Packaging Items & Free Gifts

Keep boxes, mailing bags and free gifts in step with your stock in Helm WMS, so they come off inventory automatically every time a parcel goes out.

What Packaging Items Do

Boxes, mailing bags and the small extras you tuck into a parcel are stock too, and they run out just like your products. Mark one of them as a packaging item, link it to a package type, and Helm takes it off your stock every time that package type goes out on a shipment.

Your packaging figures stay accurate without anyone counting boxes at the end of the week, and you can see when it is time to reorder. The same set-up works for free gifts that travel with certain orders, such as stickers, pencils or a cleaning cloth.

Example: a bookshop sends every book order in a branded mailer with five free pencils. It sets up a package type called "Book Mailer with Pencils" that uses one mailer and five pencils, and starts with 500 of each. After 20 book orders have gone out, Inventory shows 480 mailers and 400 pencils, and nobody has adjusted a thing.

Before You Start

The item is in Inventory. Create the box, bag or gift as a normal inventory item first and book its stock into a location. See Manual Inventory Creation if you need to add it.
It is a single item. The Packaging Item setting is available on individual inventory items, not on groups.
You can open Settings. Package types are managed in Settings > Despatch Settings > Package Type Settings, so you need access to Settings to finish the set-up.

Marking an Item as Packaging

Go to Inventory and open the item you want to use as packaging or as a gift.
In Advanced Settings, turn on Packaging Item.
Helm offers to create a package type for the item straight away. Accept, and the Create Package window opens with the item already added, so you can carry on from step two of the next section.

Note: you can turn Packaging Item off at any time to return the item to normal stock.

Linking It to a Package Type

The package type tells Helm what goes into the parcel and how many of each. Every time it is used on a shipment, Helm deducts those quantities from stock.

Go to Settings > Despatch Settings > Package Type Settings and click Create Package.
Enter a Package name your packers will recognise at a glance, such as "Book Mailer with Pencils".
Enter the Length, Width and Height in centimetres.
Choose how the weight is set:
- Fixed: the parcel uses the weight you enter.
- Variable: Helm works out the weight from the items in the shipment, up to the maximum weight you enter.
Open Packaging, search for your packaging item and add it. Set the quantity used each time this package type is chosen, for example one mailer. Add any other items, such as the five pencils, in the same way.
Click Create Package.
In the Package Type List, check the Status column. If it shows Inactive, click it to switch the package type to Active.

Note: only active package types can be chosen on a shipment. If your packers cannot see a package type, check its status first.

Tip: use Add Barcode to give the package type its own barcode, so packers can set it in the Despatch Terminal with a single scan.

Using the Package Type When You Despatch

You can put a package type on a shipment in three ways. Most teams use a mix, depending on how predictable their parcels are.

On a Single Shipment

On the Single Shipment screen, switch the parcel row to Package and pick the package type from Select Package Type.

In the Despatch Terminal

On the parcel view, scan the barcode of the packaging item or of the package type. If the item belongs to more than one package type, Helm asks which one to use. If it belongs to none, Helm tells you.

Automatically

Give the inventory item a default under Overrides > Package Type, or use the Set Package Type action in an Order Rule. When more than one applies, the Order Rule wins, then the item's override, then your system default.

What Happens to Stock

When the shipment is created, Helm deducts each packaging item by the quantity set on the package type. With 500 pencils in stock and a quantity of five, one shipment leaves 495.

Note: running out of packaging never holds up an order. If an item is out of stock, the shipment is still created so your team can use something else. Keep packaging topped up so the figures stay accurate.

Sending Free Gifts With Orders

There are three ways to send a free gift, and the right one depends on where your promotion is set up.

With a Package Type

Add the gift to a package type as a packaging item, as in the bookshop example. This suits gifts that go into every parcel of a certain kind, and the gift comes off stock whenever that package type is used.

With an Order Rule

Use the Add Product action in an Order Rule to add the gift as a line on any order that meets your conditions, for example every order containing a particular SKU. The gift is then picked and despatched like any other line.

Add Product works while the order is Draft, New Order, Backorder or Processing, and is skipped once a shipment exists.

From Your Sales Channel

Many promotions are already set up on the marketplace or webstore, such as a free scarf with every order over £10. The gift arrives on the order as a normal line, and Helm picks, despatches and deducts it like any other item.

Heads up: items with a declared value of £0 cannot be shipped across borders, so a free gift on an international order will usually stop the label being created. Give gifts on international orders a small declared value.

Best Practices & Notes

Keep Packaging on Your Reorder List

Filter Inventory by Packaging Item to see all your packaging in one list, and set reorder levels so you know when to buy more. See Stock Levels & Replenishment.

Name Package Types for the Packer

"Mailing Bag with Sticker" tells a packer exactly what goes in the parcel. "Package 3" does not.

Give Each Promotion Its Own Package Type

When a campaign ends, switch its package type to Inactive. Your everyday packaging carries on unchanged, and the promotion is ready to switch back on next time.

FAQ

Can a package type use more than one packaging item?

Yes. Add each item under Packaging with its own quantity, for example one mailer and five pencils.

When does packaging come off stock?

When the shipment is created. Choosing a package type without creating the shipment does not change stock.

Will an order stop if packaging runs out?

No. Helm lets the shipment go ahead so your team can use different packaging if they need to.

Why can't I see my package type on a shipment?

Check that its status is Active in Settings > Despatch Settings > Package Type Settings.

Can I turn a packaging item back into normal stock?

Yes. Open the item and turn off Packaging Item in Advanced Settings.

Why does a free gift fail on international orders?

Items with a declared value of £0 cannot be shipped across borders. Give the gift a small declared value and create the label again.

Still stuck? Contact Support and the team will help.

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