Hefty Upends Traditional Packaging

Here's a question marketers of new products frequently face: "How can I let shoppers know my product has some really new feature, different from the norm in the category?" One smart answer is to meet that product breakthrough with equally innovative packaging that departs from what's common in the category.Pactiv Corp., Lake Forest, IL, did just that when launching its Hefty Serve 'n Store plates and bowls. The new product is more than serving ware -- it also acts as a storage container. Each plate or bowl has a series of interlocking tabs shaped along the rim. When the consumer "flips over" a plate, it snaps onto another plate, acting as a cover. The dish is then instantly ready for the refrigerator. "We went to a new kind of packaging because this is a new and different product, and we believe the packaging says that," relates Lisa Foss, a spokesperson for Pactiv.The new packaging slides the plates or bowls into a paperboard sleeve. The sleeve holds the products upright, in sharp contrast to the standard shrink-film wrap that the majority of brands in the category use. On shelves, the shrink-wrapped plates and bowls stack on top of one another, delivering virtually no brand identity or sell copy. All the consumer sees are the plate's edges. The Pactiv approach creates a display panel with full-color graphics that explain the product's benefits, and how it works. Straightforward photography shows how two plates or bowls interlock to create a storage container.The top half of the plate or bowl extends upward beyond the sleeve, letting shoppers see the product itself. That keeps costs down, and it responds to the belief that shoppers like to see what they are buying.Each sleeve has four "feet" at the bottom, created when the paperboard is cut and creased in the production process. The feet provide a solid, stable platform that keeps packages upright and visible.Other brands of plates use a shelf fixture to hold packages upright, which requires staff to install the fixtures and assure that they are filled properly.One suggestion I have from doing some shelf audits: Put "sell copy" on the package's bottom panel. Pactiv says they want to encourage retailers to set the packages upright, but I've seen tight shelf sets where the packages have been stacked flat so the bottom panel faces shoppers. Adding sell copy to the bottom would allow the package to sell in less-than optimal shelf configurations, including stacked presentations.For the launch, Pactiv put a pressure-sensitive label on the shrink film overwrap that encloses the package. The labels say "New Interlocking Plates." Lisa Foss explains that the labels "give us another chance to say 'new' on the package and to highlight the unique interlocking feature in a place on the package where the shopper will see it."While the pressure-sensitive label drives home the "newness" that defines the brand, the labels do add to packaging costs. However, a company can discontinue using the labels after the brand has been established. The equipment to apply the labels is portable, and can be moved to other packaging lines for future use. Another option is to lease the equipment for a new introduction.Jim Peters has 25 years in the packaging field and is the Director of Education for the Institute of Packaging Professionals. Click here for his contact information.

Hefty Upends Traditional Packaging

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