The connection between cardboard boxes piling up on doorsteps and booming corrugated packaging volumes during the pandemic was obvious. Following dampened results from e-commerce giants during the first quarter of 2023, some concerns arose about the effect e-commerce’s recent downtrend could have on packaging going forward. They are connected, but the relationship between the two is complicated, experts say.
“The tie between e-commerce dropping and corrugated boxes is a bit overblown,” said Myles Cohen, founder of consulting firm Circular Ventures. “E-commerce might be a bit soft, but it’s not what’s moving the needle in the wrong direction for corrugated boxes. It’s a factor, but it’s a small factor.”