A floating EVA game tray with cup holders is an easy add-on for a party goods store: it is light, waterproof and sells through the whole summer season. The part that causes trouble is rarely the product itself. It is the carton. A tray that measures about 31.5 inches on each side will not shrink, so the case dimensions decide whether your shelf space, freight bill and retail price work out. Before you place a purchase order with an EVA foam products manufacturer, get these carton details confirmed in writing.

1. The outer carton dimensions decide your shelf and your freight

Fulikai's floating trays are one-piece foam boards, not inflatable items that can be folded down. The floating waterproof EVA game tray is 31.5 x 31.5 inches, and the salt-alkali resistant version with 25 mm double-row tile slots is listed at 31.5 in / 80 cm. A slim double-sided floating game mat covers the same 31.5 inch footprint, and a thicker board with reinforced buoyancy packs deeper — so pick the style first, then plan the case around it. Ask for the exact outer carton size and compare it against three things: the depth of your gondola shelf, the height of your storage rack, and whether the case fits through the door of your stockroom. A tray that is too deep for a shelf ends up displayed flat on the floor, which costs you the impulse purchase.

For ocean freight, ask for the carton size in both inches and centimetres and for the total packed volume of the shipment, so you can compare landed cost per unit between suppliers instead of just the unit price. Ask whether the cases are stacked two-high on the pallet or shipped flat; a stacked arrangement saves cube but makes partial unloading at your dock slower.

2. Units per carton and how they match your open-to-buy plan

Carton quantity is the number that decides whether you can buy a sensible test quantity. If a case holds six trays and you only want twelve on trial, you are buying two full cases whether you planned to or not. Ask for units per carton, then ask what the minimum order quantity is in cartons rather than in pieces. A custom EVA foam manufacturing run lets you change shapes, colours and printed designs from your own drawings or samples, and the pack count can be adjusted where the product structure allows it.

A practical rule: match the carton count to how the item will be merchandised. A tray sold as a single seasonal hero item works well in low-count cases. A tray promoted alongside pool inflatables, cups and tableware sells better in higher-count cases that your staff can restock in one trip.

3. Gross weight and net weight: check the carry test

EVA is a low-density foam, so a big tray is not necessarily a heavy case. Still, ask for gross and net weight per carton. Your team needs to lift these cases from a pallet to a shelf, and a store that cannot handle the case weight will quietly stop reordering it. If your stockroom staff work alone, request the weight per case before you agree to a larger pack count.

Weight also matters for returns handling. A customer who buys a tray for a beach weekend may bring it back at the end of the season; if your store accepts returns, the carton weight tells you how much labour each return costs.

4. Inner packaging and what the shopper sees first

Ask how each tray sits in the case: wrapped individually in a clear bag, nested together, or stacked with a divider. Individual wrapping protects the printed surface on trays that carry artwork or a brand logo, and it lets you hang or shelf-pack the item without touching the foam. Nested trays save material but mean your staff must open a case before a shopper can see the design.

Ask for a carton with the product name, size, quantity and barcode position pre-printed if your receiving system scans by case. If you plan to run your own price ticket on the case, confirm there is a blank panel. Fulikai produces printed designs with heat-transfer printing that keeps colour saturation high on EVA foam, so the same artwork discussion that covers the tray surface can also cover the retail packaging.

5. Accessories in the carton and what is not included

This is the most common source of customer complaints for floating trays. The water game tray with tile rack grooves, four corner cup holders and outer slots for a phone ships with the floating board only; tiles, cards and accessories are not included. The 31.5 inch 2-in-1 floating mahjong tray with four cup holders takes cups up to 3.35 inches in diameter, which is worth stating on your shelf talker because shoppers assume any standard drink will fit.

Decide at the ordering stage whether you will sell a tray alone or as a bundle with tiles. A complete floating American mahjong set in buoyant EVA is a separate item, and bundling changes your carton count, your price point and your display plan. If you bundle, ask whether the tile set ships in the same case or in a second case.

6. Carton strength for a foam product

Foam dents. Ask what board grade the outer carton uses and whether the corners are reinforced, especially if cases will be stacked in your yard or moved by hand repeatedly during the season. A crushed corner makes the printed image on the box look like damaged stock, and shoppers judge the tray by the box.

Ask how the trays are protected from each other inside the case. Foam surfaces pressed together under load can hold a crease; if the samples you receive show any flattening at the edges, raise it before production rather than after the containers arrive.

7. Marking, labelling and compliance that belongs on the case

The Fulikai Shenzhen factory is certified to the ISO 9001:2015 quality management system and holds CE, EN-71, FDA, FCC, RoHS, SGS and REACH certifications. Which certificate or test report applies depends on your product, your market and your order, so confirm the applicable documents for your specific tray before you print anything on a carton. Tell the factory your destination country early: raw materials can then be matched to the standards that apply there.

On the case itself, agree who prints the country-of-origin marking, the warning text for small parts if your market requires it, and your item number. Fixing a missing origin mark after goods leave the factory is expensive and slow.

8. Sampling and inspection before you commit to a season

Order a pre-production sample and inspect it in water, not on a desk. Float it, load it with drinks, and check that the cup holders keep a filled cup upright when the water is moving. Check that the tile slots hold your tiles without sliding. Throughout production, products go through 16 types of tests, including colour fastness and tensile strength, and every item receives full manual inspection before shipment. Fulikai also supports third-party inspection and customer factory audits, so if your buying office wants an inspection booked at the factory, arrange it while there is still time to correct a problem.

9. Timing: put the carton conversation on your critical path

For a custom printed tray, plate-making takes 5–7 days and bulk orders can be delivered within 15 days, with dedicated staff tracking the order through to shipment. That timeline only holds if packaging is settled at the same time as the product. Confirm carton dimensions, pack count and artwork before the deposit stage of the custom EVA product order process, so packaging is not the last open item when your season date approaches.

If you are ordering stock trays from the sample range instead of a custom print run, ask for the current production slot and lead time for that specific item at the time of enquiry. Seasonal water toys move in waves, and the packing plan you agree on should reflect the date your goods actually ship.

Carton checklist to send with your enquiry

Get these eight answers before you commit, and the tray stops being a novelty purchase and becomes a managed seasonal item. To start a conversation about wholesale water sports products or a custom run with your own artwork and pack count, send the factory your store's shelf dimensions and target price and request a quote for the tray and the carton together.