Inside Design: Packaging Solutions for Skin Care
Redesigned to be easier to use and more attention-getting, the packaging for the Rodan & Fields skin care kits are now color coded according to regimen. Skin care packages can be designed to link directly to a product’s formulas, benefits, or instructions for use
By Marie Redding, Senior EditorPackage design is always affected to some extent by formulations. This is especially true when it comes to skin care products. The skin care lines by Rodan & Fields, Stila Cosmetics, and Doctor’s Dermatologic Formula (DDF) have all used packaging concepts that tie to their products and formulations in some way. These brands’ products have influenced various aspects of package design, including choice of components, style of decoration, and even shipping requirements.
A Skin Care Prescription
The right package design can help make it simple for customers to understand how a product should be used. It can also help facilitate merchandising a line in stores. The Rodan & Fields brand exemplifies this.
The brand was founded in 2003 by dermatologists Katie Rodan and Kathy Fields. As a team, they developed products formulated as specific solutions for different skin conditions. Since the products work best when used together as a regimen, the packaging was designed to convey this idea to the consumer. Each regimen consists of a set of products, including a cleanser, toner, and lotion. One set also includes sunscreen.
The regimens are packaged in bags, which were originally designed to resemble the type of paper bag containing a prescription from a pharmacy. The first version of the bag even had a “prescription card” stapled to the front, with directions that looked typed. “We loved the concept of the bag, but it posed some challenges. The lack of product accessibility didn’t provide a good overall customer experience,” says Annie Jackson, the brand’s executive director of marketing.
When The Estée Lauder Companies acquired Rodan & Fields in 2003, the brand’s packaging was given a complete makeover. The brand’s new look was first seen in stores last April, in conjunction with the launch of a new anti-aging regimen. “We kept the same design concept, but our new look resembles a beautiful, modern rendition of a pharmacy bag,” says Jackson.
The original white bag folded over at the top and was sealed with glue. Sometimes the bag wouldn’t stay sealed, and other times, customers had to tear it open to remove the product. The bags also looked shopworn and didn’t sit neatly on shelves.
The Innovations Group at Estée Lauder worked with All Packaging (Aurora, CO). Together, they found a company in Israel that supplies a new type of lightweight polypropylene, with a thickness of just 0.009 in. It had never been used before in the cosmetic industry. “This material folds with clean, sharp lines, maintains its shape, and doesn’t wrinkle,” says Erin Clugston, assistant packaging manager at Estée Lauder.
The new bag was created from this material with a window die-cut near the top, forming a handle. The top of the handle folds over to close, but it still needed to be more secure. The packaging team worked with Portola Tech International (Woonsocket, RI) to develop a polypropylene clip. The clip has a hinge which folds over the top part of the bag’s handle, and it snaps closed. The clip can be easily opened and closed by the consumer, so the bag stays neatly sealed in stores. Both the clip and handle also allow the bag to be hung from a peg.
Product information is now printed directly on the bag. “We developed an ink system with a new drying process to print on this type of polypropylene,” explains Clugston.
The primary packages were also changed, and information is now printed directly on the bottles, tubes, and jars, replacing labels. Many of the bottles with pumps were changed to high-density tubes so the thick formulations could be dispensed more easily.
The majority of the packaging is white, accented with a colored stripe. A different accent color was chosen for each regimen. “We had to manage the color-matching process on various materials,” says Clugston. The color had to be consistent on the PET bottles, PETG jars, the high- and low-density polyethylene coextruded tubes, and the polypropylene bags.
Even the names of all the products were changed to be more descriptive. “We wanted the names to be more in line with the medicines in our products, and to describe to the consumer what the end results would be,” says Jackson. For example, Radiant was changed to Reverse; and Calm was renamed Unblemish.
Rodan & Fields has achieved its goal of finding a solution to the marketing challenges the brand faced, and its packaging team is very proud. The bags clearly convey the benefits to the consumer of using the entire set of products. “The new packaging definitely serves its purpose. The line has a much better presence in stores, and the colors on the bags look vibrant. We’ve heard feedback from our customers that they like the new packaging much better,” says Jackson.
Stila’s new skin care packages evoke a soothing yet whimsical feeling thanks to a calm blue palette and a flower motif.
A Serene Design
Package design was used to convey the soothing properties of the ingredients in Stila’s new Petal Infusions skin care line, which launched in August. Its products, which were developed by Hollywood facialist Terri Lawton, contain flower oils and fruit essences.
Because the scents are meant to deliver psychological benefits, a peaceful shade of blue and a delicate flower pattern were chosen for the packaging to evoke a feeling of serenity. The custom shade of blue, which has a touch of iridescence, was developed in collaboration with Clariant Masterbatches (McHenry, IL). “We wanted the line to look different from any other skin care line on the market, which is why we chose blue,” says Jill Tomandl, executive director, global packaging development, for Stila.
