Procter & Gamble asked Landor to update the brand and create new packaging for the Eukanuba pet food line. The product uses select ingredients and the packaging needed to reflect the premium nature of the product. New players in the channel and the growing influence of store brands demanded action. However, the supply chain was not changing. Manufacturing limitations narrowed the possible converting techniques and effects.
We explored the perceived-value standby decoration techniques of foil stamping and spot varnish to differentiate the brand. Unfortunately, alternative varnish treatments on printed bags were not yet approved to run smoothly on the filling line and metallic foil would fail metal detection in final product inspection.
Packaging design poses many challenges of capability and standards. Here are a few other common feasibility risks:
Too many colors in the design
Our branding strategies often involves numerous bright, vibrant colors or soft, subtle differentiation and variation. This requires a robust color palette which may be limited by printing capabilities. Quantify these limitations in advance and stay within the available number of colors.
Large fields of color and very small design features should be a spot color. Use a Pantone Bridge to forecast colors that are possible to build from process inks. Designate hard to build colors and critical equity or flavor elements as spot colors.
The design is not suitable for the print process.
Know and understand how the package is printed and decorated. Avoid tonal values that vignette to zero on a flexo-printed label to avoid a hard drop-off of color. Flexography has come a long way. Digital plates, stochastic printing, and high-performance presses yield impressive results but it never hurts to design smart to ensure success. Small lines or copy, intricate vector shapes, and especially knockout (reverse) text may be a challenge to register with multiple colors on gravure-printed film. The strategic use of key-lines, chokes, and spreads improve success.
Selected special effects do not meet expectations.
Pearlescent sample books are often screen-printed allowing a thick layer of pigment to illustrate a dynamic interference effect. However, offset printing does not necessarily yield the same result. Offset-printed metallic ink may not provide the level of reflectivity intended. Make sure reference materials represent realistic results. Samples from the existing supply chain help manage expectations.
Artwork doesn’t fit the package.
Use official die lines when building artwork. It is better to have a designer finesse design elements to accommodate available real estate while maintaining important priority of communication on the packaging blueprint rather than have a downstream operator arbitrarily shoehorn the art into the available space after the fact. Single-knife bleeds (common color bleeds shared across multiple die positions), eye track restrictions (areas void of color or graphics), and distortion fields (areas where artwork may expand to accommodate eventual shrinking) should all be thoughtfully considered in advance.
Cannot convert the design intent
Feasibility extends beyond the printing process. Foil stamping cannot be used, or is extremely limited, on shrink sleeves. Some filling lines cannot adhere blister packaging to metallized board. These restrictions should be identified in advance to avoid delay and ensure that the proposed design intent is feasible or to find an alternative supply chain to meet the brand requirements.
By building a cross-functional team of client, designer, separator, printer, and converter in advance and engaging the experts as partners, they are more likely to provide solutions for success rather than reasons for failure. Most of these folks would rather spend extra time evaluating five designs upstream that never make it off the drawing board than being surprised by the one that does and risk having to reject it.
Remember that Eukanuba design that was a challenge to print? Well, since we engaged the prepress and print partners in advance, they became invested in the project’s success and were more tolerant, moving beyond their comfort zone to suggest solutions. We simulated metallic finish with artwork highlight and shadow and used an approved ink base without color pigment for an ‘invisible ink’ solution that created a subtle watermark effect. This successful package conveyed the sophistication of the product and differentiated the brand from its less beneficial competitors. Teamwork and advanced planning overcame feasibility challenges.
J. Scott Hosa
Associate Director, Graphic Technology
About Scott Hosa
J. Scott Hosa has been employed at Landor since November 2005. After studying Graphic Design at Youngstown State University and Industrial Design at Ohio State University, Scott has worked in every aspect of printing and packaging from Prepress Technician and Printing Press Operator to Graphic Designer and Design Director. Most notably, he led the digital workflow at Meadwestvaco Healthcare Packaging as Creative Services Director with responsibilities including Graphic and Structural Design, color development, proofing, platemaking, and quality control. Scott has been involved with many successful global brands for clients including Alcoa, Bayer, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Glaxo-SmithKline, Hershey’s, Kodak, Kraft, Pfizer, Procter & Gamble, and Unilever. He is currently Associate Director of Graphic Technology at Landor Associates with responsibility for packaging feasibility, color development, innovation, and education for the global branding leader.
Scott Hosa started his career in the graphic arts at 14 years old as a printer’s helper at a local newspaper, and has been in printing and packaging ever since. He studied graphic design at Youngstown State University, industrial design at The Ohio State University and has worked on all aspects of global branding for clients including Bayer, GSK, Hershey Company, Kraft Foods Inc., PepsiCo., Pfizer, Procter & Gamble, SC Johnson and Unilever. Hosa is currently helping clients build agile brands that thrive in today’s dynamic, disruptive marketplace as associate director of technical graphics at Landor, a global leader in brand consulting and design.