Sustainability is one of the dominant themes, including for packaging. It is constantly being optimized along the entire process chain – from machinery, materials and shapes to design. Ideally, producers and designers work together in the early stages of development to make sustainable packaging attractive. Sometimes, however, designers also work in advance and create new shapes and templates for selected products.
At the special design show “Outside the Box,” visitors can discover the latest trends in product and packaging design with a focus on sustainability using selected exhibits. The special show curated by bayern design shows all the individual steps on the design and creation path to good packaging: from the idea to the store shelf.
Packaging Design as a Trendsetter
The packaging industry is constantly challenged to react and adapt to political and legal requirements as well as social developments. It adopts new trends and sets them itself. Packaging design and layout play a key role in this. FACHPACK offers trade fair visitors a comprehensive overview from initial ideas to specific implementation of attractive and active packaging.
The organizers will present innovative packaging designs that combine sustainability with the decisive elements for good placement in the sales area and identification of the target audience with the brand. The Croatian food company Podravka has developed such a link for its product “Vegeta & Spirulina” in 2023 for an anniversary edition.
The designers at the Bruketa & Zinic & Grey agency created a specially designed aluminum can for the Vegeta spice blend. It is sold in a triangular cardboard outer packaging that is open at the sides and solely folded. Davor Bruketa, Creative Director at the agency, explains that the use of aluminum and no adhesives made it possible to produce packaging that is 100 percent recyclable.
Packaging Designed for E-Commerce
Companies answer questions about digitalization, e-commerce, and recycling with a suitable design. Designers present their innovative ideas at the trade fair, which producers can use to attract and increase customer attention. Regional and international suppliers will showcase the designs they have created in collaboration with product manufacturers. One exhibit in Hall 4 comes from the Swedish agency Form us with Love. Together with its Norwegian partner company På(fyll), it designed refillable containers for detergents, cleaning agents, and soaps. The aim was to reduce the amount of single-use plastic and make the packaging more recyclable. Once the liquid products have been reordered online, the suppliers collect the containers, clean them, refill them, and deliver them back to the customer.
Cooperation with Designers as Early as Possible
For designers and producers, the technical, ecological, and economic requirements for packaging pose more than just challenges. If they work together early on in the design process, they can turn these requirements into opportunities through creative and modern ideas. In this way, they strengthen their products and their corporate identity. Interdisciplinary approaches and cooperation with professional designers drive this development forward.
Naturkosmetik München GmbH, for example, worked with product designer Dominique Béolet early on in the development of a functional, aesthetically pleasing, and resource-saving reusable system. The system was to do justice to a cosmetic reusable cycle and reflect the brand values.
Companies should cooperate on sustainable and innovative packaging at an early stage, is nkm’s recommendation. This allows them to find solutions outside of their specialist knowledge, as designers bring creativity and technical expertise to the collaboration.
