Your cartons will be stacked under other cartons, strapped to a pallet, driven across an apron and loaded by machine. Packing for that is different from packing for a courier.
Boxes, not bags, wherever possible
A woven sack is cheap and it protects nothing. It tears on a corner, it cannot be stacked, and everything inside takes the shape of whatever is on top of it. Ask for double-walled cartons on anything fragile.
Fill the empty space
A half-full carton collapses under weight. Either fill it or ask for a smaller box — and remember you are paying to fly whatever room the box takes.
Your name on every piece
Not on one carton of six. On all six. Cartons get separated on a pallet, and the one without a name is the one that ends up in the corner of a warehouse.
Liquids and powders need declaring
Perfume, oils, creams, batteries and anything with a lithium cell fly under different rules and from a different airport. Not declaring them does not get them through — it gets the whole consignment held, including everybody else's cargo on that flight.
If you are unsure whether something counts as a liquid or a battery, ask us before it ships. It costs one WhatsApp message and can save the flight.