Tubes: Squeezing in Style
Estée Lauder’s new Grassroots line features tubes with labels that were digitally printed with photography-quality images.Upscale looks are taking tubes to the next level.
By Jennifer Kwok, Managing EditorThere once was a time when tubes were considered more mass-market looking than upscale. Looks-wise, today, the gap between mass and class is closing.
Improvements to tube aesthetics are part of what has made this transition possible. Advancements in labels, finishes, and printing techniques have made tubes prettier for both the mass and prestige markets.
Label-Conscious
Upscale labels have helped make mass-market tubes fancier. One example is the tubes by Grassroots, the new personal care brand launched this year by Estée Lauder’s BeautyBank division.
Retailed exclusively in Kohl’s stores, Grassroots products are naturally sourced and do not contain animal ingredients or artificial colors or fragrances. Products are offered in seven categories: face, body, hair, babies, kids, postpregnancy care, and even pet care. The line is aimed at a busy mother, to help her care for her family.
One trademark of the line’s packaging is its labels, which feature whimsical, colorful photographic images of parents, children, pets, and nature. The pressure-sensitive labels are used on many of the line’s tubes, which range in size from 7 to 400 ml and are supplied largely by Artube, as well as Alcan Packaging Cebal and Tupack.
“Grassroots is different because it’s an all-encompassing, family-oriented brand,” says Debbie Druker, brand head for BeautyBank. “Its wide range of products is meant for everyone in the family. We thought photos would be the perfect way to convey the life-style attitude and family orientation of the brand and the whole line. The pictures are meant to bring a smile to your face and to convey warmth and joy, as well as the natural benefits of the products. We have found that people are drawn to these images.”
With 76 product SKUs in the line, creating a different label for each SKU, each with a different photo, was no mean feat. Each of the larger tubes, from 75 ml and up, features a four-color-process printed polypropylene label.
Instead of being run on a press, the labels were digitally printed by Dow Industries using a digital HP printer. “The labels were printed using the latest technology in digital processing,” says Alan Hafkin, BeautyBank’s executive director. “Because of the number of different labels we had, it would have been cost prohibitive to run them conventionally using plates. Instead, we were really able to achieve a photographic-quality resolution without using plates, and the changeover was much quicker.”
“I believe we’re the first to use digitally printed labels for such a large-scale launch,” Hafkin continues. “There was a learning curve, for instance, when it came to color matching and maintaining consistency over such a long run. To run more than 50,000 labels was challenging.”
Amidst plainer packages, the Grassroots labels look eye-popping on the shelf. “In the end, the digital images are what sets the packages apart from others in the mass market,” says Hafkin. “The image on the label is very eye-catching, and the products themselves look very high end.”
With technology for printing labels improving, more companies may turn to labels as a way of decorating tubes. “Obviously, tube labeling has gotten more popular because of the ability of label manufacturers to do much more with the labels themselves,” says Charlie Bridge, president of contract packager Packaging Associates, which specializes in tube decorating. “With clear labels, they’re applying foils as well as great graphics. Label graphics have really improved.”
The options for label substrates have also improved. As part of its MultiVision line of extended-text labels, Ampersand Label Inc. offers its patented FlexVision label, which was designed specifically for use on squeezable plastic tubes and offers multiple pages for printing.
Personal microdermabrasion brand DermaNew has long been using Ampersand’s extended-text labels. The company recently used FlexVision labels on its Professional series product tubes, which launched in August.
“It’s our professional line for estheticians,” says Dean Rhoades, DermaNew’s founder and CEO. “We use a lot of tubes in the line for sanitary protection. The esthetician’s fingernails could carry bacteria or other debris that could contaminate the product. With the tube, you can just flip the lid and squeeze the product directly onto a foam applicator, and go right to work.”
For DermaNew’s Professional product series, an extended-text label accommodates text in multiple languages.Rhoades goes on, “The extended-text labels allow us to provide these professionals with more education on product usage. It also enables us to get multiple languages on the labels, because we’re sold in 18 different countries.”
New finishes are also taking tube labels to new heights. One of the winners of this year’s Tube Council awards was a tube for a Foxy Sleek/Sexy bronzer product. The tube gained attention and won the innovative component/process of the year award due to its fabric label.