The flowers add a whimsical feel, in line with the image of the Stila brand. To create the package design and concept, there was a collaborative effort between Stila’s founder Jeanine Lobell and the package development team at Estée Lauder. Sayuri Shoji, a Japanese artist, created the flower illustration, and Stila’s design team adapted it for the packages. “Stila is huge in Japan, and the market there demands skin care products,” Tomandl explains.
The floral decoration was applied to the packages using a heat-transfer label process to ensure registration. On the custom, oval-shaped moisturizer bottle supplied by Roberts Cosmetic Container (Chatsworth, CA), the deco wraps around 360 degrees of the package. The decorating process was facilitated by NPC (Ontario, CA). The labels were manufactured by Katani (Tokyo). “One of the most challenging technical aspects of the packaging was decorating 360 degrees around this oval-shaped bottle. The heat-transfer label-application machinery had to be adapted to do this,” says Tomandl. Lastly, a spray coating was applied to the moisturizer bot- tles to make sure the labels wouldn’t come off.
The bottle’s pump actuator and collar are a custom-colored natural polypropylene. They were supplied by Valois of America (Congers, NY). The bottle is lightweight PET, and a locking clip on the pump ensures portability.
The line’s H2Off cleansing cloths are packaged in a bottle. A dispensing closure allows the wipes to pop up, one at a time. This product and its packaging help to convey to the consumer that this is an uncomplicated skin care line that is easy to use. The front and back labels are supplied by Gemson Graphics Inc. (Albertson, NY).
Oval tubes containing a retexturizing scrub and a sunscreen were developed by Alcan Packaging Cebal in Germany and were decorated using a five-color silk-screen process. “The inner layer of the tube was created in opaque blue, and the outer layer contains the iridescence,” explains Tomandl. “The difficulty of this decorating process was maintaining the five-color registration.”
The design concept continues on the outer cartons, which are supplied by Bellshire Ltd. (Toronto). The cartons are ivory with blue flowers and are decorated using offset printing with a protective matte varnish. The inside of the carton is also printed in blue.
New launches are planned for November, and their packaging will continue to be designed to convey the same feelings of whimsy and serenity.
DDF’s RMX protein complex retails for $1000 and is shipped on dry ice.
A Frozen, Fresh-Mix Formula
As formulations become more advanced, packaging requirements can become more complicated. DDF faced its own unique set of challenges when designing the packaging for the launch of its RMX product on August 1.
RMX protein complex is packaged as a 28-day supply, in a kit called RMX Maximum. The kit also includes 28 single-dose foil packets filled with glycolic exfoliating wash.
When customers place an order for RMX Maximum, DDF arranges for a convenient delivery time. The kit’s outer carton is sealed in plastic and then packed in another box filled with dry ice. The shipment must be put directly in the freezer once it arrives. The protein complex is a fresh-mix formula without preservatives and is designed to be kept frozen until application. According to its claims, it enhances metabolic activity in the skin’s fibroblast cells—the ones which function as connective-tissue cells, producing collagen and elastin.
The complex consists of protein powder derived from organic bovine colostrum and a pH-balanced nutritional enhancer in liquid form. It is packaged in a dual-chambered vial, which keeps the powder and liquid separate. According to directions, the vial quickly thaws in the hand before use. When the top of the vial is pushed down, the ingredients combine and are dispensed. The vial is currently made of plastic, but it is in the process of being changed to frosted glass for a more upscale look.
The RMX Maximum Kit retails for $1000. “The price doesn’t reflect shipping costs, but the revolutionary technology used to develop this formula,” says Elaine Linker, DDF’s cofounder. In order to develop RMX, DDF formed an exclusive, collaborative relationship with Paul Brazeau, a physiologist and biochemist.
Brazeau is president of NexCell Biosciences Inc. He discovered the protein complex in conjunction with his work in reproductive physiology. “Now, consumers are more open to understanding skin care treatments coming out of the world of science, and they are willing to pay more for a science-based product,” says Linker.
The challenge for DDF’s marketing and packaging team was to make sure the kit reflected the fact that this was a technologically advanced formula worthy of such a high price point. “We also had to consider how to unite all the necessary elements in one box, making it look unified,” explains Linker. Silver was chosen for a high-tech look and used as a unifying color for the box and packets. The box was finished with a shiny UV varnish.
DDF’s design team and engineering experts worked together to calculate the weight and size of the entire package before the design was finalized. “We had to make sure those wouldn’t be issues when shipping using a standard overnight service,” says Linker. The team achieved its design goals, and the RMX Maximum kit looks like it was packaged in a lab.
The Bottom Line
As R&D teams and scientists continue to create more revolutionary skin care formulations in the future, packaging will also change and evolve. The brands that find the most creative ways to effectively communicate their products’ benefits through design are most likely to succeed.