VBX Solutions' 2020 Highlights

March 9, 2021 Brand Packaging, Retail Kits4 Minutes

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Although the year 2020 was filled with new challenges the VBX Solutions team continued to do what we do best, provide phenomenal packaging and kitting services!  VBX Solutions has been offering packaging services at every step of the supply chain; from creative, to manufacturing, to overseas freight to domestic distribution to customer service after the sale for nearly 20 years. Here is a look inside of VBX Solutions 2020.

Girls Beauty Date Kit from Sephora Europe

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First up we have the Favorites Beauty Date Kit from Sephora Europe. If you have not already created a date night kit, now is the time! Date night kits, whether it be for best friends or couples, are the hottest new thing with social distancing norms. It is such a convenient way to bring your customers a fun activity to share with a loved one straight to their home!

12 Days of Clean Beauty Holiday Kit from Whole Foods Market

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Up next, the 12 Days of Clean Beauty Holiday Kit for Whole Foods Market. We absolutely had so much fun with this one! A calendar leading up to the holidays with some of your company’s most popular items is the PERFECT way to engage with your customer base! Whether your regulars are buying it for themselves or buying the kit to gift to a loved one, a countdown calendar is a great way to spread awareness about your goods and keep people coming back for more.

Reusable Cut-and-Sew Tote Bag from Aerie

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Our 2020 recap would not be complete without this aerie cut and sew tote bag. Reusability is IN. Who wouldn’t love a branded bag that can be reused for anything? Another great feature of any reusable item is the sustainability that comes with it. Sustainability has become an everyday topic for a lot of consumers, so why not kill two birds with one stone when it comes to exciting your market?

Fragrance Sample Kits From Shoppers Drug Mart Canada

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Another international beauty! Check out these fragrance kits from Shoppers Drug Mart in Canada! Kits have never been more important in retail than now. Sampler kits have become a real game changer now that samples can no longer be offered in stores. Aside from the new norms, samplers have always been amazing for providing a delightful experience to consumers.

Branded Package From Kendra Scott

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Lastly, but certainly not least, look at this elegant Kendra Scott branded package! We love the look of this beautiful design. A package that speaks for your company is such an important part of any business. Is your brand packaging up to date and ready to show your customers what you are all about?

There you have it! A look inside a few of VBX Solutions 2020 releases. Along with the creations featured above, we produced so many other different styles of packages and kits! See something you like or are interested in? Reach out to us now at info@vivaboxsolutions.com so we can get your 2021 packaging vision started!

Looking for a solution? We can help.

Headquarters

9211 Corporate Blvd Ste 110
Rockville MD 20850

Satellite Offices

Dallas, TX
Paris, France
San Francisco, CA
Scottsdale, AZ

Email

info@vivaboxsolutions.com

Phone

800-529-1988

Minimum Order Quantities:
RPET Totes: 3,000
Kraft Shoppers: 5,000
Rigid Boxes: 3,000
Folding Cartons: 5,000


Three ways to make your sustainability program successful

November 9, 2020 Brand Packaging, Retail Kits7 Minutes

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Three ways to make your sustainability program successful

Sustainability is a way to take care of the earth that takes care of us. Times are changing regarding how people treat the planet, and the packaging industry is changing with those times. There has been a lot of progression in the green movement, but there are still plenty of opportunities and simple changes that can be made to keep up that progression. Packaging made with recyclable material is an important part of sustainability, but there is much more to it.

Now more than ever, consumers have been taking the initiative to research exactly what is making their products/packaging sustainable. Sustainability goes beyond recycling; the modern-day consumer is also interested in the amount of waste being used and other environmental benefactors to create the items they shop for.

There are three pillars for creating a greener packaging program: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. As mentioned before, recycling is a key ingredient to sustainability but certainly not the only one. Reducing is another staple to an eco-friendly package. Reducing the amount of material or pieces used on packaging can save a plethora of resources and energy. Providing consumers with the opportunity to reuse your packaging also creates an opportunity to save materials and energy. A reusable package is the gift that keeps on giving. Keep reading to find out how you can apply reducing, reusing, and recycling to your companies packaging.

