INTERACTIVE PACKAGING
Wrapper BEYOND
THE PACKAGING REVOLUTION
LOOKS SET TO LEAD THE CONNECTED
CONFECTIONERY
Jenny Stanley, Managing Director at Appetite Creative and Stefan Casey, Innovation Lead at Lightning Tree Consulting and
former Head of Packaging & Design, Nestlé Global Confectionery, offer advice on how to be successful with interactive packaging.
T
raditionally, packaging has had a relatively straightforward job – to protect the product, communicate essential
information and help it stand out on the shelf. Connected packaging is changing this. By adding technologies such as QR codes, Near Field Communication (NFC), augmented reality (AR) and digital triggers to physical packaging, brands are now able to connect consumers directly from the product in their hands to an interactive digital experience. This could include a game, competition, loyalty programme, personalised recommendations, recipe, product information or recycling guidance or promotion.
48 • KENNEDY’S CONFECTION • AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2026 The significance of connected
packaging goes further. It transforms packaging from a largely static brand asset into an interactive, measurable communication channel capable of generating consumer engagement and first-party data. Unlike many digital marketing channels, the interaction begins with someone who already has the physical product in front of them. Put simply, connected packaging is
physical product packaging enhanced with digital technology that allows consumers to access an online or interactive experience directly from the pack. Typically, the consumer will scan a QR code or interact with another technology such as NFC. That
interaction creates a bridge between the physical product and a digital environment. Confectionery has traditionally sold on impulse and emotion – the flash of foil, the snap of a wrapper. Today, however, the pack is no longer just the last piece of product branding before the till, it is becoming the first screen that consumers touch after the shelf, and nowhere is that shift more visible than in chocolate and sweets. The move from physical-only to
connected packaging isn’t happening by accident. Brands increasingly understand that packaging represents unprecedented real estate. When executed thoughtfully, interactive packaging can transform a
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