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Inside Design: A Roundup of Holiday Packaging

Graphics Trends

Bold brush strokes, graffiti-like fonts, and fluorescent-colored-marker renderings, which dominated fashion and apparel in the fall and winter of 2001, also stole the 2001 holiday packaging scene.

Companies that brought these trends in graphic design to the fragrance counter included Giorgio Armani (Milan), with gift sets for the Aqua Di Gio and Emporio Armani fragrances. For the secondary packaging, Armani stayed true to its distinctive minimalist style, using a single brush stroke to stylize its logo. The foil stamp stands out against the matte-finished paper stock of the setup box.

Also emphasizing graphics was Bijan Fragrances (Beverly Hills, CA), with the gift packaging for its Bijan Classic line for men and women. Brightly colored brush strokes on the square cartons, supplied by Thoro Packaging (Corona, CA), are designed to complement the vibrant colors of the men's and the women's fragrances.

Paper setup boxes for Chanel's (New York City) holiday offerings also featured eye-catching graphics to get the attention of holiday gift-givers. Chanel's design—a patterned use of the Chanel logo together with the names of Paris streets where Chanel stores are located—is accentuated by a unique mix of fuchsia, burgundy, rust, and hot-pink colors not commonly seen in combination. The type is set against a beige background. Completing the look of the package is its glittery, burgundy satin ribbon. The result is an elegant package ready for giving—no additional gift-wrap required.

Innovative Structures

The Boss for Women fragrance by Hugo Boss (New York City) was available in a gift box during the holidays, and it was notable for its structure. The design is an architectural achievement, with its riveted, hinged lid that can be flipped backward to show the box's inner tray. Positioned to the back, the lid serves as a stand, holding the entire set upright and giving it considerable height, for a visible advantage over less-prominent sets on the fragrance counter.

Other successful structural presentations were the setup boxes for Thierry Mugler's (New York City) Angels fragrances for men and women. What makes the hinged-lid structure interesting is the lid's slanted lip, which is reminiscent of the angular cut patterns Mugler uses in his clothing line. A magnetic strip, which is hidden from the consumer under the boxes' paper wrapping, closes the set securely. The box is both flair and function—a protective package and a stylish keepsake for its recipient.

Interesting Materials

The kraft boxes for Stila's (Los Angeles) four Flaunt gift sets offered all the gift wrap a holiday shopper could need, complete with a red, grosgrain ribbon bow and signature Stila illustrations and decorative stars. The wavy-patterned corrugated material glued around the edges at the bottom of some Flaunt sets was an extra touch, making the sets more intricate in pattern and texture. One of the sets featured a kraft-paper-pedestal box displaying green tea-, vanilla-, and ginger-scented candles.

Chanel also maximized its use of materials when it came to packaging its To Go sets. Each set contained a 1/2-oz EDT purse spray and two 1/2-oz spray refills for fragrances COCO, ALLURE, CRISTALLE, No5, and No19. Such small promotional sets tend to get less design-related attention than their larger, more lucrative counterparts, but that was not the case here. To Go incorporated an acrylic container and pastel-colored mesh fabrics. The fabrics not only enhanced the set's presentation, but also served a protective function, wrapping around the glass bottles to prevent them from breaking and from scuffing the container. In addition, the fabrics softened the appearance of the container's hard lines, creating a giftable item to entice the holiday shopper.

Unique Containers

Bath & Body Works (Intimate Brands Inc.; Columbus, OH) used glass apothecary-style jars and acrylic trays instead of paper packages for its vast selection of single stock products, giving them a refreshing newness. The primary containers are designed to get consumers interested in picking and choosing their favorite products from an appealing assortment. Consumers could give them as gifts in a variety of ways. For example, shoppers could choose three different-sized containers, combining them to make a holiday set. Or, they could select individual items, perhaps one for each person on their shopping list.

But paper products weren't absent from the Bath & Body Works holiday display. Also integral to the company's lineup were decorative gift boxes, shopping bags, and gift cards. These paper items, which were presented in an array of sizes and decorated with graphics, were executed with attention to detail. Die-cuts and carefully constructed layers were decorative "extras." The variety of structures, graphics, and styles was sufficient to satisfy gift givers and recipients of all ages.

Holiday Designs: Past and Future

Even before the retail numbers of the 2001 holidays are all in, cosmetic, fragrance, and personal care companies can begin assessing the quality of the past season's designs and planning for the 2002 season. And as the standout designs in this article attest, companies are not taking package design and its effects on holiday sales for granted.

Daniela Pakzad, primary and secondary packaging designer and vice president of creative services for Bijan Fragrances (Beverly Hills, CA), is a contributing editor to CPC Packaging. She can be reached at 310/271-1122 or via e-mail at danipak@aol.com.

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