I have pens delivered almost every day. As a result, I feel I am in a position to evaluate packaging. There are three standards of packaging: bad, stupid and good.

Bad
This is a pen thrust into a padded bag or even a plain envelope with nothing more to protect it. I don’t need to explain why this is the worst type of packaging. I count myself very lucky that I have had pens destroyed by this type of packaging only three times.

Stupid
Stupid packaging involves unnecessary amounts of packing tape or worse, Sellotape. The pen is somewhat protected during transmission but it is in danger of being damaged during unwrapping. It’s generally the case that in stupid packaging, the tape outweighs the pen by a huge amount. In the worst case, the pen is wrapped in tissue paper then mummified in Sellotape. Several layers of bubblewrap are applied, each one heavily taped. This mess is then packed into a reused box that was never intended for posting and usually arrives squashed out of shape. I got a pen in someone’s prescription box this morning. The result is that the pen is not protected though it keeps the tape manufacturer in business.

Good
Good packaging is robust, either a postage tube or a section of plastic tubing. I use postage tubes and lots of bubblewrap with the minimum of brown packing tape. Packing tape is better than Sellotape because it is visible. A pen in plastic tubing with a layer or two of bubblewrap can be popped in a padded bag with complete confidence. On occasion, when a pen is being sent overseas, I might use more packing tape on the seams of the box because of the amount of handling the package will receive, otherwise I keep it to a minimum. These are not the only good methods. Many people are cleverly inventive and come up with other good solutions.

It is the bane of my life to be presented with a lumpy package big enough to hold a ghetto blaster when I know I have only ordered one pen, only too aware that there will be many layers within like Russian dolls, each with its own sticky mass of tape.