The label was made from a new substrate by Flexcon called Plushprint. It is a plush, white, flexible vinyl with a suede-like texture and feel. The material allowed the Foxy brand to create a dark-brown label with a tactile feel to get customer attention.
Conventional Techniques Improved
Labels may be becoming more popular for tubes, but conventional decorating techniques such as silk-screening and hot stamping are still at the forefront. “I don’t think labels will take over silk-screening in most markets,” says Rhoades. He says that for DermaNew’s retail line, which is sold in stores like Sephora, the packages are still silk-screened.
Mike Taylor is vice president of Dubuit of America, which supplies screen printing machines for tube decorating. He says, “Screen or offset printing is probably used on the majority of tubes. I believe more companies shy away from the labeling of tubes simply because of the problems those pose in production. You’ve got a lot of different issues with labels, such as glue and the thickness of the label. You’ve also got the inventory factor—you’ve got to make sure you always have the labels in inventory, whereas with screen or offset printing, you can just burn a plate or a screen and get right back into production. Again, it’s market driven. You’ll see the trend cycle. Every so many years, you’ll see a lot of labeling going on, then all of a sudden, you’ll start to see direct printing again.”
Still, suppliers are making improvements to these tried-and-true techniques. Packaging Associates’ Bridge says, “The foils for hot stamping have gotten better. There’s been growing competition both in the United States and abroad in foils, and that’s made the quality and the selection of different foils all across the spectrum better. Japanese foils, for instance, are very good.”
Some suppliers now offer the option of hot stamping over 100% of a tube. “On our tubes, we can decorate over the tube shoulder,” says Bob Reinhardt, executive vice president of sales for World Wide Packaging. “That’s an advantage because you can start with a white tube but cover it up 100% in whatever color you want. In the past, the other option—which is more expensive—would have been to produce the tube in the color.”
Improvements have also been made to silk-screening. “The trend of screen printing is increasing because you can achieve higher resolution and four-color-process printing with the new numeric machines that you weren’t able to achieve in the past,” says Taylor. “So now you’re able to produce something of a high-quality, four-color-process job using screen printing that previously was only really possible on labels. Now, you’re able to achieve the high-quality images using direct printing, which is more cost-effective and flexible for a production environment.”
Good as Silver
More suppliers are introducing metallic tubes like this holographic laminate tube by Montebello Packaging.Of all the fancy finishes available for tubes, metallic looks seem to really have taken hold. Many suppliers have recently launched metallic effects for their tubes.
Two years ago, Alcan Packaging Cebal launched its SilverLine tubes, which are laminate tubes with a clear plastic outer layer that allows the tube’s foil layer to show through. “We developed SilverLine for customers who wanted a plastic tube with the old-fashioned look of a collapsible metal tube—without the inconveniences associated with metal tubes,” says Kristina Christensen, director of marketing for Alcan Packaging Cebal.
Supplier Montebello Packaging offers a holographic effect for laminate tubes. The aluminum barrier between the tube’s two plastic layers can be embossed with a holographic effect. “It’s much more appealing for the cosmetics market,” says Eric Gareau, Montebello’s vice president of sales and marketing. The new tube will launch at this year’s HBA trade show in New York City.
Avery Dennison, which makes Fasson-brand pressure-sensitive material used for tube labels, also cites a continuing trend for metallized looks. “In the last couple of years, and really at Label Expo 2004 in Chicago last year, we saw an increase in the use of metallics, whether it’s a really brilliant metallic or a softer, brushed-metallic look,” says Diane Ewanko, market manager, household and personal care, for Avery Dennison.
To respond to the market, Avery Dennison has launched new metallized versions of its FasClear and Crystal FasClear films, which are conformable, squeezable films ideal for tubes. “In addition to mirrorlike brilliance, you now have conformable film options that provide a soft-metal and a brushed-metal option. The soft-metal better communicates the higher image of ‘masstige’ products being launched into the marketplace. These softer metals complement the existing soft-touch look and feel of the matte clear films that we sell,” says Ewanko.
Both Ewanko and Christensen say that the trend for metallics is in part a result of the increasing popularity of men’s grooming products. Says Christensen, “If you look at men’s lines, a lot of the time you’ll see a lot of silvers, pewters, and grays.”
