Luxury packaging: the forecasts of the future market

Packaging is increasingly at the center of consumer choices, even in the food sector. The concern, in fact, is to have containers and packaging that not only effectively protect food, but that are also sustainable. The luck of a product on the shelves, therefore, is even more linked to the packaging, intended as a mix of materials and design from an Eco-design perspective, which allows to obtain the minimization of the packaging for a maximum yield in terms of conservation and freshness of the food. For an industry in the Food sector, not taking into account the new consumer orientations means leaving the market. What is changing in the habits of Italians and how consumer attitudes affect packaging? Italians are increasingly attentive to sustainability, including in the food sector. Consumption is in fact oriented to the deepening of the supply chain and therefore also of the packaging. According to the statistics that emerged from the 2021 edition of the Packaging Observatory of Largo Consumo created by Nomisma in collaboration with SpinLife of the University of Padua, it turned out that 33% of the Italians interviewed showed a greater propensity to assign a primary role to the environment in everyday choices. According to the findings, 65% of respondents prefer products with little packaging. 59% have purchasing habits that direct them towards products with sustainable packaging. 57% of respondents admit they are reducing the purchase of products with non-recycled plastic packaging. What will be the future of packaging in Italy? Sustainable packaging is also becoming an opportunity for consumers to assess the environmental impact of a brand. We know, in fact, that the packaging can be evocative and identifying the product, to the point of transmitting its values ​​only and exclusively through the sight of the package. In this sense, many brands are making efforts through targeted investments to research technologies that reduce the environmental impact of their business and work, at the same time, on the sustainability of packaging. On the other hand, such investments and improvements can cause increases compared to the price of a product. There is therefore still work to be done to give sustainable packaging the right importance in the perception of the consumer, especially as regards communicating the benefits that such actions can have on the environment and on improving the quality of life. CART-ONE, a company specializing in corrugated cardboard packaging, has always been at the forefront to help its partners in the creation of sustainable and recyclable packaging, with an enhancement in the supply chain of recycled raw materials and with a zero waste approach through the recovery of production waste.

Food packaging was created with the aim of keeping the product as long as possible and in the best conditions. This is to preserve its quality and properties and the health of consumers. Food packaging does not have a purely functional purpose but is fully part of a company's communication strategy. How? Let's see together how to conquer end customers through the right food packaging. How to choose the most suitable packaging for your business? The starting point is to make sure that the entire food packaging production process takes place in full compliance with the regulations in force (regulation (EC) No. 1935/2004) which have the aim of guaranteeing maximum safety and traceability of the product at Community level. We can thus summarize the 3 fundamental principles: Do not endanger human health: materials must not release components into food. The materials must not be subject to modification or decomposition, so as not to alter the smell and taste of the foods contained. Presence of documentation to demonstrate compliance of regulations such as traceability. Once we have ascertained that everything falls within the rules, we can identify the fundamental characteristics for a winning packaging. What do you want to communicate with your food packaging? It is not a simple food packaging tool, as packaging is fully part of the company's marketing strategy. The first step is therefore to understand what and how to communicate the concept of your business to end customers, both before and after the purchase phase. Who is your target? The value that makes the difference: knowing the target. Who are your company's customers? Who is food packaging intended for? Here are some examples. Age: are they children, millennials or adults? Habits: do they go to your shop for lunch or carry it to the office? In both cases it is important to create an easy-to-use and recycled packaging. Choice of materials The choice of material, as well as the colors and shapes must be carefully selected so that the packaging can best describe your business. The cardinal principles of the choice must always be oriented between aesthetics and functionality. Both characteristics are fundamental to fully satisfy the needs and experience of the consumer. What are the characteristics of a winning food packaging? Being in step with the times and knowing the trends of the moment allows you to always be on the crest of the wave. What are the characteristics that make packaging attractive and functional? Ease to use: opening, usability and disposal of the package must be intuitive and easy to use. Customization: a package must capture the attention of the target and at the same time convey a sense of safety and reliability of the product. Transparency and origin: it is essential to report on the packaging everything that has to do with the origin of the food: nutritional values, packaging details and organoleptic characteristics. Sustainability: green packaging is nowadays increasingly widespread and requested by companies in the food sector and beyond. Preferring the most environmentally friendly and therefore less polluting materials such as corrugated cardboard, in addition to representing an ethical choice, will soon become a real regulation, especially in the case of disposable objects intended for the consumption of food outside your home. Personalized food packaging: professional advice If you need advice on the design and distribution of your food packaging, Cart-One has an R&D Office thanks to which it proposes innovative and eco-sustainable packaging design solutions and real proposals for product improvement and cost reduction. For more information, do not hesitate to contact our customer service: fill out the contact form and send your request. You will receive an answer as soon as possible.

