01.27.12
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Arkay “aged” the folding carton for Kate Walsh’s Billionaire Boyfriend. |
Advanced technology unites with sight, touch and smell for fresh and modern fragrance packages.
Versatile fragrance packaging, ranging from stunning closure designs to advanced decoration techniques to high-tech dispensers and innovative labels, enables consumers to connect with the latest offerings through smell, sight and touch.
Top Trends
Sustainability and eco-friendly considerations are also very important to many consumers and continue to have momentum in the fragrance category, according to Mary Ellen Lapsansky, vice president, The Fragrance Foundation. “Technological innovation is key to keeping fragrance packaging fresh and modern,” she says.
The shapes of fragrance caps are also taking on a “natural” appeal.The trend for fragrance caps of a floral design continues to be popular and advanced technology makes it possible.Jack Albanese, sales engineer, Lombardi Design and Manufacturing, comments, “Floral shapes are combinations of heavy walls, complex radii and surfaces.Thanks to a sophisticated software package specifically designed for such shapes, Lombardi has become a leader in engineering these challenging designs.”
Lapsansky also points out that soft forms, undefined shapes, packaging with movement as well as those with architectural shapes and design continue to be popular trends. “Fragrance jewelry (rings, pendants, bracelets) is an alternate form of packaging that allows the consumer to wear fragrance in a unique way without spraying or applying directly to the skin,” she says.“Packaging should always reflect the creativity and artistry of the industry—whether the bottles are stock bottles or new designs.”
Market Uptick
In an uncertain economy, women consistently view fragrance as a luxury they’re willing to pay for, according to findings from a survey by the Total Beauty Media Group. “What’s fascinating is that 40% of surveyed women with a household income under $25,000 spent upwards of $150 on fragrance over the past 12 months,” explains Ethelbert Williams, head of marketing, at Total Beauty Media Group. “Women are simply willing to pay for scent, regardless of the economy.”
The survey also found that scent still sells fragrance despite the influx of celebrity-endorsed products. Fifty-nine percent of the 480 survey respondents indicated that scent strips and in-store trials were the key drivers in their buying decisions. In addition, the study showed that while 71% of respondents in the 55+ age group spent $50 to $149 on fragrances over the last year, only 43% purchased fragrances as a gift.
Market research from The NPD Group Inc. confirmed that fragrance purchases are on the rise. Data showed that during the first 10 months of 2011 (January to October), total prestige fragrance dollar sales in U.S. department stores reached $1.7 billion, a double-digit gain of 10%, compared to the same time in the previous year. Units grew six percent with close to 30 million units sold. This increase in fragrance sales represents the first year-to-date January to October dollar gain over the past three years for the overall category, as well as the strongest performance for the month of October since 2009. In addition, men’s fragrances experienced a better performance overall (up 12% in dollars) than women’s (up 9%) for January to October 2011.
Dynamic Details
Fragrance companies continue to search for ways to wow consumers without breaking their budgets. “They are pushing for cost effective, inline special effects, such as cold foil stamping while litho printing, pearls, iridescence and tactile finishes (Arkay’s Touch),” notes Walter Shiels, COO of Arkay Packaging Corp. “Customers want anything that adds value, but does not add significant cost and that can be achieved without adding additional operations.”
This spring, Arkay’s new launches include projects with Oscar de la Renta’s Live in Love, the Justin Bieber promotional Someday fragrance package launch on Valentine’s Day, and Kate Walsh’s Billionaire Boyfriend fragrance. Justin Bieber’s promotional fragrance package employs metallized polyester substrate with holographic stamping and heavy embossing for the superstar look. Live in Love includes the use of metallized gold inks coupled with pearl, stamping and embossing, while Billionaire Boyfriend used a simulated patina pattern over Mylar with complex multi-level embossing.
“The Billionaire Boyfriend package is a perfect example of simulating an authentic material with the goal of getting a certain effect while maintaining cost,” explains Gregg Goldman, director of sales at Arkay Packaging. “The client wanted an antique-looking piece of metal with patina on it. We used a Mylar board and simulated the texture with different colored dots. When you flip this carton—it is very subtle—you see a sort of aged antique look.”
Another challenge involved the execution of the embossed crest logo, which is very finely detailed. Registration was crucial because the crest and printing knock out. “The embossing register is super critical between the cursive in the word Billionaire—it is a wisp of a line and it had to be dead on—and the copy of Boyfriend. It was an exacting process,” he says.
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The “fluorescent” lacquer, developed by SGD’s “Atelier de Creation” innovation center, helped Mariah Carey’s Lollipop Splash fragrance trio shine. |
“One area of focus at SGD has been innovative lacquering finishes, which help create visual and sensorial experiences for consumers including metallic, opaque, soft-touch and iridescent lacquers, which are not easy to control during the manufacturing process,” she says.The “fluorescent” lacquer which was developed by SGD’s “Atelier de Creation” innovation center for Mariah Carey’s Lollipop Splash fragrance trio is an example of this.
