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Natural materials
The public’s desire to feel they’re doing good via the products they consume (or at the very least doing no harm) combined with a move away from traditional disposable plastics, is also informing demand for natural packaging materials.
Spanish firm Quadpack showcased packaging under three trends concepts: Oriental Craft, inspired by Japanese art and rituals; Conscious Self, out-of-the-ordinary vocal packaging for the younger generation; and Elemental Elixir, marrying natural materials and technological processes.
Commenting on Elemental Elixir, Annalisa Galletti, Key Account Manager at Quadpack, told Cosmetics Business that products under Elemental Elixir, which combined wood, marble, leather and glass in pure, straight forms, moved the concept of wood away from the strictly ‘natural’ and ‘masculine’.
“We try to enrich this material that can be really feminine,” she explained. On a similar vein, Quadpack exhibited the Elemental Collection of premium caps – including cork, marble, real leather, ceramic, wood, concrete and polyester resin – to demonstrate its capabilities to niche and luxury fragrance manufacturers.
Meanwhile its You Wood range features wood caps and components for products as diverse as foundations and pressed powders, via eyeliner. “Wood with glass and PE materials, the same bottle with three different pumps – normal (lotion), dropper and flock for foundation. The inner parts for many of the packs are made from recyclable PP, but Galletti said Quadpack is also investigating new eco plastics.
Leather is likewise having a moment; as well as Quadpack’s option for real leather caps, Luxe Pack Monaco also saw paper specialist Favini launch an extended range of its The Tube graphic speciality papers. The original The Tube papers come in Black Max with an eye-catching matte surface. New in Monaco last month were Toffee and Dust colour additions, while new spin-off collection The Tube Hide uses mechanical embossing to evoke the look and feel of matte leather.
“We improved the surface treatment [of The Tube] so that it’s more resistant to scratching and prints and we have also added Dust and Toffee colours,” said Michele Posocco, Brand Manager, Favini.
“We have also worked on the texture – giving a leather effect to the paper – because we think the soft touch evokes both skin and leather.”
Calling to mind marble, meanwhile, is a new resin technique based on Surlyn, which was exhibited under Dow for the first time, following the company’s purchase of DuPont in 2017.
Dow showcased this and other techniques (including metallisation, masterbatch colour and digital printing) via the winning cap from its Be Surlyn And Design competition, in partnership with the HEAD-Geneva School of Art.
It created a mould of student Martin Guillet’s winning MTM – Make Them Melt design and manufactured the same cap in a range of decoration techniques to show the versatility (and flanker potential) of the Surlyn raw material.
To achieve the marbled effect, Dow mixed a polyamide with a different melting point with Surlyn.
“As they set, because they set at different temperatures, you get a veiny structure,” explained Roderik Wijkstra, Business Communications Manager EMEA, Dow Packaging & Speciality Plastics. “The best part is, because you cannot regulate the cooling, each one is unique.” Refined ergonomics
In the world of beauty packaging, the smallest, well-thought-out design refinements can result in an even better consumer experience and each year at Luxe Pack Monaco there are numerous examples of this.
Silgan Dispensing, for example, has previewed an adapted version of its Mark VII pump developed to ease the frustrations of sun care application; Mark VII Max Style features a larger finger landing to enable the user to orientate the product more easily and two ribs on the actuator to reinforce grip.
With 21 orifice cups, a variety of spray patterns and angles to ensure full body coverage (and better protection) is assured.
Germany’s Geka frequently launches trend-led collections to coincide with packaging trade events and for Luxe Pack Monaco it released a hello Glamour collection, comprising a liquid highlighter using its lipMagnifier applicator for precise and defined application; precisionLiner, which uses a micro-bristle applicator for definition; simplySparkle, a glitter lash topcoat with a brush that facilitates a fanned out look; and lipArtist for even application of lip gloss.
The jewel in the crown of Geka’s hello Glamour collection, however, is absolutelyGlitter, a mascara whose brush is made from a brand new fibre: EOSbombyx2K.
“The real star is the new brush,” explains Stefanie Gunz, Deputy Head of Marketing at Geka. “It is made of a brand new fibre, created in-house.
“Every fibre consists of two materials, a harder core inside to provide the stability needed to lift and separate the lashes, surrounded by a softer outer shell, which gives you a smooth feeling.
“The surface of the fibre is uneven; they have big notches, which means every single fibre can upload a lot of product onto the brush to transfer it to your lashes.”