2008 Editors’ Choice Award Winner: Cosmetics
Loose Pigments
by Urban Decay Cosmetics
Urban Decay’s Loose Pigments package is an all-in-one container that makes loose powder easy and convenient to apply. The product itself is sold in a rainbow of intensely pigmented shades that are perfect for the trendy and creative Urban Decay customer.
“We’ve always wanted to develop a loose-powder eye shadow because our customers really love eye shadow. It’s a big part of our business. And a loose-powder eye shadow creates a completely different look than a pressed-powder shadow,” says Wende Zomnir, founding partner and executive creative director for Urban Decay Cosmetics.
The common problem with loose powders is that they are often difficult to contain in a package. They leak, and they spill. To solve this problem, supplier HCT Packaging designed this package, which features an internal chamber and a funnel that help to keep powder contained in the bottle.
The bottom half of the bottle contains the loose-powder chamber. This chamber is connected to a funnel, which widens near the top of the jar. Because the funnel is narrower near the mouth of the powder chamber, it prevents powder from escaping from the chamber.
HCT Packaging had come up with the container’s basic concept before showing it to Urban Decay. The two companies are longtime partners who have for years developed packages together for Urban Decay. Together, they worked to design this package specifically for Urban Decay.
Some of the features that were added include a flared shape for the cap and a ledge at the container’s bottom that helps the package balance and stand upright. “We worked hand in hand with Urban Decay to refine the package,” says Nick Gardner, vice president of sales for HCT.
It was also important to Urban Decay that the brand’s best-selling eye shadow brush be a part of this package. When engineering the package, HCT Packaging had to shape the package around the parameters of this brush. The brush was attached to the underside of the cap so that it automatically dips into the powder when the cap is screwed on, making it ready for the next use. A thermoplastic elastomer piece on the cap creates a friction fit with the bottle, acting as a stopper to further help keep powder sealed in the package.
The packaging is easy and intuitive to use. “Many of the stores that we’re sold in are self-serve environments like Sephora and Ulta. How the packaging works has to speak for itself,” says Zomnir.
The clear PCTA bottle is covered with a decorative aluminum shell. A gap in the shell’s covering allows the product’s shade to show through the clear plastic. One of the biggest challenges was creating the exact shade of Urban Decay purple on the aluminum shell. Both Zomnir and Gardner confirm that purple is one of the hardest colors to work with. “Purple can get very muddy, and it can vary a lot during anodizing,” says Zomnir.
The package’s components were manufactured in various HCT facilities and assembled by hand. In addition to developing the packaging, HCT also formulated the powder, providing a complete turnkey service.
“Urban Decay is a very good customer of ours because they are very open to new ideas, and they can jump on a new idea quickly,” says Gardner. “In that respect, our two companies are very similar. We’ve got a lot of ideas.”
Our predictions say that this is one idea that should pay off nicely.