As far as our crystal ball can tell us, we present you with what generally is considered as the ‘top five most promising trends in packaging’. We look forward to the day we can look back on this and see what more or less ‘happened’, and what turned out to be total BS. Here we go:
1. Sustainability – reduced packaging material; reusable and refillable packaging; and lighter-weight and biodegradable plastics. The latter reduces transportation costs and the overall carbon footprint.
2. Decorating – “Retro” and “vintage” packaging remains a top decorating trend in 2011. Also popular is packaging with simple, minimalist decorating.
3. Electronic-Enabled Packaging – we will keep on integrating the use of our mobile technology (smart-phones) in our package designs. QR codes will appear more often.
4. Packaging is Shrinking – Packaging is getting smaller because prices of certain materials are increasing. So we shrink because consumers seem to notice price increases more readily than they notice package reduction or weight loss.
5. Made in … – when your offset is mostly situated in the country where you produce, a ‘made in …’ will likely to be seen as an added bonus. It tells that there were little transportation costs involved (sustainability), and makes you think the product suits you better than it’s cousins from the other side of the continent, world, galaxy.
For what it’s worth …
