There’s a lot to consider when purchasing new shopping baskets for your store. Your baskets should match your brand with the proper color and logo placement, they should be the right size and shape, they should be clearly visible for all your customers, and they should be plentiful enough so every shopper in your store can grab one. Additionally, your shopping baskets must be sturdy enough to perform their function for many years to come – otherwise, you’ll find yourself replacing your baskets far more frequently than you should.

A shopping basket’s durability is largely dependent on its material composition. Most baskets are either built from metal or plastic, and different types of metals and plastics can be used in the process. Metal wire baskets tend to be slightly more expensive than plastic ones, so many businesses opt for plastic shopping baskets to help out their bottom line. However, are plastic shopping baskets durable enough for your store? There’s no simple answer to this question, so let’s discuss what you should consider before filling your location with fresh plastic baskets.

What to Know About Shopping Basket Durability

What Products Do You Sell?

First, think about the types of products you sell. Your store’s shopping baskets must be strong enough to be filled to the brim with items off your shelves without warping or the handles snapping off. Of course, most of your customers won’t want to haul such a heavy load around your store in the first place; if they plan on making a big trip, they’ll probably opt for a shopping cart instead (if available). Still, even lighter loads can damage a shopping basket if they contain sharp or strangely shaped objects. High-quality plastic baskets should be able to handle just about any items that can fit inside them, but cheaper plastic baskets might begin to fall apart under enough stress.

How Busy Is Your Store?

Your store’s capacity and level of foot traffic can have an impact on how well your plastic baskets hold up, too. Simply put, the more active your store, the more use your baskets will undergo, and the more your baskets are handled, the more damage they’ll take over time. If your store isn’t usually too busy, you won’t have much to worry about. If you receive a lot of foot traffic on a regular basis, however, know that your baskets will collide with one another, smash into walls and shelves, get unceremoniously dropped and flung around, etc. Most plastic baskets will be able to withstand such wear and tear, but it will take a toll.

Where Will You Store Your Baskets?

A basket’s longevity also depends on where they’re located. Inside your store, any basket that’s not in use isn’t really threatened by much other than dust. If you store shopping baskets outside, however, they are susceptible to various environmental threats, such as sunlight, extreme temperatures, precipitation, wind, debris, pests, and more. Leaving a basket outside for a little while usually won’t result in any lasting damage, but regularly keeping your shopping baskets outdoors will shorten their lifespan, no matter how durable they are otherwise. If you want to keep your baskets around for a long time, try to store them inside your store. If space is limited, you may need to reconfigure your layout a bit to allow for this internal storage.

What Are Shopping Carts Made Of?

As you consider whether or not plastic shopping baskets will be durable enough for your store, you might ponder the same question in regards to shopping carts. After all, carts and baskets serve similar roles, and they’re often built from similar materials (carts are also broken down into “metal” and “plastic” categories). The primary difference between carts and baskets, of course, is the mode of transportation: baskets must be carried while carts must be pushed and steered. And because carts feature more components, more can go wrong when they undergo damage (a single faulty wheel warrants repair). So, whether or not a plastic shopping cart is durable enough for your store only has slight relevance to whether or not the same can be said for a plastic basket. If you offer your customers both carts and baskets, you might go with metal for the former and plastic for the latter or vice versa – or you might stick with one material for both vessels.

The Manufacturer Matters

As we alluded to earlier, not all plastics are created equally. Likewise, the same materials can result in vastly different outcomes depending on which processes are implemented. Simply put, some plastic baskets are more durable than others, and it mostly comes down to the manufacturing process in question. At Good L Corp., we only use the highest-grade recyclable plastics for all our plastic offerings, which include a variety of both baskets and carts. We also design each basket with cantilevered corners and reinforced latticework to boost durability and maintain a lightweight frame. Nylon handles provide additional durability and comfort for customer use. And rather than stack rim-to-rim, our Standard Baskets nest high to allow our clients’ company logo to peek out at all times (how’s that for brand durability?).

The Verdict

So, are plastic shopping baskets durable enough for your store? If you rely on Good L Corp. for your basket manufacturing needs, the answer is a resounding yes. The same goes for our shopping carts and specialty offerings, too.

Good L Corporation delivers innovative shopping cart and basket solutions for retailers on a global scale. Good L Corp. can configure the right carryall strategy to boost your retail business, from a fleet of new custom carts to launch your store opening to replacement baskets that supplement your existing shop supply. Let’s get started! Contact us today for a no-pressure sales quote!