A tote bag carries its brand in three places: the print or embroidery on the outside, a sewn label in the seam or inside, and the tag and packing it is sold in. Get those three right and a plain canvas bag becomes a product with your name on it, whether it is sold in a shop, given away at an event or used as your own shopping bag.
This guide walks through tote bag labels and branding options we offer, what each one suits, and how to brief us so the sample comes back right the first time.
The outside: print, embroidery or heat transfer
The outside of the bag is where most people see your brand. We offer three methods.
Screen print
Screen print is the usual choice for totes. Ink is pushed through a screen onto the fabric, one screen per colour. It suits bold logos, text and simple illustrations, and it can go on one side or both. The print area depends on the bag size, so a larger bag allows a larger print.
Screen print looks crisp on cotton canvas. On jute-cotton, the textured weave gives prints a slightly rustic look, so bold artwork with thick lines suits it more than fine detail.
Embroidery
Embroidery stitches the logo into the fabric with thread. It suits small logos, such as a mark near the top edge or on a pocket, and it gives a raised, retail feel. It is less suited to large areas or very fine text. Embroidery works on canvas, where the firm weave holds the stitches.
Heat transfer
A heat transfer is printed first and then pressed onto the bag. It can carry more colours and finer detail than a screen print, which makes it useful for photographic or multi-colour artwork, or when each design runs in small numbers.
| Method | Suits | Points to note |
|---|---|---|
| Screen print | Bold logos and text, one or both sides | One screen per colour |
| Embroidery | Small logos, retail finish | Not for large areas or tiny text |
| Heat transfer | Multi-colour or detailed artwork | Pressed onto the surface |
Inside and in the seam: woven and printed labels
A sewn label is what turns a promotional bag into a retail product. It tells the buyer whose bag it is, even when the outside print is a design rather than a logo.
- Woven label. The logo is woven into a small fabric label, which is sewn into the side seam, the top hem or the inside. It feels durable and lasts as long as the bag.
- Printed label. The logo and any care or fibre wording are printed on a fabric label. It is flatter and can carry more text.
Many brands use both: a small woven brand label on the outside seam, where it shows, and a printed care label inside. Care and fibre wording, and any other labelling, depend on where the bag will be sold. Labelling requirements vary by country and are confirmed at quotation.
Tags and packing
How the bag reaches your shelf or your buyer matters too, especially for retail and online sales.
- Hang tag. A printed card tag attached to the bag, carrying your logo, price space or a barcode.
- Folding. Bags can be folded to a set size so they stack neatly or fit a mailer.
- Bagging. Each bag can be packed in its own polybag for clean storage and shipping.
- Labelling. A barcode or size sticker can go on the polybag, to the specification you give us.
If you sell through a marketplace, you confirm the current packing and labelling requirements with that marketplace, and we label and pack to the specification you send. For event giveaways, plain folding and bulk packing is often enough.
Our page on labels, tags and packaging explains how these options work across all our products.
Planning your branding: a short checklist
Before you send artwork, work through these points:
- Which sides carry a print? One side or both.
- How many colours in each design? This decides between screen print and heat transfer.
- Where does the sewn label go? Side seam, top hem or inside.
- Do you need care wording? Tell us the destination country.
- Tag or no tag? Retail usually needs one; event bags often do not.
- How will the bags be packed? Folded, bagged, labelled or bulk.
Artwork as a vector file gives the cleanest result. A clear, high-resolution image also works, and we confirm placement, size and colours on the sample before bulk production.
Keeping the brand consistent across reorders
Once a design is approved, keep the same artwork files, label artwork and tag design for every reorder. If you change a colour or a print size, tell us at quotation so the new sample reflects it. Small changes are easy to make when they are agreed before production rather than spotted after.
To start, choose a bag from our white label tote bags range. Then send us the style, fabric, colour, quantity, your artwork and the label and packing you want, and we will prepare a quotation.