03.15.06
Stock...Or Not?
Fine tuned deco techniques blur the lines between the look of stock and custom packaging.
By Joanna Cosgrove
In an industry that puts an emphasis on aesthetics, picking the perfect package to complement a fragrance, color or personal care product is a critical step. But the cost associated with high-end, custom packaging can quickly put companies with small budgets out of business. That’s where stock packaging comes into play. No longer just non-descript clear or opaque rounds with typical black closures, stock packaging can be customized to offer a variety of visual and textural bells and whistles without taking a bite out of the bottom line.
Bath & Body Works’ Breathe line uses colorized stock packaging. |
Steven Nussbaum, director of marketing, O.Berk Co., Union, NJ, says the growing number of small companies doing business in America is driving the booming demand for stock packaging. “More companies use stock packaging since they need only to buy small quantities and there is no major mold or packaging commitment,” he says. “Also most product launches fail; why risk the time and capital on a private mold?”
Robert Reinhardt, executive vice president, World Wide Packaging, Florham Park, NJ, agrees, adding that many stock packaging suppliers can easily — and cost-effectively — build new tooling, usually within 30 days. “This helps with those customers who still want to have their own design produced,” he says.
Stock packaging also offers a shorter lead-time and speed to market. “In today’s market with many personal care product manufacturers coping with ‘just-in-time’ production, using stock bottles can be a big time saver,” says Elaine King, sales manager, McKernan Packaging Clearing House, Reno, NV. “This means they can keep their in-house inventory levels down and use less upfront capital expenditure.”
Little Twig labels, replete with botanical imagery, lets the formulation color shine through. |
Lou Della Pecsa, president, 3C Inc., Hawthorne, NJ, says the use of stock containers has grown so much in the last two years, companies like 3C are partnering with other companies to supply as many options as possible to perspective customers. 3C Inc. recently entered into an exclusive sales and marketing agreement with Stak Plast.
Craig Sawicki, executive vice president, Tricor Braun, Clarendon Hills, IL, attributes much of the increased desire for stock packaging to the high incidence of “flankers” that accompany a line’s keystone “hero” product.
“Frequently, we will design a very custom package but include some subtle attributes that relate to one of our stock lines,” he says. “The reason for this is that although tooling prices have decreased significantly over the years, most times a marketer will build a custom tool for the hero item and use stock tooling for the surrounding items. By incorporating those subtle design cues in the custom package, a whole new line can be marketed by simply building one or two custom tools,” he adds.
One Stop Shop
Another advantage associated with the purchase of stock packaging is the one-stop shopping environment fostered by stock packaging suppliers, who in addition to providing the primary container, can supply dispensing systems as well as the decoration options used to make the packages unusual. “We are seeing a growing trend among the smaller users towards this kind of service,” says Paul Reilly, general manager, Drug & Cosmetic Sales Corp., Delray Beach, FL. “The one stop shop is a value added service that makes life easier for purchasing managers, fillers and fulfillment coordinators.”
Laura Mercier’s custom look was achieved through internal color frosting. |
“We have seen a trend in which our clients are choosing stock packaging that can be heavily customized to create a look that is uniquely theirs,” adds David Hou, director, marketing, Cospack America Corp., Edison, NJ.
Many packaging companies provide custom tooling capabilities, but the first stop is to explore the design embodied in stock packaging. “I always remind our clients that having custom-like packaging does not always mean custom tooling,” says Hou.
Hou says customization methods are typically material-dependent. Cospack recently developed a method to create a metal-like exterior on its Oslo Series of airless dispensers by hot stamping a sheath of aluminum foil around the bottle, adding the option for a product window on the bottle for clients who want further customization. “This foil hot stamping technique achieves the result of having a metal exterior for the bottle without actually having to create tooling for a metal overshell for the bottle,” says Hou. “We also have developed techniques to decorate on the foil to maintain adhesion of ink so that our client’s decoration options are not limited at all by the metal exterior.”
Already at market are two popular body crèmes by Laura Mercier with customizations executed by Cospack. “Eau de Lune Luxury Body Crème and L’Heure Magique Luxurious Body Crème are good examples of how to use the same stock package for two different products and making each stand out on its own,” comments Hou. “We worked with Laura Mercier to create a custom look for each product through color frosting the jars from the inside. We also color the inner lid in grey while keeping the outer lid of the cap in clear color for visual depth.”
The resulting packages are tasteful, sporting a custom high-end look that’s every bit as luxurious as the $50 body crèmes they contain.
