A Printing Guide for Founders
Design is the Foundation; Printing brings it to life.
From custom food & drink packaging with embossed features to a fully expressed label design or stylish merchandise, printing is an essential part of the creative process to realize your project.
Unfortunately, printing seems to stop founders in their tracks because it can all become overwhelming. The industry runs on its own vocabulary, every printer asks for slightly different things, and most quote forms assume you already know the answers.
We’re here to bring clarity and confidence, so our community can bring their projects to life with more ease.
By the end of this guide, you'll have a glossary, a checklist, and a short list of trusted printers we've vetted ourselves. Enjoy!
The story that
inspired this guide.
A client and friend we're collaborating with on her skincare brand came to us believing her values were going to cost her the packaging experience she actually wanted. She'd been told — by more than one vendor — that going eco-friendly meant accepting fewer options. Less texture. Less depth. Fewer of the considered details that make a brand feel like itself.
We took her to Premiere Press, our Portland-based printing partner — a women-owned, fully carbon-neutral, window-powered shop, to see and touch her label options in person. Two hours of paper swatches, samples, and a full press tour, she walked out with answers she didn't think existed: a potential recyclable, FSC-certified stock with the tactile weight she wanted, a water-resistant option that didn't compromise on recyclability, and even a small foil moment that played nicely with the rest. 🎉
The packaging she'd quietly grieved didn't need to be grieved. She just needed a partner who knew which materials to reach for first — and a few of the right questions to ask.
That's what this guide aims to be for our community at large. Now let’s
Section 1
Printing Terms,
Demystified.
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A dieline is the flat blueprint of a package — the cut, fold, and glue lines drawn out so the printer knows where to slice and crease the flat sheet to fold it into the final 3D box, bag, or label shape.
Think of it like a sewing pattern, but for packaging. You design your artwork on top of it so everything lands in the right spot once it's folded up.
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The paper or material itself. Stocks vary by weight, finish, and base material (paper, synthetic, biodegradable film, etc.).
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How thick or substantial the stock feels. Higher GSM = heavier, sturdier. A business card is usually 300–400 GSM; a flyer might be 100–170 GSM.
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MYK is the four-color printing process used for full-color images. Pantone (PMS) refers to specific, pre-mixed ink colors used when brand color accuracy is critical. If your brand has a signature color, you'll likely want a Pantone match.
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Extra design that extends past the trim edge so there's no white border if the cut shifts slightly. Standard is usually 0.125" (1/8 inch).
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A test print (digital or physical) you approve before the full run. Always ask for one. Always.
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The Forest Stewardship Council certifies paper sourced from responsibly managed forests. A common indicator of more sustainable paper stock.
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A finish applied over the print — matte, gloss, satin, or soft-touch — that affects look, feel, and durability.
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Raised (emboss) or recessed (deboss) impression in the material. Adds tactile depth without ink.
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Metallic or pigmented foil pressed onto the surface for a shiny, raised effect.
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A custom shape cut into the material (rounded corners, a unique outline, a window).
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The smallest run a printer will produce. This varies wildly — some shops have no minimums, others start at 1,000+ units.
Section 2
Before You Ask For A Quote:
What To Figure Out First
Most printer frustration starts with vague briefs.
The clearer you are upfront, the more accurate your quote — and the less back-and-forth you'll be stuck in. ⭐️
Spend twenty minutes getting clear on the following before you inquire with anyone:
The Product
What are you printing — a label, a folding carton, a flyer, a business card, a shipping box? If it's a label, what's it going on (a glass bottle, a plastic tube, a pouch)?
The Use Case
Where will this product live? Bathrooms get humid. Kitchens get greasy. Coolers get wet. Shipping boxes get tossed. The environment shapes the material recommendation.
Quantity
How many do you need for launch, and how many do you realistically expect to reorder in the first six months? Cost-per-unit drops at higher quantities, but tying up cash in inventory you can't move is its own problem.
Budget
A range is fine. "Under $500" tells a printer something completely different than "around $2,500." It's not a number to hide.
Files
Ideally print-ready PDFs with bleed and CMYK or Pantone color set up. If you don't have these yet, that's okay — just be upfront so the printer knows whether design support is part of the conversation.
Requirements
Specific Pantone colors? A finish you've been dreaming about? Sustainability standards? Write them down so they don't get lost.
Dieline
For packaging, what are the flat and folded dimensions? Do you already have a dieline, or does the printer need to create one? If you're printing on an existing container — a glass bottle, a tin, a stand-up pouch — share those specs too.
Timeline
When do you need it in hand? Build in a buffer for proofs, revisions, and shipping.
Variants & SKUs
One design or twelve flavors? Multiple sizes of the same box? Variants drive whether a printer quotes you on a single plate setup or a dozen, and the pricing gap is significant.
Section 3
The Quote Checklist
Share this with your printer
Copy, paste, and complete this information when inquiring with a printer to receive a faster, more accurate quote.
Project type (label, box, postcard, etc.) and dimensions
Quantity needed (and any alternate quantities you'd like priced)
Stock preference, or a request for stock recommendations
Color setup (CMYK, Pantone, or both — list specific Pantone numbers if known)
Finishes desired (matte, gloss, soft-touch, foil, emboss, die-cut, etc.)
Sustainability requirements (FSC certified, recyclable, compostable, soy-based inks, etc.)
Use environment (humid, refrigerated, shipping, retail shelf, etc.)
Deadline / in-hand date
Budget range
File status (print-ready, in progress, need design support)
Whether you'd like a physical proof, a digital proof, or both
Section 4
Before you commit
Printer Questions
If a printer can't answer these clearly, Keep searching.
What paper stocks do you have available?
What finishes work on these stocks, and which combinations do you recommend for my use case?
How will this material perform in real life (humidity, refrigeration, shipping)?
What are your MOQs, and what's the cost-per-unit at each tier?
What's included in the quote — proofs, shipping, file prep, revisions?
What's your typical lead time, and what causes it to stretch?
Can I see samples of past projects similar to mine?
Are in-person press checks available?
Section 5
A note on
sustainable packaging
The trade-off our client walked in believing in — that eco-friendly meant settling — simply isn't the reality of printing in 2026. Recyclable label stocks now mimic premium uncoated papers. Compostable mailers come in textures that feel intentional. Soy- and water-based inks print rich, on-brand color. Foil and emboss techniques have eco-conscious counterparts. The materials exist; you just need a partner who reaches for them first.
* DESIGN LIKE THE EARTH IS THE END CLIENT
* DESIGN LIKE THE EARTH IS THE END CLIENT
Section 6
Why we love the
PNW & Colorado’s
print shop scene.
One of the quiet joys of running a branding agency with a CPG focus in both Portland and Denver is the print community we get to plug our clients into — small, deeply skilled, and disproportionately women-owned.
In Portland, that means shops like Premiere Press, Paperjam Press, and Rose City Label. In Denver and Boulder, it's Smokeproof Press for letterpress, and Sunset Printing for craft work across the board. These aren't just vendors to us; they're collaborators we trust with our clients' first runs and tenth anniversaries.
If you're a founder in either market with a shop you love we haven't mentioned, send it our way. And the online resources in our guide ship anywhere, so it earns its keep no matter your zip code.
Section 6
Free Download
Printer & Manufacturer
Collection
twelve years of trusted partners into one easy-to-skim guide — Portland and Denver favorites, online picks for any zip code, and dedicated sections for sustainable, eco-friendly, and cannabis packaging.
You bring the product. We'll bring the printers, the dielines, the Pantone debates, and the design that ties it all together. Let's make something worth unboxing.
Serving the PNW, Colorado, and beyond.
