Latest Launches
Deliciously Vintage
The on10 cosmetics brand has become known for its lip balms inspired by the scents, flavors, and vintage artwork of classic candy and beverage brands such as The Hershey Co., Dr. Pepper, and Schweppes Ginger Ale. (The brand is the “older sister” to the Lotta Luv brand, known for its teen and tween cosmetics inspired by famous candy brands.) This fall exclusively at Sephora, on10 launched a new collection of packaging for its line featuring images of old-fashion pinup girls.
“The pinup girl art is original ‘Schweppicure’ art from Cadbury Schweppes’s archives,” says Eileen Rappaport, senior vice president for on10. “These ‘ladies’ were part of the advertising for Schweppes in those vintage years. The Schweppicure women are circa 1920 through 1940.”
Packaging components include tins, a round retro-looking compact, and lip balm tubes. For a gift set, a pinup girl image was screen printed onto a gold metallic clutch. “Printing on the clutch was straightforward, and printing on tin was also easy,” says Rappaport.
Something to Smile About
Tarte Cosmetics and BriteSmile have teamed up to deliver a double-ended pen containing BriteSmile’s teeth-whitening formula and Tarte’s t5 super fruit mint-scented lip gloss. Brushes on either end of the Enbrightenmint pen make both products easy and convenient to apply.
The unique connector piece at the midpoint of the custom-molded pen features a locking mechanism. The connector can be slid up and down a few millimeters toward either end of the pen. When customers want to dispense the BriteSmile gel, they slide the connector toward the end of the pen containing the BriteSmile product. The connector can then be rotated, and the BriteSmile product will flow through the brush out of that end of the pen. To dispense Tarte’s lip gloss, the connector piece can be slid toward the other end of the pen and then rotated.
“The sliding mechanism releases a platform that rises up when rotated, pushing the formula up through the applicator,” explains Heather Ratushny, Tarte’s senior manager of product development. “We wanted the center piece to allow the pen to distribute each product separately, while also featuring an off position to keep excess product from leaking.”
Ratushny adds that BriteSmile’s formula was compatible with Tarte’s pen because the pen’s materials are the same as those used for one of BriteSmile’s own pens, called BriteSmile to Go. “This meant that this new package required limited testing,” she says.
Pretty Fancy
Jessica Simpson’s new Fancy fragrance bottle was designed after a vanity bottle and decorated with a rose-gold floral motif.
“The Fancy bottle is meant to capture the vintage feeling of the antique bottles that Jessica loves to collect. We updated the concept here and made it decorative and feminine with rose-gold embellishments,” says Neil Katz, chairman and CEO of Parlux Fragrances.
Both the bottle and cap are custom. Suppliers included Shorewood Packaging (New York City) for the carton and Rexam (Purchase, NY) for the pump. Design firm Brandonology contributed to the concept.
On-the-Go Nail Polish Remover
Barielle has introduced a new, convenient formula for nail polish remover—its Love Your Nails acetone-free nail polish remover towelettes.
The towelettes are presoaked with a measured dose of nail polish remover. Each polypropylene jar includes 40 towelettes. The travel-friendly jar is a stock component.
“The main challenge was developing an acetone-free nail polish remover pad that really worked. We also didn’t want it to smell harsh,” adds Mark Pollock, Barielle’s president. “Lucky for us, our manufacturer sent us our samples in that jar. We thought, ‘Why change it?’ It’s small enough to fit in a pocketbook or a gym bag, it doesn’t leak, and there were no signs of the plastic and the ingredients interacting. It wasn’t ‘broke,’ so we decided not to fix it. The jar happened to be stock, which helped us accomplish our goals.”
Made from Bamboo
Together with supplier Anisa International (Atlanta), Lauren Hutton created a new eco-friendly brush set, called the Bamboo 8-in-4 Brush Set, for her cosmetics line.
The brush handles are made from sustainable bamboo. According to Anisa, bamboo is an enduring natural resource that can be commercially managed in plantations to reduce the damage done to native forests. Bamboo is the world’s fastest-growing plant and can be harvested every three to five years, versus every 40 to 60 years for traditional trees.
Like other Lauren Hutton brushes, the brushes in this set bear color-coded rings on the handles to indicate which brushes should be used with which product, making application easy and convenient for customers.
Packaging for the Blind
L’Occitane en Provence, the 30-year-old French company known for its natural and organic bath and body products, has begun featuring Braille on its packaging. Detectable by touch, small discreet dots are featured on many products’ labels.
According to a company spokesperson, “L’Occitane has always sought to make its products available to a broad spectrum of the population. The blind represent a category of people for whom access to consumer goods is often very difficult. Braille allows the blind and poor-sighted to make informed choices.”
Refreshing Concept
Murad came up with a unique way to package its Wet Suit summer collection of skin care products. The products, including moisturizers and SPF items, were filled in tubes, which were in turn packaged in a water bottle.
“The theme of the promotion was ‘Summer essentials to hydrate and protect,’” says Lisa Polley, Murad’s vice president of corporate communications. “With our topical products, we were able to provide the skin with hydration and protection; however, we wanted to promote the idea of keeping the entire body hydrated during the hot summer months. With the help of a sleek water bottle, we can encourage customers to reuse and refill their water bottle and take it on the go.”
Polley adds that the only challenge with the water bottle was finding one whose neck was wide enough to allow the company to fit the product tubes through.
Whip Smart
Smashbox Cosmetics added a sassy touch to its new Wicked Lovely cosmetics collection—black tassels resembling whips on the line’s lip gloss caps.
“Every woman, no matter how sweet or lovely, always has a side that’s a little bit naughty and wicked. That was the inspiration for the collection,” says Grace Ray, vice president of global marketing and public relations for Smashbox. “We wanted the packaging, with its slick, black finishes and delicate floral tattoos, to convey that sexy edge with a hint of sweetness.”
Erase Mistakes
Risdon International (Watertown, CT) produced a custom double-ended package for Avon’s MistakeProof mascara. One end of the package features a mascara brush, while the other end offers a patented, flexible flocked-tip applicator that can be used to “erase” mistakenly applied mascara.
The package’s two black bottles are made from polypropylene and joined together by a shiny metal connector that was silk-screened with Avon’s logo.
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