“In the past couple of years, consumer product companies have heavily marketed personal care products for men,” adds Ewanko. “For example, you now see complete facial care lines for men. A metallized look is commonly used for products designed for the male industry because it communicates high-tech and high performance.”
Colored Webs
Laminate tubes are also getting dressed in eye-catching new colors. Alcan Packaging Cebal and Montebello both offer colored webs for their laminate tubes.
Alcan Packaging Cebal offers four colors as stock options, but can also do color matching. “We offer a colored web to give a more cosmetic look to laminate tubes,” says Christensen. “For many years, laminate tubes have been associated with dentifrice and commodity-type products, but by using a color, you can give them a more upscale look.”
Montebello also offers pigmented webs for its barrier tubes. “Not many suppliers offer this,” says Montebello’s Gareau. “Often, it can be difficult to get a colored barrier laminate tube. But we can tint the outside of the plastic tube layer in colors.”
Dressed to Impress
High-impact decorating techniques are ensuring today’s tubes stay in style. “Within the marketplace, tubes no longer connote a cheap packaging option,” says World Wide Packaging’s Reinhardt. “In the past, the type and number of decorating and finishing processes were perhaps a little more limited than they are today. Today, tubes can be designed so that they don’t feel inexpensive. There are more upgrade options so tubes can look really high end, depending on the types of finishing and decorating you use. And tubes still offer an extremely convenient method of dispensing a product. That’s what consumers want. There are a lot of advantages with tubes.”
High-End Shapes
Oval Tubes, like these by Tubed Products, are a growing trend.In addition to decorating techniques, tube structures and tube caps are also being updated to look more luxurious. Here are some recent developments from suppliers.
Oval Shapes
One big trend is oval shapes for tubes. According to suppliers, advantages with oval tubes are a more upscale look and more decorating options.
Tubed Products launched two new plastic oval tubes ranging from 2.6 to 8.5 fl oz. “The oval design has already attracted considerable interest from customers in the cosmetic and personal care industry,” says James Farley, vice president of sales and marketing for Tubed Products. “The dramatic oval shape allows for more graphics on the front of the tube, increasing the shelf presence of your product.”
World Wide Packaging introduced its innovative one-piece tube last year. The tube, including its cap, is extruded in one piece, eliminating the problems associated with screwing caps onto tubes. In June, the supplier introduced an oval version of the one-piece tube.
Alcan Packaging Cebal continues to introduce new sizes of its trademark Tandem oval tube. “Oval is the new shape in tubes,” says Alcan Packaging Cebal’s Kristina Christensen. “People are getting away from the round shape.”
Large-sized tubes are also a growing trend because they offer wider front panels and more space for printed graphics. At this year’s HBA trade show, IntraPac will introduce a new 2-in. plastic laminate tube for the cosmetic market. According to John Miller, IntraPac’s executive vice president, “There’s a demand for bigger tubes. I believe it’s the first 2-in. all-plastic barrier laminate tube in the cosmetic industry.”
Upscale Caps
Flip-top caps can make sample-sized tubes look upscale.If you’re going to make a tube upscale, some suppliers believe you should go all the way. Two suppliers have concentrated on designing fancier caps to crown tubes.
Arminak & Associates recently developed new styles specifically for tube caps. “We’ve designed new nondispensing closures that are either vacuum metallized or that have a skirt,” says Helga Arminak, the company’s president. “Tubes can be so boring, and we wanted to do something to update their look. I see a need for more high-end-looking caps. Brands are still using the same old stock caps.”
Arminak says that the caps are more expensive than standard caps. “It’s probably more suitable to a high-end cosmetic company than a mass-market brand,” she addsd.
Even travel- and amenity-sized tubes can look more chic. Crown Zeller introduced a new line of small-sized dispensing closures, which were designed to replace the typical nondispensing caps on travel-sized containers. “Because these small-sized closures are the same standard height as nondispensing closures, companies can use them without having to change any box or shelf heights,” says Nancy Kane, marketing coordinator for Crown Zeller.
In addition to making travel-sized and hotel amenities look more upscale, the dispensing caps also make those containers easier to use. Procter & Gamble recently chose the caps for small-sized tubes in its Clairol Herbal Essences Bold and Brilliant hair coloring retail kit.