Crafty Buyer Saves 20% on PE Bags Online

“Buying supplies online is the way I choose to do things. For me, it is much more convenient,” says general manager Renea Brown. In the spring of 2000, Brown typed “packaging products or supplies” on a search engine and found NetworkPackaging.com (www.networkpackaging.com), a privately owned online distributor of packaging and shipping supplies. She now orders about $100 worth of polyethylene bags each month via the site. Compared to offline distributors, “I found that with NetworkPackaging.com I save at least 15 to 20 percent in costs,” Brown told Net Sourcing. “I’ve actually gotten better prices from them than I’ve seen through a lot of printed catalogs I receive.” NetworkPackaging.com offers a variety of packaging, shipping and janitorial supplies, including polyethylene bags, bubble cushioning and padded mailers, at wholesale pricing. Minimum orders are only $35. Brown says she receives her materials within five working days. After the first order, Brown bookmarked the Web site address on her computer so that she can easily place orders. “It’s not that I don’t like to talk to people, but it is just much more efficient not to have to spend 15 minutes on the phone when I can just go online, click and place an order in a matter of two minutes.” There is no login required to buy on the site, so Brown quickly clicks on polyethylene bags, which are needed to individually package items before being placed in shipping cartons. After placing the desired bag in the shopping cart and adding the quantity, Brown is ready to check out. “A login could be a nice feature, so that you don’t have to key in your company address every time,” Brown admits. “But, it is also nice to just be able to go to the site to place an order and not have to worry about passwords.” On the checkout page, company information is typed in, and the choice of payment is decided. PA Metal Crafts uses a company credit card for payment. Confirmation of the order is viewed onscreen, and an e-mail is sent as well. “I feel secure shopping online,” says Brown. —E.F.