Closures are a line of our product suite that can be used by most of our customers across the different markets we serve, including home and garden, healthcare and beauty and personal care. Given the breadth of applications in closures, we spoke with Robert Randall, our VP of Dispensing Closures, to get a sense of the closures market, current trends and how our team at Silgan Dispensing is adapting to those trends while meeting customer needs.
What are the key trends you’re seeing in closures?
We’re seeing several key themes in closures right now that mirror what we’re seeing across our customer spectrum from beauty and personal care to home and garden: increased attention on e-commerce, sustainability and customization.
On the e-commerce front, our organization is continually tracking the process and progress of how our products will stand up to rigorous e-commerce testing. Our Closures offer an unparalleled confidence when it comes to e-commerce testing and ultimately delivering on our customers’ desire to ensure their consumer has the best product experience.
How is Silgan Dispensing working with customers on sustainability?
Sustainability is a strong focus at Silgan Dispensing. For us, that means investing in PCR (post-consumer recycled resin). We offer 100-percent PCR options for closures, which provides our customers with a way to meet their sustainability goals without sacrificing functionality. We’re currently leading the marketing with this product and our PCR knowledge, and we’re proud to be the only dispensing company to offer this solution. Because of its importance, we expect to explore and expand on our sustainability initiatives.
Are you seeing increased interest in customization when it comes to closures?
We’re seeing more interest from customers in understanding the dimensions of our decoration capabilities (colors, finishes, etc.), and customization is an area that we excel because we understand how it plays a role in product differentiation and decision-making for consumers. We’re continuing to expand on our customization abilities starting with logo inserts on the top of the closure, finishes, matte-vs.-gloss options and color matching. We understand customization is essential to package differentiation, so no matter the customization technique, we’ll always work with customers to create a custom solution that helps their brand stand out.
Especially in the luxury space, it’s imperative that closures emanate a luxe, higher-end look to differentiate among competitors. The customization techniques continue to evolve from selecting different color finishes to metallization and logo inserts. We embrace this way of thinking, and you can see this particularly with our fragrance products. We pull from our internal experience and experts to create custom solutions for our customers that address their needs and brand positioning. For example, many of our Polyvam closures offer the logo-insert capability, which is a cost-effective way to customize a product and make it suitable for the high-end, luxury market.
What are brands looking for when it comes to closure functionality?
When it comes to functionality, the big question on our customers’ minds is about products holding up to the e-commerce testing process without endangering the overall product packaging and dispensing experience. Being able to deliver on that base need is crucial, but beyond that we’re also able to provide a variety of solutions with different functional features (for example one-piece flip top) that are suitable for e-commerce shipping and meet our customers’ needs.
Closures can play a role in almost every customer’s product portfolio because they can be used for different products. No matter the customer or type of product, our experienced customer service representatives partner with our customers to develop a product solution that fulfills their needs, not just from a price standpoint, but from an overall experience perspective. At Silgan Dispensing, we are committed to creating the best experience for our customers, and to us that means approaching the customer’s needs from a holistic perspective.