/2016-01-28-8-packaging#t=1941) Off-the-Shelf Components vs. Custom Printing
- [38:51](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/thoroughly-considered/2016-01-28-8-packaging#t=2331) Efficiency, Copywriting, and the iPhone Box Critique
- [44:33](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/thoroughly-considered/2016-01-28-8-packaging#t=2673) Affordances and the Apple Watch Unboxing

## Topics

- [Packaging design](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/packaging-design)
- [Design for manufacturing & NPI](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/design-for-manufacturing)
- [Logistics & fulfilment](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/logistics-and-fulfillment)
- [Industrial & consumer product design](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/industrial-design)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- Studio Neat (company)
- Apple (company)
- Neat Ice Kit (product)
- Glyph (product)
- Cosmonaut (product)
- U-Line (other)
- iPhone (product)
- Apple Watch (product)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [#227 - Operations Ask-Me-Anything with Jamie Valenti-Jordan](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2025-12-16-227-operations-ask-me-anything-with-jamie-valenti-jordan) (The Startup CPG Podcast)
- [83 - Talking experiential and holistic design with Brandon and Ivan from Handsome.is](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/people-of-packaging/2021-11-09-83-talking-experiential-and-holistic-design-with-brandon-and-ivan-from-handsome) (People of Packaging)
- [Ep. 30 - Avoiding Packaging Mistakes](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/open-hardware-manufacturing-podcast/2024-10-10-ep-30-avoiding-packaging-mistakes) (Open Hardware Manufacturing Podcast)
- [#203 - Packaging Your Brand 101: Jamie Valenti-Jordan and Andy Kurtts](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2025-07-01-203-packaging-your-brand-101-jamie-valenti-jordan-and-andy-kurtts) (The Startup CPG Podcast)
- [230: Product Packaging Advice for Your New Hardware Invention](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2024-06-14-230-product-packaging-advice-for-your-new-hardware-invention) (Product Startup)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/thoroughly-considered/2016-01-28-8-packaging. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to Thoroughly Considered.