Reusable and Recyclable Boxes

Reusable and Recyclable Boxes

The Three R’s of Sustainability: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Reduce:

Reducing the amount of materials and energy being used to create your brands packaging supports sustainability. There are a few simple ways your company can reduce the amount of waste being used on your packaging. In earlier times, luxury packaging meant going all out with boxes inside of bigger boxes, inside of bags, with plenty of wrapping paper and a ribbon on top. But current times are different. The idea of less is more can certainly apply to luxury packaging. By keeping it elegant, yet simple, you can still wow your customers and reduce waste at the same time.  Another way your company can provide outstanding packaging while still hitting the goal to reduce, is combining your box and your bag into one package. If you’re asking yourself ‘How can that be possible?’ or ‘What does that even mean?’ take a look at the bag below. By using a more box-like structure and attaching a handle to the top, we were able to eliminate the need for a separate box and a bag. Eliminating the need for both leads to a reduction in the use of resources.

Reusable Box / Bag

Reusable Box / Bag

Reuse:

Reusable bags and packaging are a GREAT way to support sustainability. Reusable bags are nothing new to the world of eco-friendly packaging. You can find these types of bags everywhere, from the grocery store to the mall. Providing reusable packaging to your customers eliminates the need for continuous waste, supports eco-friendliness, and provides your customers with a piece of your company to hold on to. Want to take it a step further? Create your reusable package with recyclable material. After all the uses your customer gets out of it, the product can go on to be generated into something new. For example, cotton canvas tote bags are both recyclable and reusable.

A gift with purchase is an excellent way to send a reusable product home with customers

A gift with purchase is an excellent way to send a reusable product home with customers

Cotton Canvas Tote Bag

Cotton Canvas Tote Bag

Reusability is more than just tote bags. Any durably made box, bag, or even gift with purchase can prevent waste by providing the consumer a convenient reusable package.… take a look at these Sephora Favorites boxes. Once they have served their original packaging purpose, they can go on to be used again for whatever the customer needs. Items that can be kept and reused for reasons outside of shopping lead to less waste in landfills.

Recycle:

Recyclable material is the key component to eco-friendly packaging. There are plenty of combinations that can be made to keep your company’s packaging eco-friendly. It’s as simple as switching from unrecyclable ink to a soy-based ink.

Some examples of eco-friendly packaging components include:

·       Mono Material (consisting of only one material)

·       Paper Handles

·       Post-Consumer Papers

·       Poly-Mailers

·       Natural Materials- Cotton and Canvas

Reusable Tote Bag

Reusable Tote Bag

Choosing the wrong finishes can render your eco-friendly design un-recyclable. So how does your package composed of recyclable materials magically become nonrecyclable? Those finishing touches and add ons being used may very well be the culprit. If any part, no matter how small, of your package is not recyclable, the whole package will end up in a landfill.

Some examples of nonrecyclable packaging components include:

·       Laminations

·       Foils

·       Poly ribbons

Once any of these materials has been added, it doesn’t matter that the main components are eco-friendly, it is still deemed nonrecyclable as a whole. If you want your brand’s packaging to be truly sustainable opt for environmentally friendly inks, finishes and adornments.

Some examples of eco-friendly inks and finishes include:

·       Soy-based inks

·       Water-based varnishes

·       Vegetable based inks

There is a lot to consider when thinking about your sustainable packaging program. VBX Solutions can help you explore your options, and work with you to find the best solution for your brand. To learn about these options email us at info@vivaboxsolutions.com.

Looking for a solution? We can help.

Headquarters

9211 Corporate Blvd Ste 110
Rockville MD 20850

Satellite Offices

Dallas, TX
Paris, France
San Francisco, CA
Scottsdale, AZ

Email

info@vivaboxsolutions.com

Phone

800-529-1988

Minimum Order Quantities:
RPET Totes: 3,000
Kraft Shoppers: 5,000
Rigid Boxes: 3,000
Folding Cartons: 5,000


How to Promote a New Product to Customers

January 29, 2020 Brand Packaging, Creative10 Minutes

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One of the biggest challenges a brand faces when launching a new product is trying to figure out the best way to generate consumer interest. After all, most of us are loyal to certain brands and products, and it can be difficult to get people to try something new. This is especially true when the product being marketed has a lot of well-known competitors. How can a marketing team ensure that their brand’s product will be able to be seen- and hopefully purchased- by the right audience? Using custom packaging to help your product stand out against competing brands can help you attract your target market.

