Canpack: unleashing the storytelling potential of cans

Packaging producer CANPACK sees the 360-degree printable surface of a can as a tremendous tool for beverage brands to engage with consumers.

Over recent years, a shift to both online shopping and at-home consumption has highlighted the importance of sensory interaction with products. Packaging plays a vital role in that interaction. Coupled with a rapid rise in new market entrants, it has made brands look for more innovative ways to provide new experiences and sensations for customers through their packaging.

As shelves (both physically and digitally) are packed with competing products, the type of packaging can make or break purchasing decisions. According to CANPACK, that competitive environment is where cans might come to the forefront.

Thanks to their 360-degree printable surface, cans may serve as a blank canvas with great storytelling potential. The packaging manufacturer wants to ensure the consumers experience something special about the brands they choose.

“When we look at the beverage can we know that labels have a strong influence on the purchasing decision,” says Stephen McAneny, Group Commercial Officer at CANPACK. “We know that 64% of purchase decisions are made at the shelf and that number is rising. So treating the can as a blank canvas is a tremendous marketing tool for our customers to utilise and to engage with the consumer.”

Maximising impact

CANPACK sees its role as helping brands to reach consumers in a meaningful and unique way, and creating a special connection between consumer and brand. It is an ethos that the company summarises in its three-word tagline: ‘Create That Feeling’.

“We understand that the taste, the sight, the sound, the smell, the feel of the product plays such an important part in our customers’ brand equity value,” says McAneny. “We can help to enhance that experience of the brand with our packaging.”

With a range of formats and special effects, the company believes it can maximise the storytelling potential of cans. In particular, it can offer a multi-sensory experience for consumers. With a variety of inks and finishes, brand owners can create their desired look as well as unique textures for the packaging.

Moreover, the company’s printing technologies such as Quadromix and Multiprint allow several designs to be produced within one production batch. As more products arrive to market with multiple packaging designs, the technologies ensure that even small brands can keep up with the trend and tell an even more engaging story.

Finally, the range of tabs and ends complement the design and make the moment of consumption memorable. With options for different colours, engravings and embossed details, the moment of opening a can becomes a moment to excite all five senses. As brands seek to build loyal customer bases, such exciting moments can be a key part of their arsenal.

Collaboration is key

Creative collaboration is integral to the partnerships CANPACK builds. The company believes that, to be successful, brands and their partners must work closely together to achieve bespoke, innovative solutions. That is why CANPACK offers its customers creative support and inspiration, from initial ideation through co-creation to execution.

That process is complemented by innovation days, design support and collaboration with customers’ agencies. The path to a final product is also eased by pre-testing and fast trial prototypes, ensuring the right design solutions for customers. While pushing boundaries and innovation are central to CANPACK’s work, high standards of safety, quality and efficiency are also at the heart of its method.

As a solution for curious brands, CANPACK is keen to support customers from the very start of the journey. For McAneny, the process of collaboration is an exciting opportunity. Every partnership means the team can, as he says, “unleash the storytelling potential of cans together.”

For more information on CANPACK or to contact the company, visit www.canpack.com