Cosmetic Packaging Printing in Dubai

Sun Studio prints artwork directly onto the cosmetic container itself: jars, airless bottles, droppers and tubes. We do not make printed paper cartons. The decoration goes onto the container at our Al Quoz studio in Dubai, so there is no label to peel in a humid bathroom and no seam on a round jar.

Printing on cosmetic jars, bottles and tubes suits brands launching in the UAE with a run of a few hundred rather than a few hundred thousand, private-label manufacturers decorating one stock container for several brands, and any pack whose shape defeats a label. You supply the containers, and there is no minimum order. For a launch or a shop window, we also make oversized display replicas of a bottle or jar, by resin 3D printing.

Print my packaging Send a brief

Send a sample container: plastics vary more than they look.

Rows of Ajmal Tropical Mango body spray cans printed direct, lined up on white shelving

What we can print

Cosmetic bottle printing and jar printing start with the material, because most cosmetic packaging is plastic and plastics differ:

Glass jars and bottles: serums, creams and mists. Glass fragrance bottles have their own page: perfume bottle printing.
Acrylic and PET containers: the clear packaging most skincare uses.
PP and PE containers: lids, jars and squeeze bottles in the plastics that need pre-treatment.
Airless bottles and droppers: the body is printed and the mechanism is not. Send a sample and we test it before we quote.
Tubes: depending on the material and how much they flex. Send a sample tube and we test it before we quote.
Caps, lids and closures: so a set is finished consistently. Caps are very often polypropylene, so they may need pre-treatment even when the bottle does not.
Aluminium body spray and aerosol cans: printed 360° around the body. Cans have their own page: aluminium can printing.

Printing capabilities

What applies depends on the container material and shape:

Direct UV printing Cured onto the container itself.
360° printing A full wrap with no seam or label edge on cylindrical bodies.
Flat-face printing For square and shaped containers.
White ink Under the artwork so colour holds on clear, frosted or coloured packaging.
Fine text at small sizes Ingredient and regulatory text printed from your vector artwork instead of a separate sticker. Check very small text on a printed sample before the run.
Pre-treatment for low-energy plastics The step that makes PP and PE printable at all.
Short runs and samples One container printed before a launch quantity is committed. There is no minimum order.

Aluminium body spray cans are printed the same way, with no label, shrink sleeve or seam: turn the can and the artwork carries on round it. They belong to our aluminium can printing service.

Printing on glass or on plastic packaging

Cosmetic packaging splits into two very different printing problems, and which one you have decides whether pre-treatment is part of the job.

Glass and acrylic

Glass and acrylic behave predictably. Both are non-porous, both take UV ink well with normal cleaning and, where required, an adhesion promoter suited to the substrate.

Clear packaging raises the usual question of white ink, since colour laid on a clear jar reads as a tint and the product inside shows through it.

Polypropylene and polyethylene

Lids, tubes and squeeze bottles are usually polypropylene (PP) or polyethylene (PE), which are low surface energy by nature. That is what makes them chemically resistant and easy to demould, and it is exactly why ink does not want to stick to them. Our guide to UV printing on PP, PE and PET explains why.

These need surface pre-treatment before printing, and they are the containers we most insist on sampling. In our experience, a print that looks perfect and lifts with a fingernail a week later is usually an untreated polyolefin.

Who this is for

Packaging work reaches us from:

Cosmetic and skincare brands: a launch run or a line refresh printed on the container, without a label order.
Private-label manufacturers: one stock container decorated for several brands.
Personal care and body care: mists, sprays and body products.
Packaging designers and agencies: testing a concept on the real container.
Salons, clinics and spas: own-label products in small runs.
Gifting and promotional buyers: branded cosmetic sets. Other gift items are covered under corporate gift printing.

What to send before we can quote

With packaging, a physical sample is worth far more than a specification sheet:

Print my packaging Send a brief

A sample container: the material is often not what it looks like, and this is the reliable way to know.
Photos: front and side, so we can see the shape.
Dimensions and capacity.
The material: glass, acrylic, PET, PP or PE, if you know it.
The print area: full wrap, one face, or a panel.
Quantity, and whether this is a sample or a launch run.
Artwork, including any regulatory or ingredient text and which elements must stay opaque.
Whether containers are filled: empty is easier.

Not sure which file to send? Our artwork preparation guide covers file formats, vector conversion and what each surface needs.

How it works

Step 1Send

A sample container if possible, plus photos, dimensions, material and artwork.

Step 2Review

We identify the material, confirm whether pre-treatment is needed and work out the print area.

Step 3Sample

We print your actual container and check it. On plastics this step is essential.

Step 4Produce

The run is printed, checked and packed ready for filling.

Printed packaging examples

The glass mist bottles and the aluminium cans are Sun Studio work, printed in Al Quoz. They belong to neighbouring services and are here to show the print a jar or bottle receives.

Two glass spray bottles with silver caps, one printed with a smoke-effect wrap and one with a raised textured white finish — Glass mist bottles: a photographic wrap, and a raised textured white finish.

A printed aluminium deodorant can beside a glass tumbler printed with a painting, both wrapped 360 degrees — An aluminium deodorant can and a glass tumbler, both printed 360 degrees.