Of course, not all custom packaging is created equal. Certain factors affect the subconscious mind of the consumer when looking at packaged products, and can make a customer rank products as more or less attractive, based on the physical attributes of the packaging it comes in. A 2013 study (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/mar.20651) revealed that attractive packaging triggered more intense brain activity, particularly in the areas of the brain associated with impulsivity when compared with neutral packaging. Additionally, both attractive and unattractive product packaging led to less activity in areas of the brain responsible for reflective thought than neutral packaging. This means that a customer tends to go with his or her gut reaction to a product, and the way it is packaged can make all the difference!

Using Custom Packaging to Promote Your Product

A product’s packaging can be far more important than you may think. Customers get their first impression of a product by looking at its packaging and can make snap decisions based on their initial reaction. For this reason, it is critical to ensure that your brand new product’s packaging stands up to the ultimate test of consumer preference. But how can you be sure that your product’s custom packaging generates the level of interest and excitement your brand needs to make people purchase the product? Here are some of the key psychological factors that make a consumer choose one brand’s product over another.

Color

Did you know that most people make subconscious judgments about a product within the first 90 seconds of seeing it? Not only that but the majority of consumers- nearly 85 percent!- base these first impressions on color alone. When it comes to custom packaging your new product, color is perhaps one of the most important factors to consider. Certain colors are believed to be more eye-catching than others, based on research. Using these colors- red, yellow, green, and pink- in your product’s packaging design may help to increase the likelihood of a customer looking at your product first. However, this doesn’t mean that every single product on the market should be packaged in one of these four colors; in fact, doing this would create an opposite effect on consumers, causing them to potentially pass your product up for blending in with all the rest. By ensuring that your product’s custom packaging is in a different color than any of the competitors in your market, you can create what is known as the “isolation effect” and capture your audience’s attention by being different from the rest. Bottom line: if your competitors all use pink in their packaging, use green. Dare to be different, and you may receive more positive attention because of it! It’s also important to consider the emotional connotation certain colors have with people. For example, blue and lavender are considered soothing colors, which is why they may be best suited for calming products, such as spa treatments or moisturizers. Meanwhile, products for the kitchen need to be associated with cleanliness, which is why white or silver are the most popular colors for the packaging of small appliances. By considering your product’s function, you can strike upon the appropriate color for your custom packaging.

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Shape

Quick, what’s the shape of a Coca-Cola bottle? How about a can of Pringles potato chips? Sometimes, it’s the shape of product packaging that makes it stand out against the sea of competitors. While it isn’t often that a product’s custom packaging becomes more iconic than the product itself, like in the two above examples, thinking about how shape can affect a consumer’s choice can help you find the right direction for custom packaging your new product. While there is no such thing as one “right” shape for a product package, there are some things to keep in mind about psychology when you are trying to hit on just the right packaging design. For example, people tend to prefer curves to straight lines and, in fact, show a bias toward sharp, angular shapes in product packaging. This can be because of the way they perceive the product packaging will feel in their hands and naturally gravitate toward packages that are smoother and easier to hold. All of these consumer preferences are something you’ll want to strongly consider f you decide to literally think outside the box when it comes to custom packaging your product.

Texture

Product packaging that includes a distinctive texture can be beneficial in two distinct ways: not only can it help make your product easily identifiable even by touch, but it can also create a pleasing tactile experience for your customer that gives them a positive association with your brand and the product itself. Choosing a fun texture will encourage consumers to hold your product’s package for longer than they may have with an untextured package. This, of course, can lead to them purchasing the product, even if they didn’t intend to buy anything at all! Smooth matte and high-gloss surfaces can be used to make custom packaging pleasing to the touch, as can soft, fluffy textures. Using texture in your product packaging can also help convey a certain air of elegance or prestige about your brand, causing customers to look upon it as a luxury item. Some brands that market high-end products rely on texture to connote an upscale, sophisticated feeling and make customers feel elegant for choosing them. Depending on the nature of your brand and product, you can make an appropriate choice for a custom packaging texture that makes customers want to hold it forever!