“Aesthetically, bottle offerings from the United States and Asia have come a long way,” observes Jean-Marc Perez, president of Novapak (Eatontown, NJ) and vice president of Mepco Inc. (East Orange, NJ). “Manufacturers are more clever in their bottle choice offerings. Instead of simply offering standard rounds, there are more European-inspired shapes available, which are what customers seem to be in favor of.”
Perez says Victoria’s Secret and Bath & Body Works are two standouts when it comes to making the most of customized stock packaging. “The spa line from Victoria’s Secret is stunning, and Bath & Body Works are very clever in the way they use stock items,” he says. “The packages look like something that was specially made for them.”
Breathe, Bath & Body Works’ latest personal care product line, was launched this January. Each of the six lines in the Breathe collection — Romance, Energy, Calm, Serenity, Delight and Comfort — utilizes “aromacology,” the science of how scent affects mood, thus enhancing one’s atmosphere through its fragrances. The color of the packaging was specifically designed to stimulate the senses and influence the mood.
Chic Labels
One of the easiest ways to customize a stock bottle is with a label. A cost-effective alternative to more labor intensive on-bottle deco techniques, labels also afford the option to coordinate a variety of different sized stock vessels with a singularly styled label. Plus, when well designed, a compelling label can leave a lasting impression on consumers.
Such is the case with the labels used by Little Twig of Manhattan Beach, CA, which manufacturers a line of bath and body products designed to nurture and soothe a child’s tender skin using high quality, all-natural ingredients and just a whisper of light botanical fragrance.
The company’s creative director, Lenie Ramos, conceived the line’s renderings of ladybugs, snails, caterpillars and butterflies by tuning into the brand’s core purpose. “The graphics tie into the branding concept of our line — all that’s natural — by using elements we find right outside our door: insects, plants, sky, etc.,” comments Ramos.
Ramos selected film labels for the line. “We chose to use the label instead of silk screen to have greater flexibility with our packaging and not be limited to one color,” she says. “We also wanted to show the quality of the product beginning with packaging and completing it with a great formula inside.”
Custom Stock
Innersense Organic Beauty, Walnut Creek, CA, is an entrepreneurial manufacturer of all natural, certified-organic and biodynamic hair and skin cleansers formulated to nurture the mind and the spirit. While the company had a clear vision of the products it intended to manufacture, the notion of packaging proved to be a lesson in business realities.
Targeted at professional salons and spas, estheticians and hairdressers, the Innersense line includes products for the skin, hair and environment. The designers were seeking a look that was both professional and, at the same time, natural and organic looking. “Recently, professional products have come to look more and more ordinary, falling into mass market themes, while packages used for natural/ organic brands have fallen into a familiar pattern of greens, whites and clears. We wanted to break out of both of these ruts and create a new look,” says Judie Maginn, who along with partners Greg and Joanne Starkman, founded Innersense.
Maginn and her partners settled on a rich amber, accented with dark chocolate brown, for the container and closure components. The labels are clean and minimal with a simple color bar used to identify the different types of products.
Amber glass bottles have been drug-store staples for centuries, however translating that into seven or eight different plastic containers was a challenge. Innersense turned to Clariant Masterbatches ColorWorks center in McHenry, Ill., a design and technology resource established to help brand owners turn design concepts into plastic packaging realities.
“Amber is a complex color space requiring an exact balance of several deep organic tones,” says Carolyn Sedgwick, ColorWorks business manager, consumer packaging. “Hit it wrong and you end up with something like green pea soup...With the Innersense project there was an extra level of complexity. We needed to hold this specific color space across several different packages from multiple vendors. We were dealing with materials ranging from clear transparent PET bottles to semi-opaque LDPE tubes and translucent PP caps. Every one of these materials responds differently to color.”
But the complexity didn’t end there. “We don’t use any artificial colors in our products,” notes Maginn. “So Clariant needed to adjust the color for each of the containers to achieve a uniform look, regardless of whether the product inside was clear or opaque, dark or light.”
The end result is evidenced by the clean, glass-like — yet plastic — amber containers that house the Innersense product family.
With all of the decorating options offered by stock packaging suppliers it’s no wonder the demand for stock packaging is on the rise. Customizing a stock container can begin in the mold, with colorant added to tint a run to suit a specific design endeavor. Subsequent sprays and other finishing techniques can add depth, texture and supplementary color. Top it off with a well-chosen cap or dispenser and the result is a package that can look as good as a custom creation for just a fraction of the cost.
