Kolluda Partners with Mohawk to Tell a Story of Sustainability Through Packaging
This article was originally published on Brand United.
Burgopak isn’t perfect, but it’s working its way there, and it isn’t afraid to say it.
“As a company, we are always trying to be better, and we’re transparent about that,” Alethea Price, marketing and public relations manager at Burgopak, says.
One of the things it’s transparent about is its journey to sustainability. In 2020, Burgopak, and its sister company Duallok, launched Kolluda, a range of innovative packaging solutions developed specifically for the cannabis and nutraceutical market. As Price points out, “Sustainability is just ingrained in cannabis.” But, she says the drive toward more sustainable practices is a work in progress — one that is aided by its partnership with Mohawk, North America’s largest privately owned manufacturer of fine papers.
A Story of Happenstance
Kolluda’s packaging was developed to offer the market a range of solutions that are engaging and memorable, while remaining child resistant, consumer friendly, and environmentally conscious. But approaching packaging in the healthcare sector doesn’t come without challenges. You need to find the right balance.
“You don’t want it to be cold and clinical,” Price says. “This kind of physical aspect of your product is memorable and makes your brand stand out in the marketplace where most packaging is thrown away.”
All Kolluda’s packaging is interactive and movable, strategically designed to create an opening experience for the consumer.
“It’s about that visceral, tactile experience — it’s evoking an emotional response,” Price explains. “There’s a lot of psychology that goes behind the concepts we build to make them mesmerizing, exciting, or just playful.”
The idea of creating an experience with its packaging, while remaining true to its tenets for more sustainable practices, is what led the company to partner with Mohawk. For Mohawk, when it comes to sustainability, “The Material is the Message.”
Mohawk’s line of Renewal papers, made with sustainably sourced alternative fibers, turned out to be the perfect fit.
“We came across Mohawk, and it was really by happenstance that we found each other, and it was this natural blend between what we’re trying to do,” she says. “It was this very rich core, balancing the integrity behind Mohawk as well. It just meshed.”
Mohawk is enthusiastic, with a team of out-of-the-box thinkers that mimic the same ethics that Kolluda stands by.
“They’re leaders in what they’re doing, and their branding is fantastic,” she says. “Being able to work with someone who is in their own league, but also willing to get their boots dirty, explore, mess around and figure out what kind of beautiful babies we can build out of that, that’s really fun to work with.”
Take, for example, the hemp-based sustainable packaging solution designed for a tincture and developed by Kolluda in partnership with Mohawk. To meet sustainability standards, Mohawk Renewal Hemp, Rough, Clean White, 325gsm, was used along with Mohawk Renewal, Rough, Flower, 325gsm, which are both part of Mohawk’s Sustainable Collection. Pantone P 7498 U and white hot foil adorn the lower half of the box, along with the wording: “Reuse. Recycle. Rediscover. Revive. Reimagine. Restore. Reclaim. Renew.” The packaging options, which boast a contemporary design and come in four proprietary formats, have an intuitive opening system, such as a slide that opens to reveal the product inside. Their customizability, simplicity, product protection capabilities, and organic movement make them ideal for retail and e-commerce sales.
As Price explains, Kolluda’s products “have both a shelf-like presence and a digital shelf presence. … Because of that movement, they’re really video friendly, they’re very TikTok friendly. As well as being good for the consumer, they’re good for branding and exposure.”
‘Transparency is Important’
Renewal is just one chapter in an evolving environmental story for Mohawk. The idea for Mohawk Renewal and the Sustainable Collection was born out of the desire to redefine how we source fiber and expand sustainable papermaking. Mohawk Renewal launched in 2020 with papers made from hemp, straw, and recycled cotton, all sourced to provide brands with alternative options to recycled wood pulp to make a statement about their commitment to sustainable resources.
In the case of Kolluda, consumers in the cannabis and wellness industry are looking for ways to extend the message of their product through to the packaging, making Renewal Hemp a natural choice.
“People want to be more sustainable, and they don’t necessarily know what that means, but we want to help people make meaningful, sustainable choices,” Price says.
According to Price, the supply chain issues that many industries faced during the pandemic underscored the need for a sustainable partner.
“Figuring out what supply chains look like, and how we fi t into that model, has kind of changed our perception of what materials we should be sourcing, how we’re sourcing them, where we’re sourcing them, and when we’re sourcing them,” she continues. “It made us hyper-aware of our involvement in the system.”
Part of making sustainable choices as a company is sharing those decisions, and that’s what Kolluda is setting out to do.
Price says that many brands have made an executive decision to strive toward these initiatives because consumers are much more aware, though she admits knowing where to start can be challenging. That’s why “transparency is important,” she explains.
Just the Start of Creativity
The story doesn’t end there for the two companies. There is more to tell through holistic packaging.
“What we’ve done with Mohawk today… I think it’s just the start of something,” Price says. “They are continually innovating in their materials in the same way we innovate our mechanisms. I think there’s a lot of room for some really exciting projects to come out of this.”
But every story of sustainability must start somewhere.
“Making small steps to be more sustainable,” Price says, “that’s got the most impact, because you’re not going to be sustainable overnight.”
With Mohawk’s Sustainable Collection of papers made with recycled or alternative fibers, and a compelling sustainability story, the journey is made a lot easier.
