Design Innovation

Distillery Chooses Shrink Labels

DALLAS—Eastman Chemical Company has announced that DeLos Vodka, the only vodka distillery in Dallas, Texas, has introduced one of the first glass vodka bottles to incorporate a full-body shrink label. DeLos Vodka is available in 50 ml, 750 ml, and 1.75 liter bottles.

Shying away from the traditional etched clear glass bottles, the entrepreneur and namesake behind DeLos, Carlos Guillem, desired a package that was sleek and eye-catching. Logistically, the company also needed a packaging solution that would provide the flexibility to quickly launch new sizes and flavors. To meet DeLos's packaging needs, McDowell Label, the label printer for the vodka application, recommended Eastman Embrace™ LV co-polyesters for shrink film.

"Next to all of the clear glass bottles, we really wanted our packaging to pop on the shelf," explains Guillem. "The full-body shrink label enabled us to deliver that impact while still giving us the flexibility to create promotional packages and launch new flavors."

For Guillem, sustainability was also a factor in choosing the perfect packaging for his vodka. A deciding factor in choosing Embrace was that the label is easily separated from the bottle, maximizing the recyclability of the glass by eliminating any ink from being printed directly on it.

Shrink films manufactured with Embrace LV co-polyesters provide a virtual 360-degree billboard for packages.

"Black is one of the most challenging colors to achieve on shrink sleeves," explains John McDowell, president at McDowell Label. "By using high-definition UV ink on the Embrace co‑polyesters, we were able to achieve a rich black color that direct printing and etching could not achieve."

Environmentally-Friendly Media Packaging

NEW YORK—Shorewood Packaging, a business of International Paper, has announced the launch of the DuoPak™, the latest member of its greenchoice™ family of environmentally-friendly media packaging. This all-paperboard DVD package is the first one to feature a paperboard twin tray. The DuoPak was designed to house two-disc titles for movies and TV series, music concerts, video games, or computer software.