In May it was Belgium for Xeikon Café, a packaging-focused open house at Xeikon's headquarters in the Antwerp suburb of Lier. More than 200 customers and prospects were on hand, along with representatives of 28 companies that partner with Xeikon in developing and delivering solutions for labels and folding cartons.
I spent two days last month at the Flexible Packaging Association conference in Scottsdale where the centerpiece of the event was the annual Flexible Packaging Achievement Awards. It was flat-out inspiring to see the range of creativity and innovation being brought forward throughout this exciting industry segment. It leaves no doubt that flexible packaging is where we'll see some fine work from brand owners, designers and converters in the next few years.
Bill Cecil of MeadWestVaco calls that instant when a shopper pulls a package off a shelf and puts it in their cart "the moment of truth." It's when marketing, presentation and desire converge—and it's a big reason why packaging is so important.
Recent research by MeadWestVaco indicates that packaging can matter almost as much to consumers as the brand itself. A package is a representation of the product it contains. It is what people see in print and broadcast advertising, in friends' homes, and it's what they look for when shopping in stores, at the mall and online.
Perhaps the coolest thing about the business of printing packaging is that you may be able to see your work in action when you go into a store or receive an order from some amorphous online retailer. The three Ps of packaging always apply, Protection, Portability and Promotion.
