Private label chocolate and confectionery: the complete buyer's guide.
From your first brief to a loaded container: the steps, the packaging minimums, the label work and the timing, in the order you will meet them.
Home / Private label / Guide
Updated:
How a private label order runs.
Seven steps. Each one has a document or an approval behind it, so you always know what is waiting on whom.
Your brief
Send the product list, destination market, packaging type and target quantity per item. If you are still choosing products, start from the 2026 catalogue or the product range.
Written offer
You receive a written offer within two working days: FOB Mersin, in USD. CIF is calculated on request. Packaging cost is shown as an addition to the unit price.
Samples
Samples are free of charge, from our running production. The courier is at your cost, paid before dispatch and deducted from your first order. See how samples work.
Label and artwork
Label data comes from our product sheet. The destination-market label is prepared with you before production. You approve the final artwork in writing before printing.
Confirmation and deposit
Payment is 50% at order confirmation and 50% before loading, by bank transfer. We do not work with letters of credit or open account.
Production
Everything is made to order. Production takes 4–6 weeks after confirmation and deposit. Your printed packaging must be ready before your run starts, so ask for the print timing together with the offer.
Loading and documents
A full 20' or 40' container, or a truck. You receive the commercial invoice, packing list, health certificate and certificate of origin, plus an origin declaration under a trade agreement where your country has one.
The minimum follows the packaging you choose.
Printing is ordered per packaging. That is why the minimum quantity depends on the pack type, and why a flowpack and a doypack of the same product have very different minimums.
- Plastic packaging (flowpack, doypack, quatropack): minimum 1,000 kg of printed packaging. For doypacks this is roughly 250,000 units of product; for flowpacks roughly 1,000,000 units.
- Products in printed cartons: about 100,000 units.
- Packaging cost: added to the unit price. It is confirmed per unit once the packaging type and design are fixed.
The unit counts above are approximate. The exact figure depends on your pack size and is confirmed in the offer. If your volumes are below a plastic packaging minimum, compare it with a carton format, or start with our brand and move to your own label when the volume is there.
Your brand, or ours first
Private label means our product in packaging printed with your brand. Before you commit to printed packaging, decide which route fits your stage in the market.
- Your own brand (private label). We print your packaging and run your product on our lines. The minimum is set by the printed packaging run, not by product weight. The figures are listed above.
- Our brand first. You can start with our own brand at one full pallet per product. This lets you test a range in your market, then move the products that work to your own label.
A label written for your market, before production.
Ingredients, allergens and nutrition values come from our product sheet. We then prepare the label to your market's rules with you.
- European Union: food information under Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011.
- United States: the FDA Nutrition Facts panel.
- Eurasian Economic Union: EAC marking requirements.
- Allergens: our lines handle milk, soya and tree nuts; the label reflects this.
- Traceability: every batch carries a lot code and production date.
- Shelf life: 12 months for chocolate products and 24 months for spreads, from production. Storage at +4/+24 °C, dry. In summer we recommend a reefer container.
Compound or real chocolate?
Depending on the product, we offer compound (made with a cocoa butter substitute) or real chocolate. The offer always states which one you are buying.
Three things decide it. First, your price position. Second, how the product will be named on your label: in many markets a product made with a cocoa butter substitute cannot be sold under the name "chocolate", so check your market's rules before you choose. Third, your route to market: the same bar may sit in a discount range with compound and in a gift range with real chocolate. If you are unsure, ask for samples of both versions of the same product and compare them side by side. See how each line works on how we produce.
Questions buyers ask about private label.
What is the minimum order for private label chocolate?
It is set by the printed packaging. For plastic packaging the minimum is 1,000 kg of printed packaging, roughly 250,000 doypack units or 1,000,000 flowpack units. For printed cartons it is about 100,000 units.
Can I start without my own packaging?
Yes. With our brand you start at one full pallet per product. Pallets of different products can share one container, each pallet holding one product. See mixed containers.
Who prepares the label?
The data comes from our product sheet. We prepare the destination-market label with you, and you approve the final artwork in writing before printing.
Is packaging included in the unit price?
No. Packaging cost is added to the unit price and confirmed per unit once the packaging type and design are fixed.
How long from confirmation to loading?
Production takes 4–6 weeks after confirmation and deposit. Your printed packaging has to be ready before production starts, so plan the print time in front of that window.
Send your private label brief.
Product list, destination market, packaging type and target quantity. The written offer comes within two working days.