International Packaging Trends at Cosmoprof

The latest in form and fashion for fragrance, color cosmetics and personal care packaging was on display in Bologna.

By Janet Herlihy, Editor

Whether in pavilion 36 where major marketers showed off the latest in cosmetics, fragrance and personal care, pavilions 27 and 28 where promotional items were spotlighted, or pavilions 19 and 20 where suppliers of packaging and services were gathered, Cosmoprof 2003, held March 7-10 in Bologna, Italy, was a great place to spot international packaging trends.

Plastic Mimicks Glass in Heavy-Walled Containers

Already popular, but still on the increase, heavy-walled plastic containers were in evidence in finished goods halls as well as in Cosmopack, the show within the show in pavilions 19 and 20.

Heinz Plastics was a good example of enhanced products in plastic mimicking the look of glass in jars and bottles. The company introduced Heavy PET, a group of bottles injection stretch blow molded in PET that are the first in the industry to achieve a 3mm wall thickness, according to Ute Schaller, spokesperson for the company. The bottles have crystal clarity and brightness for a glass-like look.
Domenic Maisano, business development manager of Qualipac, who attended Cosmoprof to walk the show, agreed that plastic resins are improving in terms of clarity making it possible to mold more bottles and jars in PET or other materials that have a glass-like look. He added, “Not only do these improved resins produce water clarity, but they are also more scratch-resistant.”

“There is a trend to transparency,” said Danila Filacuridi Cattani, spokesperson for Abbiati & Fabbri Srl., which introduced Bell, a line of color cosmetic packages that feature clear windows on the compacts. The compacts are made in a bi-injection process that produces a window in the cover—all in one piece—cutting costs and production time. “And, the larger windows attract consumer attention and show off the product,” said Filacuridi Cattani.

Fragrance Fashion Favorites Are Varied

Regional favorites as well as classic and contemporary approaches in fragrance packaging continue to co-exist on the international fragrance stage.

Creativity is boundless in the glass packaging sector, according to Burkhard Lingenberg, marketing director for Gerresheimer Group, as seen in both design of glass components and in unusual combinations of glass with other materials such as plastic and metal elements.
The glass bottle supplied by Gerresheimer for Exaltis by Yves Rocher is a great example of the design possibilities of glass. The flacon, manufactured by the company’s Nouvelles Verreries de Momignies facility, combines simple lines with a complex, whimsical pattern created in relief on the surface. “In the flacons, simple, almost utilitarian silhouettes contrast with very vivacious, carefully worked-out design details,” said Lingenberg. “Together these two elements produce quite a unique emotional note.”

Crisbisbal, a glass container manufacturer, noted that trends vary region to region. “In the Middle East, the customers want more complex and colorful containers, while Europe tends to prefer classic, clear and elegant packages,” said a company representative. Crisbisbal has recently entered the U.S market with the glass component of the new Phat Farm fragrance from Stern Fragrances. The epitome of contemporary packages that strive to be different, the container, which sits on its back, is composed of metal, glass and plastic components that are shipped to New York and then assembled and filled.

There is a growing movement in the fragrance segment to use more color in containers such as the YSL 7 bottle and a violet bottle for Calvin Klein, according to Thierry Le Goff, director marketing at Négoce for Saint-Gobain Desjonqueres (SGD). “The shape is still very pure but there is an increase in the use of colored glass (by spraying).

Eric Vaxelaire, vice president for Valois, said that in fragrance packaging, pumps are becoming ever more discreet through the use of low profile pumps. Valois’ Compact pump is the lowest profile in the industry right now, he said. In cosmetics, pumps with soft, smooth actuators are in demand. Products such as Revlon’s Age Defying Makeup have switched from a glass bottle and cap to a plastic bottle and the Evolution Pump.

Dispensers Offers High Tech Solutions

Coming up with better ways to deliver the product is definitely a way to differentiate. Seaquist Closures was spotlighting its SimpliSqueeze valve dispensing system. Once opened, the product is only dispensed when the container is squeezed. The SimpliSqueeze was originally developed for use in beverages but is now seeing acceptance in other categories. Teraxyl toothpaste features the valve closure, which promises one-hand, no-mess dispensing.

