casestudy
Standout shelf appeal is
the packaging goal of every
consumer-based retail products
company.
That’s especially true in the highly competitive market of
pharmaceutical. But with a myriad of competitors, a constant
flow of new products hitting the market and increasingly limited
shelf space, achieving that goal is extremely difficult.
That was the situation faced by Zandu Ayurvedic Products,
a division of Emami Limited, an India-based personal and
healthcare products company. Zandu brand owners believed
their products were not getting the proper display value as most
were being sold in conventional aluminum foil blister packs,
which was resulting in a loss of market identity and customer
awareness.
To reverse this trend, Emami decided a packaging redesign was
needed. They wanted a look that was unique in the industry
with attractive shelf appeal. The resulting rhombus-shaped pack
design with curvy contours for both the container and the cap
was unlike any product in the marketplace.
Pressure-sensitive label delivers
shelf appeal while overcoming
challenges presented by curved,
rhombus-shaped package
However, this novel shape created a new challenge: package
labeling. Not only did Emami’s marketing team require a singlepiece label which had to function on the four sides of the bottle
in four different package sizes (ranging from 30 ml. to 450 ml.
capacities), but it also had to communicate the product’s brand
attributes and be produced and applied economically. This final
stipulation was the most difficult to achieve, given the nonsymmetrical depressions and contours on the bottle.
label.averydennison.com
casestudy
Initially, Emami’s packaging development team thought shrink
labeling would be the most cost-effective and productionfriendly method. However, with more than 100 product varieties
and the need for frequent changeovers after small runs, they
quickly realized this was not a feasible option. Cost-effective
procurement of shrink labels for so many varieties and pack sizes
would be a continuous challenge for the fast-growing brand.
Other options such as pad printing, heat-transfer labels and
foil stamping also proved to be unsuccessful due to various
technical limitations and cost.
The initial pressure-sensitive label trials run by Emami’s packaging
development team were also unsuccessful. The depressions and
contours of the rhombus-shaped package prevented the packs
from being labeled without wrinkles and air trappings.
Emami turned to Avery Dennison, a global leader in labeling and
packaging materials, for a solution.
According to Ashish Moghe, market manager, pharmaceutical,
and Parag Bagade, technical manager, both with Avery
Dennison, India, their first action was to bring together all the
parties involved in the process. This included the label converter,
the labeling machine manufacturer and Emami’s packaging
development team. After only a few trials they developed a wraparound pressure-sensitive label that met Emami’s objectives.
“The Emami package did create some challenges,” said Moghe.
“But with a great collaborative team effort we were able to
overcome them.”
Moghe believes the key to their success was a thorough study of
all the variables involved. “We had three issues to resolve in order
to find a solution for a label that would work,” he said. “First, the
applicator had to be redesigned to include the addition of a
spring-loaded massage roller. Second, we needed to eliminate
the air pockets that were being created as a result of the
container’s rhombus shape. And third, we needed to match the
line speed of the labeling with the conveyors.
“We overcame these challenges because of our service
orientation,” Moghe continued. “We were the only supplier who
engaged the other stakeholders in the value chain in order to
meet the needs of Emami.”
And that end result has pleased Emami’s brand team members.
They credit both the new package shape and label with
achieving all their goals: more brand spacing, enhanced shelf
appeal, increased consumer awareness, and most importantly,
an increase in sales.
“It was truly a pleasant experience to
work as a team with Avery Dennison,”
said Subhash Ghosh, DGM
(Technical) - Packaging Development
with Emami. “With their all-out
support and technical input, it was
something that all of us in Emami’s
packaging development department
enjoyed.”
The labeling solution has enabled Emami to devote maximum
space on the label for branding by creating design features that
maintain the ethnic, rural and tribal feel of the products.
The new label is orange with a green trim line at the top and
bottom and a gradient yellow circle in the center on the front
panel. In the middle of the yellow circle is the silhouette of a
person in a seated meditative pose with hands together and
stretched upward, conveying a calming and healthy feel. The
Zandu brand name is positioned above the image and the
product name is below it. Both are written in black sans serif font.
Emami’s packaging development team credits Avery Dennison’s
quick responses, technical support, integration into Emami’s
team, brainstorming of different solutions and input on all types
of trouble shooting as being particularly beneficial to solving the
labeling dilemma.
01/2014, PDF
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