A full run of aluminium body spray cans printed with a brown marble-effect wrap, laid out in rows at the studio — A full run of body spray cans printed direct. Cans have their own service page.

Two printed aluminium body spray cans with high gloss raised detail over dark artwork — Aluminium cans printed direct with raised gloss detail, no label and no shrink sleeve.

Four Ajmal body spray designs side by side: Pear Hug, Amber Tide, Mystic Bliss and Tropical Mango — Four Ajmal body spray designs, from the project listed below.

Technical considerations

Cosmetic packaging combines two hard problems: the materials are frequently low surface energy plastics, and the finished product is handled daily, kept in a humid bathroom and often in contact with oils and alcohols.

What decides whether it holds:

Identify the plastic

PP and PE need pre-treatment; PET and acrylic generally do not. Packaging is rarely labelled with its resin in a way you can read on site, which is why we ask for a sample.

Pre-treatment

Surface treatment raises the energy of a polyolefin so ink can bond. In our experience, skipping it is the most common cause of print lifting on plastic packaging.

Release agents

Moulded containers often carry residue from demoulding. Containers are cleaned before printing.

Contents

Oils, alcohols and actives can attack a print from the outside when the product is used. Tell us what goes in the container. Our guide to alcohol-resistant perfume bottle printing covers perfume, perfume oils and body spray.

Flex

A squeeze tube or a soft bottle deforms in use, and a cured ink film has limits. Rigid containers are the safer case. For a tube, send a sample and we test it before we quote.

Clear packaging

With the product visible through the container, white ink under the artwork is usually needed for colour to read as intended.

Regulatory text

We print the text you supply. Whether ingredient and regulatory wording meets UAE labelling rules is the brand’s responsibility, and we do not check it. Very small text should be approved on a printed sample.

Testing

For anything going to retail we print a sample and check it against handling and the product itself, rather than assuring performance in advance.

Common questions

Do you print cosmetic boxes or the container itself?

The container. Most companies offering cosmetic packaging printing in Dubai make printed paper boxes and cartons, which Sun Studio does not. A rigid presentation box you already have can be tested like any other item: see custom box printing. We print the artwork directly onto the jar, bottle, airless bottle, dropper or tube, with no label or sleeve. Whether a particular container works depends mostly on what it is made of, which is why we ask for a sample.

Can you print on plastic containers?

Yes, with the right preparation. PET and acrylic are straightforward. Polypropylene and polyethylene are low surface energy and need surface pre-treatment before ink will bond. Printed without it, the ink can lift later even though it looks perfect at first.

Can you print tubes and airless bottles?

Send a sample and we test it. On an airless bottle the body is printed and the pump mechanism is not. A tube depends on its material and on how much it flexes in use, because a cured ink film has limits on a soft, squeezed surface. We confirm either one on your actual container before we quote.

Is there a minimum order for cosmetic containers?

No. Nothing is tooled, so there is no screen or plate cost to spread over a run. One container is a normal sample job and a launch run of a few hundred is a normal production job. The quotation depends on the container, the print area and the quantity.

Do you supply the jars, bottles or tubes?

No. Sun Studio prints packaging the brand supplies and does not sell or source containers. Buy from your packaging supplier, have the containers delivered to our studio in Al Quoz empty, and send one ahead as a sample so we can identify the material before you commit to the full quantity.

Can you print ingredient and regulatory text?

Yes. We print the text you supply, from outlined vector artwork so nothing reflows. Whether the wording meets UAE labelling rules is the brand’s responsibility, and we do not check compliance. Very small text should be approved on a printed sample of your actual container before the run.

Will the print survive the product itself?

That depends on the formulation. Oils, alcohols and some actives act on a cured surface layer from the outside when the product is used. Tell us what is going in the container and we will test rather than assume.

Can you print containers that are already filled?

Send them empty wherever possible. Printing before filling is cleaner, easier to handle and avoids any risk to the product. A filled and sealed container, a tube in particular, has to be looked at first: send a sample and we will test it and tell you before we quote.

How long does a cosmetic packaging order take?

There is no standard figure. The lead time is quoted with the job once your sample container has been printed and approved, and it depends on the quantity and on whether the plastic needs pre-treatment. Tell us the filling or launch date and we will plan back from it. We deliver across the UAE, or the order can be collected from our studio in Al Quoz.

Have packaging to print?

Send us a sample container if you can, along with photos, dimensions, quantity and artwork. We will identify the material, tell you whether it needs pre-treatment, and print a sample before anything is committed.

Print my packaging Send a brief

Or call +971 4 346 7422 · info@sunstudio.ae

Cosmetic Packaging Printing projects

Real Sun Studio work involving this service. See the full portfolio.

Rows of printed Ajmal Tropical Mango body spray cans racked on trolleys at the studio after printing — **Ajmal Perfumes**: aerosol can printing, the nearest published project. Cans are covered by our aluminium can printing service.

Technology used

LSINC PeriQ360: the cylindrical press used for bottles, jars and cans. Sun Studio belongs to the same Dubai group as PRO TECHnology, which distributes LSINC equipment and sells the Modico ModiTreat in the Middle East, so read our view of the machines with that in mind. See the full printer fleet.

Modico ModiTreat: the pre-treatment step that makes low surface energy plastics printable. See the full printer fleet.

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