Airspray International Inc. has had good success with its foaming dispensers, according to Robert F. Brands, company president and chief executive. “Kids like it so much they have been taking the products into the shower, but the current dispensers weren’t designed for that environment so we have created a water-resistant pump for the shower,” Brands said, adding, “We expect the foamers’ popularity will grow from hand soap into bath products, shampoos and skin care.”

Newness: That Special Something

There is a need for true innovation in the beauty business and Techpack is striving to fill it. The company has established an innovation center near Paris in order to be able to develop new concepts and create samples very quickly, according to Michel Limongi, creating director at the innovation center. “We want to avoid designing and making packaging that is just more of the same. We know that women put on makeup in places other than their homes—in cars, on trains. We talked to real women and asked them what they needed.”

The results are some unique beauty packages. Slim is a very narrow compact that opens 180º and is wide enough to show both eyes of the user at once. Slim holds a mascara wand in its hinge, as well as a pencil, while the bottom half of the compact holds two shades of shadow. The shadow applicator slides into a groove/holder. A version of Slim for lips could easily hold a lipstick, a pencil and two glosses.

HCT Packaging showed off a new compact that combines transparency with words for a hot look, according to James Thorpe, managing director HCT UK. Too Faced has chosen to spell out Sexy in the letter-shaped godets for a lipstick compact that speaks volumes.

Gibo, an Italian supplier of plastic jars and containers, showed the first-ever flip-top jar and roll-on containers for easy, one-hand use with no separate cap to hold. The patented one-piece jars also offer the advantage of one mold production and no assembly.

Dr. Pierfrancesco Bocola, sales manager for Gibo, said the company has recently formed a partnership with CCL Plastics in which CCL will represent the flip-top jars and roll-ons in the North America.
Italian manufacturer Global Tube presented a new tube concept that satisfies consumer demands for portability and convenience. The Combi Cap consists of the main tube for a product such as sunscreen or foundation, with a second cap that holds another product, such as lip balm or concealor.
“The quest is for newness,” Filacuridi Cattani of Abbiati & Fabbri Srl. stressed. “Quality is still important, but price is also critical. It puts the burden on the supplier to be innovative and at the same time, drive costs down.”

The exclusive distributor for Abbiati & Fabbri in North America is 3C, Hawthorne, NJ. Lou Della Pesca, president of 3C, pointed out that a major influence in international packaging has been a more conservative approach by large marketer companies in terms of inventories. “They want minimal inventory and quick turnover. They buy only what they need as the sales come in. And the challenge is on the package supplier to be able to deliver what they (the marketers) need when they need it.”

Enhanced Stock Lines for Cost Savings

The use of stock packaging, customized through decoration or coloration, is growing as a way to keep costs down and bring products to market faster. DieterBakicEnterprises (DBE) has an extensive line of stock containers that can be colored, textured and decorated for unique looks. There are also a variety of closures to use for more variety. DBE is now also offering complete brand concept development to its clients, according to Hauke Jan Herzberg, director marketing.

The Baralan Group, headquartered in Milan, Italy, includes Arrowpak in the U.S, and Laborplast and Gloss Tech, both located in Italy. Baralan supplies glass and plastic containers and also provides a wide range of decorating services. At Cosmoprof, the group was stressing its manufacturing capabilities as a custom as well as stock supplier with a packaging designer set up to demonstrate how quickly custom products can be created from a basic stock item.

Stock lines can form a foundation or springboard from which to develop custom packaging quickly. “Higher end companies are looking for more unique packaging,” said James J. Slowey, Arrowpak vice president of West Coast operations. “We can bring them the technology and modify to specifications.”

Supplying the Whole Package

Pfeiffer presented its Side Actuator, a unique container, which according to Franco Lucà, vice president marketing and sales, is a complete system—bottle, twist lock cap and side actuator. A neat, contemporary package, it is available in 30- and 50-ml sizes and nine standard colors that can be combined in any pairs. Custom colors are also an option.

“Supplying a full package such as the Side Actuator is an international trend,” Lucà said. “With some light cutomization (decoration) a customer can have a custom look with a stock package.”

Saint-Gobain Desjonqueres has developed a new cylindrical stock package that includes bottle, cap and pump “ready to go,” Le Goff said. Called Nomad, it has a 10,000 piece minimum, is available in 100-, 50- and 30-ml sizes and can be decorated with a wide range of methods.

Verso, another stock container, is a rectangular bottle, which SGD had decorated with flag motifs on the back side so that the images were magnified through the face.