Creative packaging design for wine industry

Packaging design must stand out, surprise and, above all, be memorable. Design expertise and creativity are required if packaging and labels are to have that certain something to stand out from the crowd. In an exciting partner project, LEONHARD KURZ and EUREKA have succeeded in doing just that.

Dr Tobias Eismann and Dr Martin Meinel, founders of EUREKA INNOVATION UG, are creativity experts and their research focuses on human creativity and how it can be encouraged. As part of their research, they also discovered that a low alcohol level has a positive effect on creative thinking, as the inhibition threshold drops under the influence of alcohol and people are more inclined to communicate their thoughts and ideas. The start-up founders wanted to translate this insight into a tangible product. The result was a wine spritzer with a special label concept that was realized together with LEONHARD KURZ as a cooperation partner.

Symbiosis of creativity and embellishment technology

KURZ, an expert in surface decoration and design solutions, worked with EUREKA to develop a bottle label and cylindrical outer packaging, which were then implemented in seven different design variants. The theme of creativity ran through all levels of this cooperation project: Two scales are depicted on the bottle label, which mark what the perfect individual amount of the drink is, depending on gender and body weight, in order to stimulate one's own creativity. In this way, the design also creates a bond between the brand and the consumer. The designers found inspiration for the outer packaging in typical whisky packaging, where the packaging is open at the top and fits snugly around the bottle.

The label and packaging designs were implemented in various colors and finished with digital printing. The eye-catching metallization on the labels was created using the DM-UNILINER 2D from KURZ, while the metallization on the outer packaging was created using the DM-SMARTLINER. In combination, the brilliant metallic effects and vibrant colors create a special unboxing experience. While the outer packaging has a colorful finish on the outside, the inside also features exciting texts, decorative design elements and other intricate or large-scale metallization. The digital printing machines from KURZ give designers extensive creative freedom and variability in the implementation of their designs.

Digital printing for outstanding embellishment

Together with its subsidiaries Steinemann DPE and MPRINT, KURZ has launched durable and powerful digital printing machines that enable digital printing on an industrial scale. The digital printing machines, which were also used to finish EUREKA's labels and outer packaging, are characterized by industry-leading efficiency and production speed as well as first-class printing results in just one print pass. The digital printing machines are ideal for new entrants to the embellishment industry as well as those looking to increase efficiency and capacity to achieve higher profits.

With the DM-UNILINER 2D, KURZ is the only supplier on the market to offer the possibility of metallizing uncoated and open-structured papers on an industrial scale, with the patented by KURZ 2D inkjet on transfer technology, with high precision. Thanks to a wide range of colors and metallizations as well as the implementation options for small batches, special editions or larger product series, there are virtually no limits to creative design.

Competent partner for creative packaging

KURZ offers customers a complete package for digital embellishment solutions. In addition to digital printing machines and brilliant digital transfer coatings, this also includes application software and individual design advice. With its technical and creative expertise and a great deal of passion, KURZ is constantly developing its embellishment technologies in order to always offer customers the best possible embellishment solution. In addition to the almost uncompromising feasibility of creative designs, the concept of sustainability also plays an important role. With digital embellishment, no plastic film remains on the label or outer packaging. This means that the EUREKA wine spritzer packaging can be disposed of with the paper waste and recycled without any problems.

The project with EUREKA shows how different perspectives from creative designers and strong partnerships can result in unique packaging designs that offer real added value at the POS.