Your cans are shipped in cardboard because we care 

Harnessing the technology to print directly on the surface of an infinitely recyclable aluminum can may be the cornerstone of what we do, but our mission goes beyond that. 

Hart Print is constantly on the lookout for ways to cut down on our plastic use. One of our first and most obvious steps was to eliminate the need for plastic stretch wrap commonly used for wrapping around finished pallets.

“That was a no-brainer from Day One,” says co-CEO JP Paradis. “Wrapping our shipments of eco-friendly cans with non-recyclable plastic was never the plan.”

At first, Hart Print looked into preparing our shipped orders with reusable mesh pallet wraps, but too many cans were getting crushed in transit.  

“We would put all this effort into printing cans, and at the very last stage of getting the product to our customers, roughly one percent of cans per delivery would get damaged,” JP explains. 

Cardboard was the answer.

Eduardo Sanchez, Head of Operations, explains: “Cardboard is a more sustainable and recyclable product that provides better puncture protection - or less damage - during transport. Cardboard is also a great tool for our brand. It stands out and creates that unboxing experience we are used to as consumers.”

Not only do the protective sheets of cardboard keep plastic wrap out of landfills, it also significantly reduces the risk of denting the cans. That’s doing good for the environment on more than one front! And while there are added costs to using cardboard, they balance out when taking into consideration the reduced number of damaged cans.

How do customers like their cardboard-protected shipments?

“They love it!” JP remarks. “Many of them understand how much we value their cans and how much we value their business by going the extra mile to protect their cans. And we’ve heard some fun stories about the ways in which our customers repurpose the cardboard - some have even made playhouses for their kids with it.”

In the early days, Hart Print employees would cut custom lengths of cardboard to wrap around our finished orders. The final touch: the word “Merci” (French for thank you) and the Hart Print logo would be spray painted by hand on each wrapped pallet. 

As our customer base has increased, Hart Print now orders pre-cut cardboard pallet protectors with “Merci” (a clin d’œil - or nod - to our Montréal roots) printed on one side and the hashtag #fckplastic on the other.

“We care about what’s inside these shipments,” JP continues. “One message represents our sincere appreciation to our customers, while the other shows our appreciation for the planet.”