The quality of the shipping process is a key factor in optimizing the transport and storage of goods within a warehouse. For this reason, the importance of purchasing durable and highly performing cardboard boxes should absolutely not be underestimated. Are cheap cardboard boxes really the ideal solution? Many companies think that to save money it is necessary to purchase cheap cardboard boxes. A business philosophy that inevitably clashes with the actual quality of the production chain and the shipping process. Those who lack experience in the packaging sector, in fact, believe that all cardboard is the same and that choosing boxes with perhaps one less wave does not involve any risk. Nothing could be more wrong.   Find out more: “Cardboard boxes for warehouses: the best characteristics”   Disadvantages of cheap boxes Let us assume that “cheap” does not necessarily mean low quality. The problem arises when the cost is significantly lower than the market average, involving substandard materials and packaging created without following any type of standard. Ergo, if you buy excessively cheap cardboard boxes, the percentage of running into low-quality products just to save a little money is rather high. How could you justify damage to goods caused by the ripping or failure of the packaging? Not to mention the high costs you would incur, alongside a drastic drop in your corporate reputation. The same applies to cheap and poor quality boxes used to store goods in warehouses. Just think about the level of humidity your products would face. And then there is the supply factor: those who sell low-cost products do not always guarantee compliance with delivery timelines, and this could cause significant inconvenience for customers. Remember, in fact, that the cost of a cardboard box is not only about its quality, but also about the service. You must consider that orders arrive in a useful time frame and think about managing product quantities with careful and meticulous organization. Therefore, those who work with shipments cannot afford delays and long times to receive the packaging needed to ship the goods that customers order. Otherwise, they risk losing them definitively.   Which cardboard boxes to choose If you decide to rely on a dynamic and flexible partner capable of providing a range of proven quality packaging solutions, you will not have to worry about packaging that might break during transport, open up, or fail to support the load of the goods inside. And then there is customer support: customers, in fact, must be constantly reassured about any doubts and uncertainties regarding their orders. With the skyrocketing growth of e-commerce and related online purchases, customers wish to know when the package will arrive, in how much time, and if the transport will not encounter any type of problem. It goes without saying how inconceivable it is to buy low-quality boxes just to save money. Some accidents can happen, but they must not be caused by cheap boxes of this type. The inevitable consequence is managing returns and compensating customers, procedures that steal precious time and money from the company.   Cart-One produces corrugated cardboard sheets that ensure the best performance and a responsible attention to quality. The sheets are transformed into American boxes, die-cuts, displays, and special boxes. From single wave to double wave, from cardboard produced with entirely recycled papers or with moisture-resistant papers, from simple printing to high-definition four-color process, customers can choose from various standard packaging proposals or experiment with completely customized solutions that, in addition to protecting and safely handling their contents, make the product more visible and attractive within the point of sale. In an increasingly competitive and demanding market, cardboard boxes for packaging must be able to satisfy every request and need, in order to guarantee you maximum efficiency in terms of resistance, usability, and sustainability. Contact us to receive more information.   Read also: “5 tips for better organizing company shipments”