Print

It’s easy to overlook the print on a product’s custom packaging, especially when you are already thinking about its color, shape, and texture! However, typography can make a huge difference in the success of a product. Since customers who are unfamiliar with your new product will be inspecting the package for information about it, they will be sure to make a stronger connection with packaging that contains a font that resonates with them. It goes without saying that easy-to-read text will help your customers better understand the attributes of your product in a shorter time, but there is something to be said for an ornate script if that font better exemplifies the nature of your brand. Once again, choosing the typography that will accompany your other custom packaging choices is more about understanding the mission and story of your brand: try to choose a font that is short-hand for your brand identity and how you want to be perceived by your audience. For example, products that are more whimsical in nature, such as children’s toys, are best served by a playful, handwritten-looking font, whereas a luxury brand might opt for a serif print font to add a certain old-school weight to the packaging.

By understanding how you want your product to be perceived by the public, as well as knowing your target audience, you will be able to hit upon a winning packaging design that can get you noticed by the right people. Be sure to refer to these four key factors and see how your custom packaging design stacks up!

Looking for a solution? We can help.

Headquarters

9211 Corporate Blvd Ste 110
Rockville MD 20850

Satellite Offices

Dallas, TX
Paris, France
San Francisco, CA
Scottsdale, AZ

Email

info@vivaboxsolutions.com

Phone

800-529-1988

Minimum Order Quantities:
RPET Totes: 3,000
Kraft Shoppers: 5,000
Rigid Boxes: 3,000
Folding Cartons: 5,000


ShopTalk 2019. The 10 Things Impacting Your Business Today & Tomorrow. VBX 2-Min Summary.

March 8, 2019 Creative, Logistics, Retail Kits2 Minutes

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The engaging themes (scientific data point of most attendees and most number of mobile phones aimed at speakers and slides) at Shoptalk Las Vegas this past week were: accelerated change, AI, AR & VR-assisted experiences, influencer marketing, and the role of IRL store associates.

Our summary:

  1. Shopping should be fun & social (literally and via mobile).

  2. Buying should be easy.

  3. Corporate silos need to make way for the pure fluidity of IRL —> Digital that consumers move through on their self-guided journeys to conversion and potentially, loyalty.

  4. Caution Inhibits Innovation.

  5. Hone a physical retail competency that creates moments worth lingering for.

  6. The mobile screen is your new window display.

  7. Change the metabolic rate of your company (esp. senior leaders)

  8. Make Influencer and digital activations part of the product development process – not so late in the game. We call it the new marketing supply chain.

  9. From Erik Nordstrom to Barney’s and Crate & Barrel executives, there was a light shone on the changing role of physical stores and the store associates inside. There was recognition that physical stores are a convenient (or at least can be) place to manage returns and for in-store pickup that puts CX front and center. Recognizing that means looking at the ways associates are trained and incented because this is a critical moment for consumers and can engender real loyalty. Additionally, it means (in our opinion) looking at attribution differently – for example, Nordstrom shared that 50% of their store visits begin online.

  10. We’re struck by the efficacy of a high-concept custom box/bag kit to help bridge the shopping & buying divide. Like retailers and brands, we are leaning into smart packaging to make these experiences even more interesting for the consumers and to reveal new first-party data.

    Vivabox works with CPG, Beauty, Mass, Specialty, Club, and Drug and in every category, the right trial, education, loyalty, and influencer box respects the privileged role of being in someone’s hands and home. Now that’s a brand experience worth sharing, talking about, and remembering.

Looking for a solution? We can help.

Headquarters

9211 Corporate Blvd Ste 110
Rockville MD 20850

Satellite Offices

Dallas, TX
Paris, France
San Francisco, CA
Scottsdale, AZ

Email

info@vivaboxsolutions.com

Phone

800-529-1988

Minimum Order Quantities:
RPET Totes: 3,000
Kraft Shoppers: 5,000
Rigid Boxes: 3,000
Folding Cartons: 5,000