Themed printed packaging; winter wonderland – part 3

Christmas continues to dominate supermarket shelves in the UK, with packaging and labels printed to bring the festive season to life; from snowmen and robins, to Santa Claus and Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer.

 

As you would expect, all of the supermarkets in the UK are heaving with Christmas-themed packaging. In Morrisons and Marks and Spencer (M&S) I’ve seen an array of own-brand products decorated with a festive theme.

 

In Morrisons, you can buy gingerbread and shortbread snacks retailed in cartons with die-cut features that extend outside the dimensions of the main carton. For instance, the top of Santa’s hat on the box for festive shortbread shapes, and the bobble on the robin’s hat, as used on the carton for toffee shortbread stars, over-shoot the top of the main packaging.

 

Likewise, the top quarter of the gingerbread man’s head as used to illustrate jolly gingerbread men extends beyond the core shape of the packaging.

 

The three cartons are also creased and folded to taper the closure at the top.

 

Christmas Tree Cake Pop Kits feature a host of festive decorations (pictured, below), while the outer carton also fulfills a secondary function as a stand for treats once they have been baked and decorated. Small holes perforated into the reverse can be popped out by the consumer, creating a cooling and serving utensil.  

 

Morrisons is also offering Lebkuchen Stars in flexible packaging as part of its early “M Christmas” product portfolio. Lebkuchen is a traditional German Christmas treat, and the flexible packaging in red, a color closely linked with the festive period, is decorated with Christmas trees.

 

In M&S, a host of further products can be found, mostly in packaging colored red, including Frosty Balls; milk chocolate spheres in a crisp candy shell rolled in icing sugar.

 

The flexible packaging is decorated with a chubby robin wearing a winter hat, and where the stomach would usually be, a window has been cut out of the substrate and replaced with a transparent film.  

 

Or you can buy a gingerbread tree. The tall, baked structure is hand decorated and retailed in a folding carton with a large section cut away and replaced with a plastic window to allow the frosting, product decoration and intricate build to be seen by consumers, and make the product more appealing to the eye.

 

Even sandwiches, on sale in WH Smith stores, have been given a Christmas flavor, both through the product and the packaging.

 

Pictured, left, is the Foo.go Christmas Triple, featuring turkey and stuffing, prawn cocktail, and brie and cranberry fillings, all in a carton decorated with Christmas trees and a die-cut window revealing the contents.

 

Confectionery giants Mars and Nestlé are big users of festive themes to enhance their products’ appeal as stocking fillers or smaller gifts. Maltesers share boxes have been decorated with snow-capped chocolates printed on the carton to give the packaging a wintery feel, while smaller treat boxes feature a twinkling star effect and green reindeer reminding consumers to recycle the carton. Galaxy treat boxes, another Mars Incorporated brand, also feature this decoration.

 

Nestlé Walnut Whip multipacks are also printed with a star effect, as well as a festive ribbon, to enhance the gift appeal of the packaging.      

 

As I mentioned in an earlier blog, pets are also getting in on the Christmas spirit with the packaging for cat and dog treats and snacks given a festive makeover.

 

Armitage Good Boy products, for dogs, and its Good Girl range, designed for cats, have been given a festive makeover using archetypal Christmas images, such as Rudolph, while snowboarding cats and dogs have also been used to give products a wintery feel.

 

A Christmas treat kennel can be bought for those dogs that have been especially well behaved this year, with the carton packaging decorated with the image of a stocking, presents and snow.

 

You can even buy special cat and dog advent calendars, featuring a puppy wearing a Santa hat (as pictured) or a cat.

 

Asda Tiger turkey flavor cat treats also feature a cat in a Santa hat, as well as baubles and a star effect.  

 

Back to goods for human consumption, and cartons are being supersized to turn an everyday product into a Christmas treat. As seen earlier, four packs of Cadbury Fingers can be bought in a collation carton printed with a silhouette of Santa and his sleigh delivering the chocolate treats as if presents.

 

An over-sized Galaxy bar has now been seen, although actually consisting of three chocolate bars, as has a yard of Jaffa Cakes. Jaffa Cakes are a chocolate-covered sponge and orange jelly snack produced by McVitie’s.

 

The yard-long carton is printed with four special Christmas slogans, including “Tastier than Brussels sprouts” and “You won’t believe your mince pies”, and retailed in display units printed with graphics showing ribbons made of orange peel and holly.

 

The Lindt Lindor Maxi Ball is another confection using supersized packaging to make the product appear more appealing to buyers as a high-end gift.

 

The large plastic ball is filled with standard sized Lindt Lindor chocolates, already a high-end treat, and is wrapped in a printed film decorated in the classic Lindt Lindor logo and text.