PACKAGING ULTRA LUXE
which features a striking tortoiseshell pattern with the brand’s name in gold detailing – details which combine to convey the image of nature and the brand’s spa origins, as well as being ergonomic to the touch with its slanted, uneven caps. Also honing in on the luxury skin care arena is Pollard Boxes, which designed a range of limited edition gift boxes for Elemis, available exclusively at Harrods in the UK. Featuring the brand’s distinctive wave pattern, the Day and Night Duo boxes have been designed to provide a memorable opening experience and reveal a bespoke wallpaper pattern when the products inside are removed.
Meanwhile, the Rose Collection is housed in a pink trellis-patterned lid, recalling British rose gardens, while the products are wrapped in smaller boxes in a contrasting darker pink to provide a ‘framing’ effect that enhances the overall opening experience for the customer. In line with Elemis’ requirements, the packaging is also fully recyclable, containing no plastic, foam or magnets.
SENSATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY A key question, however, at a time when sustainability is top of just about every beauty brand’s agenda, is how – or indeed, whether – the extravagance associated with luxury packaging can truly be made eco-friendly – and Rosen notes that there may be a tension here. “To get the high gloss cartons, which are acetate laminating, they cannot be recycled,” he explains, adding that for certain brands, this is “a question that people don’t want to talk about. Because you cannot make that kind of packaging sustainable.” This is perhaps the biggest challenge facing luxury brands today, and it’s one that manufacturers are rising to. “In previous years, luxury has always been perceived as expensive and in some cases elitist,” Martin Valdes, Director at premium packaging company GPA Luxury, tells Cosmetics Business. In recent times, however, “there has been a significant shift towards the emotive side of luxury, the quality and often craftsmanship involved and the aspirational drivers of a brand… but now with a more conscientious and responsible outlook overall”. With this consumer in mind, GPA Luxury’s
Eco-Logic range is made with moulded pulp fibres, which have been crafted using wet-press technology. The range includes the company’s Butterfly pack, which it created by applying wet pulp to heated moulds before pressing and drying, giving the pack an exceptionally smooth finish with superior dimensional accuracy, according to GPA. Designed to store multiple cosmetic items and recommended for gift sets, influencer kits and
34 December 2021
cosmeticsbusiness.com
limited edition launches, the pack is wrapped in black, FSC-certified paper and embellished with a pink and gold floral design, gold foil piping and a pattern of spot UV butterflies, further enhancing the luxury factor. The inner face of the lid features aluminium transfer paper, an alternative to silver paper that is not coated in a polypropylene film, and so is 100% biodegradable.
Also available is the Peacock pack, a standing box with a hinged door that opens to reveal three fitments. For the ultra-luxe touch, the peacock- embellished design has been coated in deep blue Suedel Luxe Recycled, a biodegradable suede-like material from cotton specialist Winter & Company, which is said to be ideal for luxury brands seeking a heightened textural aspect for their packaging. Tan Mahal, Head of Creative Services at Pollard Boxes, adds: “We have seen a shift in brands going more for varnished and uncoated substrates made from either FSC fibres or recycled content instead of plastic laminated print.” Pollard’s limited edition Desire Collection gift sets for hair care brand ghd, for example, saw the company develop a “completely bespoke” paper to complement the warm pewter tones of the brand’s products and styling tools. “We developed this paper because it is plastic- free, uses water-based coatings, is made in the UK and is fully recyclable; in this way it perfectly matched ghd’s environmental goals,” says Mahal. “It’s this harmony between packaging and product that elevates the consumer experience.”
PRETTY IN PURPOSE
Also reshaping what luxury looks like in the 2020s is the rising demand for beauty with a purpose, and the crucial role packaging plays in telling the story behind the product.
“Consumers are interested in a story, and they’re interested in an ingredient. And that’s a big change from how it was years ago,” explains Rosen. “If you’re a responsible designer, you don’t just do a pretty bottle… you’re creating something that gives
Packaging that communicates product quality and efficacy is key for luxury skin care brands like Lucia Magnani (left) and Elemis (below)
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