Canvas & Tote Bags · MOQ 500 pcs
A lightweight cotton pouch with a drawstring closure, folded flat for shipping and quoted on its own dimensions and fabric. The $0.40–1.20 band shown here is the family reference for printed cotton at 500 pcs; a pouch-sized build is priced from its own size and cloth, so the pouch element is quoted as its own line.
Overview
The pouch is a rectangular cotton body with a turned-over top channel and a drawstring — usually cotton cord, sometimes a ribbon or a printed tape — cut from a lighter cloth than a tote, typically 4–8oz cotton or a thin canvas, and finished with whatever mark your artwork needs: a screen print, a heat transfer, a small embroidery, or a woven label sewn on. It folds flat, so pack density is high and freight volume per piece is a fraction of a structured bag.
It is the right choice when the pouch is a second, smaller touchpoint rather than the main carrier: protecting a piece of jewellery, holding a candle, wrapping a folded garment inside a rigid box, or carrying a hotel amenity. It is not a substitute for a tote — a drawstring pouch holds a light product and nothing more, the closure is the first thing to fail if it is overloaded, and the cloth is thin enough that a detailed print can ghost through. Where it earns its place is cost and volume: it is the cheapest branded item in this family and it ships in the remaining space of a carton you were already paying for.
Specification
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Fabric | Light cotton or thin canvas, typically 4–8oz; heavier on request |
| Size | Cut to order — common briefs run from 80×100mm to 300×400mm |
| Closure | Cotton cord drawstring in a turned channel; ribbon or printed tape optional |
| Screen print, heat transfer, embroidery or a sewn woven label | |
| Reinforcement | Double-stitched side seams and a reinforced channel on heavier pouches |
| Packing | Folded flat; high pack density, small carton volume per piece |
| MOQ | 500 pcs per design; smaller first runs against the closest factory that takes them |
| Lead time | 15–20 days after sample approval, before transit |
| Price basis | Quoted from the cotton family band at $0.40 – 1.20 at 500 pcs; size and cloth quoted as their own lines |
Variants
The drawstring and the base decide both how the pouch behaves and what it costs, so they are specified before the print is chosen.
The standard closure: a braided cotton cord through a turned-over channel, with a plastic or wooden toggle on request. Cheapest and the most common.
A satin or grosgrain ribbon instead of cord, which lifts the pouch into a gift presentation. Quoted as its own line, and only worth it on a heavier cloth.
A printed drawstring tape doubles as a brand panel when the pouch body itself is too small for a legible mark.
A flat pouch packs smallest; a bottom gusset gives it enough depth to stand and hold a boxed item. The gusset is an extra panel and is quoted separately.
Materials
A pouch is small, so the fabric is the whole product. The weight decides how the drawstring behaves, how many pouches fit in a carton and whether the print stays opaque.
| Option | What it means |
|---|---|
| 4–6oz cotton | The lightest option and the cheapest: soft, folds very small, and enough for jewellery and small cosmetics. Thin enough that a heavy print can ghost through the reverse. |
| 8oz cotton or thin canvas | More body, a better hand-feel and a print that stays opaque. The sensible default when the pouch is seen and handled rather than only used for packing. |
| Jute or a jute-cotton blend | A coarser, more structured pouch that reads craft and heritage, priced with the jute and laminated band at $0.98–1.85 at 500 pcs. Rougher against a delicate product, so it suits candles and dry goods rather than fabric. |
| Recycled or organic cotton | Available where a fibre claim matters, confirmed against the exact fabric in your specification. Expect a price that moves with the mill and longer fibre lead times. |
| Non-woven PP for the cheapest tier | Where the brief is purely promotional, non-woven pouches are the lowest-cost option in the wider bag range — but the same caveat applies as on the non-woven line: it is a price war, not a margin. |
Best for
A pouch protects a piece in transit and then becomes the presentation. Light cotton prints well on a small area and folds into a box or an envelope.
A drawstring pouch holds a single unit inside a rigid box, or acts as the outer presentation on its own for a small batch drop.
A folded garment or a spare part goes into the pouch inside the main carton, so the brand appears twice without a second structural pack.
A printed pouch for slippers, a robe tie or a small gift pack. High piece counts, low unit cost, and it travels and reorders predictably.
The cheapest branded item in the bag family, and the one that ships in leftover carton space. Best used as an add-on rather than as the headline product.
Sizing
Pouch sizing is driven by the object, not by fashion. Add roughly 10–15mm of slack on each side so the drawstring closes over the contents rather than around them, and remember that a tall narrow pouch closes more securely than a wide shallow one.
| Dimension | Guidance |
|---|---|
| Small (jewellery) | Around 80×100mm to 100×150mm holds a ring, a pair of earrings or a bracelet, and prints a simplified mark at best. A woven label works better at this scale. |
| Medium (gifting) | About 150×200mm suits a candle, a small bottle or folded accessories. This is the size most gifting programmes settle on. |
| Large (apparel and dry goods) | 250×350mm and up holds folded apparel, soap sets or coffee. Use a heavier cloth here, because a light pouch that size will not hold a rectangular item. |
| Gusset depth | A 30–50mm bottom gusset gives the pouch a base and lets it hold a boxed or cylindrical item. Extra panel, extra cost, quoted separately. |
| Drawstring channel | The channel needs 15–20mm of turned fabric, which comes out of the usable height of the pouch. Quote the internal dimensions, not the flat size. |
| Freight | Pouches are packed flat by the hundred, so volumetric weight is low and carton count is modest — the main reason this is the cheapest freight per branded item in the family. |
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FAQ
What this format is good at, and the two cases where it is the wrong choice.
Keep looking
The default printed tote: 10oz cotton canvas, sized to your product, with the handle and print method chosen around how much weight it has to carry. This is the spec most brand retail and event programmes land on, and the point in the range where the extra fabric starts buying something a customer can feel.
PP non-woven is the cheapest reusable carrier on the market and behaves like it: priced by the cent, high competitor density, and a weak custom surcharge. Useful as a low-cost volume item or a committed supermarket contract, and honest advice says it is not the line to build a margin on.
Jute and laminated linen shoppers sit above the cotton line at $0.98–1.85 a piece: heavier and more structured than a cotton tote, and increasingly bought as a gift bag with a printed brand panel rather than as a give-away. It reads craft and heritage, which is either the point of the brief or the reason to avoid it.
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