Luxe Look
Manufacturers are often looking for a cost-competitive approach to creating a luxury cap. Frequently this involves decorative techniques with a variety of finishes and materials married together, according to John Pyrzenski, sales director, HCT Packaging Inc. “For example, we have created a brushed aluminum look through decoration. It looks like brushed aluminum, but it is a plastic molded part. That is just an example of the types of finishes we are looking at to take cost away, but not take away from luxury,” he says.
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Avon’s Night Iris closure, from HCT, resembles glass. |
“They didn’t want to use two pieces with a polypropylene inner like a lot of fragrance caps have because it would add cost and take away from the beauty of the cap. They really gave us a challenge and it was up to our engineering staff and our manufacturing facilities to take the customer’s design and make it work as close as humanly possible to the original design. This came out really well,” he says. “These challenging designs are our forte.”
Sensory Stimulation
Sensoriality, or the consumer’s overall experience with the fragrance, is a long-term trend, says Des McEttrick, market development director, North America Beauty, of Aptar beauty + home. “The act of holding the bottle and spraying the fragrance can create an intense and memorable experience.”
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For Diesel’s Loverdose, Aptar developed a range of black tube coverings in polypropylene combined with a VP4 crimp pump in three sizes. |
Differentiation is another driver in the fragrance category.“It’s exemplified by unique packaging being used to communicate and differentiate the character and identity of the fragrance.Decorative bottles, customized caps, engraving and inserts are a few of the ways brands set themselves apart from other fragrances,” she says.
When Aptar partnered with Diesel on the packaging of Loverdose, the two worked to communicate the fragrance’s personality.During the process, Aptar developed a range of black tube coverings in polypropylene combined with a VP4 crimp pump in three sizes.“In order to preserve the identity and integrity of the fragrance, a detailed study of dip tube lengths and its compatibility through all stages of manufacturing had to be considered,” says McEttrick, adding that the brand also reinforced the Loverdose identity by engraving the name Diesel on top of the VP4 metal actuator.
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Undergreen (L) by Versens and Lulu Castagnette are two brands sporting retro glam with the Aptar Eternelle bulb atomizer technology. |
Seamless Design
Fragrance companies also are turning toward lower profile packaging, which frees package design creativity, notes Samira Chmiti, product manager-Fragrance, Rexam Personal Care Division. This trend led to the creation of the ultra-low profile Panache. Employed on Chanel No.19 Poudre, this pump delivers a continuous, and exceptionally airy, light and dry spray.
“Consumers look for the premium spray experience—the ‘art of spray’ makes the consumer feel special, with every daily fragrance experience.Consumers are savvy and expect their fragrance choice—no matter the price—to have visual and tactile appeal, prime quickly and provide a full, dense, luxurious spray,” says Chmiti. “Global suppliers and their customers must collaborate on packaging techniques that delight the consumer and create a superior end-user experience, and remain consistent with the core brand positioning.”
When Anthropologie collaborated on the design for its recently launched Grown Under Glass private label beauty brand, artisanal fragrances and attention to detail played important roles in the process. The brand, sold at Anthropologie stores nationwide and online, features a full body care line combined with artisanal fragrance, natural formulations and custom components. Designer Kristi Head and artist and partner Anne Sanford, who is the creative behind the products, started LURK, a niche art-house perfume company. Over the past three years, the duo has created five small pure essential oil fragrances packaged in handmade packaging. This caught the attention of Anthropologie, says Head. Sanford and Head teamed with Anthropologie to create art-driven packaging and effective natural products. Grown Under Glass is comprised of 16 products, including body wash, lotion and bubble bath, and offers three fragrances ROS (Rose + Wood), VER (Lavender + Green) and GRA (Grapefruit + Jasmine). “Combined with the art-house nature of LURK, the hand-drawn illustrations and custom-shaped bottles are seemingly suited for the shop,” she says. “Each element of Grown Under Glass is based on experiential layering and has been created to enhance not only the skin but also the user’s personal space on a sensory and artistic level.” The line’s graphics proved quite challenging due to the nature of the fluid gestural sketches. “We also wanted to make sure we could wrap this around the curved bottles. Not an easy task, and not one that most decorators want to deal with,” explains Head. “We were able to accomplish both these things by doing a hand-applied water transfer on all the bottles, which were decorated and custom molded overseas.” They worked with a small up-and-coming development company that managed the factories to meet the demanding expectations. “As an artist this was very important to me. Drawing the shapes of vessels from a completely visual and somewhat romantic viewpoint and then seeing them become functional was a challenge,” she says, noting that all labels were printed with CCL Label. The Body Balm carton and tags (all paper) were printed at Johnson Printing and Packaging Corp. using green energy, soy inks and recycled FSC paper. |
