Smurfit Westrock has produced ‘shelf-ready’ beer boxes for Woodforde’s – designed to catch a consumer’s eye on a crowded supermarket shelf, attract repeated purchases, and resist water damage.
Saxon Packaging, now Smurfit Westrock Saxon, first collaborated with Woodforde’s in 1999 and produced a variety of beer packaging solutions for the brand. Now the brewery is aspiring for a solution that stands out amidst a range of other beer products available in supermarkets.
Smurfit Westrock has responded with custom beer boxes for 8 x 500ml bottles that ‘strik[es] the perfect chord between functionality and visual flair’. It seeks to decrease the likelihood of products being damaged and wasted by increasing the pack’s durability; doing so is hoped to save costs and increase customer satisfaction.
In turn, the packaging is hoped to improve consumers’ perception of the brand and incentivize positive reviews, both through word-of-mouth and social media; Smurfit Westrock Saxon cites Modern Retail’s statistic that 87% of people consult social platforms to make a spending decision.
Furthermore, the company worked with Woodforde’s and conducted a press pass to adjust the pack’s artwork in line with flexo printing. The three-colour flexo printed packaging is said to both reflect the taste of Woodforde’s beer and showcase Smurfit Westrock’s printing capabilities.
Smurfit Westrock also reports that, since the bottles are packed straight from the bottling line and are still damp with condensation, the original boxes could be damaged by water. As such, it has transitioned the pack into a ‘waste-based board’ with moisture resistance – aiming to deliver packs to retailers in perfect condition.
Additionally, the pack is thought to cater to consumer demand for ‘green’ packaging solutions and improve the unboxing experience. Woodforde’s states that its order value has doubled from 2021 to 2023.
“This project was an exciting one for Smurfit Westrock Saxon and is a great example of working closely with our customers to tackle their packaging challenges together,” says Adam Futter, business development manager at Smurfit Westrock Saxon. “We worked with Woodforde’s to fully understand their packaging needs and struggles and helped them to navigate them with our sustainable packaging solutions.”
Chris Fuller, marketing manager at Woodforde’s, adds: “We’re delighted with our new beer box design. The Smurfit Westrock Saxon team took our existing boxes and transformed them into something better, prioritizing durability and aesthetics. Even when we had a problem with moisture, the team quickly found a solution that works even better than we could have hoped.”
In other news, Carrefour Belgium, Cornet Beer and DW Reusables have developed a returnable, ‘fully-brandable’ six-pack for beer products. Compatible with TOMRA’s reverse vending machines, the pack is said to abide by the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation’s reusable packaging regulations.
Meanwhile, DS Smith has packaged Versuni’s Philips Baristina coffee machine in a recycled, fibre-based packaging solution. The solution is apparently made from recycled materials and features corrugated buffers treated with an anti-scratch coating to prevent external blemishes.
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