Case Study | 21 July 2025
How a U.S.-Based Sustainable Packaging Company Dominated the Market by 2027 and beyond?
Posted by : Abhishek Bhardwaj
As the worldwide demand for sustainable packaging increased by 25% in 2022, a foremost U.S.-based eco-packaging manufacturer experienced penetrating pressure to diminish expenses, while catering to environmental standards. With competitors destabilizing prices as well as the latest regulations enhancing compliance costs, the company required a progressive initiative to cater to cost-conscious sectors, including CPG and e-commerce, with the need to sacrifice its sustainability objective.
An overview:
- In 2023, the U.S.-based eco-friendly and sustainable packaging materials company had the motive to strengthen its market share by providing cost-effective green packaging solutions without compromising the quality.
- Identifying that 75% of customers are focused on sustainability while purchasing, the company has prioritized mountable advancements, such as algae-based cushioning for polystyrene replacement, as well as water-soluble films, especially for shipping purposes.
- With an increase in the need from sectors such as consumer goods, e-commerce, and food and beverage, the company consulted with Research Nester, a top-tier market research firm, to focus on developing a modest pricing initiative, penetrating emerging markets, and optimizing the production process.
- Research Nester’s analytical report stated that competitors in Southeast Asia achieved increased traction with pay-per-use packaging leasing models. This is a useful strategy that the company can implement, particularly for Western markets, and reduce upfront expenses for SMEs by 38%.
- By implementing data-specific insights, the company effectively diminished expenses, enhanced sustainability, and achieved a huge consumer base, which included SMEs and budget-based startup firms.
- With the adoption of AI-powered demand forecasting, along with blockchain-based recycled content, the company successfully diminished costs by 25%, and in turn, bolstered sustainability metrics.
- The above strategy bolstered the company’s market share from 29% in CY2021 to 45% in CY2023, thereby positioning itself as the dominant player in the eco-friendly packaging sector.
- With effective strategic improvements, the company is anticipated to achieve a 56% market share in 2037, propelled by cost efficiency and innovation.
The Story
The international sustainable packaging market is significantly growing with a valuation of USD 30.7 billion as of 2022, and is projected to grow at a 7.9% growth rate by the end of 2037 and reaching USD 855 billion. Despite this upliftment, a few businesses, particularly small enterprises, readily struggled to implement eco-friendly packaging, owing to high expenses. Besides, the company experienced high production costs, for instance, sustainable materials such as plant-based polymers, recycled paper, and bioplastics were 25% to 35% more expensive in comparison to traditional plastics. Besides, competitors in Asia and Europe provided cheap alternatives, thus making it challenging to retain price-sensitive customers. The aspect of government-imposed strict sustainability reforms has resulted in compliance costs, and SMEs, along with startups evaded finest eco-packaging, owing to budget restrictions.
Moreover, technological innovation and advanced financing models are readily reshaping accessibility. Based on this, the company established a Green Packaging Lease program, permitting SMEs to integrate sustainable materials without the absence for upfront expenses and successfully recovering investments through three-year installment plans. This eventually diminished entry gaps for more than 5,250 small-scale businesses as of 2023. Meanwhile, there have been breakthroughs in mycelium-based packaging, which reduced production expenditure by 44%. Besides, tactical partnerships and collaborations with agricultural waste suppliers in Brazil and India further reduced raw material costs by almost 28.5%.
The aspect of administrative obstacles existed and was converted into growth opportunities. The company’s Compliance-as-a-Service platform, which was driven by artificial intelligence, reduced the audit expenses by 67%. In addition, petition-based efforts assisted in shaping tax credits for circular packaging in more than 12 U.S. states, thereby offsetting 21.5% of conventional expenses for SMEs. Therefore, all these strategies democratized green packaging as well as positioned the company as one of the policy-to-practice innovators ahead of the forecasted targets.
Our Solution:
Research Nester successfully conducted an international competitor analysis by evaluating customer acquisition strategies, material sourcing, and pricing models. Key findings regarding this included:
- Europe competitors depended on administrative subsidies to maintain low prices.
- Manufacturers in the Asia region utilized wholesale procurement to diminish raw materials costs by almost 20% to 25%.
- Direct-to-consumer (D2C) brands preferred low minimum orders and personalized packaging, which the majority of suppliers ignored.
Based on these, the company implemented a suitable pricing model that offered a discount for bulk orders, subscription-based pricing for frequent clients, and tiered packaging solutions. Furthermore, Research Nester recognized inefficiencies in the company’s manufacturing process, including high energy consumption in biodegradation processes, along with excessive raw material wastage, accounting for a 13% loss in production. After the consultation, the company adopted the following:
- Closed-loop recycling systems to reuse an estimated 95% of production scraps.
- Renewable energy integration to combat energy expenses by almost 18.5%.
- AI-powered waste tracking to diminish material loss by 10%.
Moreover, the market analysis of Research Nester demonstrated that approximately 65% of startups demanded sustainable packaging but were unable to afford. Based on this situation, the company initiated the following:
- Introduced an Eco-Starter Pack, with a focus on small-batch and low-cost packaging for SMEs.
- Expansion into Southeast Asia and Latin America, wherein the e-commerce growth is projected to be 25.7% on a year-over-year (YoY) basis.
- Partnership with e-commerce platforms such as Shopify and Amazon to ensure discounted green packaging.
Finally, to stand out, the company effectively highlighted cost savings and focused on organizing educational campaigns, especially on social media, to emphasize the long-standing ROI of sustainable packaging.
Results
The immediate impact resulted in an increase in the market share from 29% to 44% between 2021 and 2023. There was a reduction in production expenses by almost 25%, which permitted 12% to 17% price cuts. Besides, waste generation reduced from 13% to 6%, while the customer base strengthened by 38%, with 50.5% of the newest clients being SME’s. Meanwhile, an analysis was conducted for the forecast year, 2037, and with ongoing optimization, the company is expected to gain 58% of the sustainable packaging market in North America. This is followed by reduced production expenditure by another 35% through automation. Additionally, it is also projected that the company will expand its position in more than 14 countries, especially in South Asia and Africa, and strive to achieve net-zero waste production by at least 2035.
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