Strong Branded Packaging from Up-and-coming German Students

One of the solutions was aimed at appealing to older couples as a target group and the other solution targeted young families with children.

05/10/06 Frövi/Stuttgart. ”Intelligent and creative packaging solutions with maximum selling power” was the general consideration taken into account in judging the entries from Hochschule der Medien Stuttgart in the first German Packaging Impact Design Award (PIDA).

The competition for the new generation of designers was organized by the Swedish cartonboard producer Korsnäs (earlier AssiDomän Frövi), which has supported young European designer talents for more than ten years. The winning group in PIDA Germany 2006 invented a very ingenious and innovative packaging concept for muesli named ”hängbar”, designed to fit onto a key-ring.

Contestants had four months to devise two packaging solutions in Korsnäs material for a product chosen by themselves either within the cosmetic and beauty segment or the pharma and healthcare segment. One of the solutions was aimed at appealing to older couples as a target group and the other solution targeted young families with children. 

As the name indicates ”packaging impact” is one of the most important factors in judging the entries. The key issues were: did the students succeed in creating a packaging concept that corresponds to the needs of the target group; did they also contribute to the buying demand at the point-of-purchase; does the packaging strengthen the brand? User-friendliness and cost effectiveness were other criteria taken into account by the jury.

Jana Seyfang, Sophie Wittl and Jenny Keicher, the group with the winning entry “hängbar”, excelled by following the brief to the letter. The concept idea is a quick and easy snack on the move and the design integrates an attachment inside the outer carton which allows the bars to be placed ready for convenient removal. Easy removal of the bars has been the focal point for the older generation and to appeal to the younger generation a punched hole has been added to allow bars to be threaded onto the popular key-rings. A snack cannot be more easily accessible.

”Hängbar – a striking name”

The winning group also showed their talents by choosing a striking name to brand the concept. The play on words works just as well in Swedish as in German (häng = hang) where the English word “bar” has been borrowed which refers to both a snack and to a place where you can be served. The winners were rewarded with travelling checks and two weeks practical experience in a design agency or at a cosmetic producer. 

The jury was very impressed by the high standard in all of the entries: “All the packaging solutions were surprising, innovative and eye-catching in different ways. We were especially impressed by the various creative ideas where they used the Korsnäs material for products usually associated with totally different materials”, commented the jury chairman Thomas Reissig, from the design agency VerDeSoft in Nürnberg.

The award ceremony took place on the 11th of May 2006 at "Hochschule der Medien Stuttgart”. One of the highlights during the day was a lecture by Lars Wallentin, formerly head designer and education manager at Nestlé. With more than 40 years experience within the field he generously shared his knowledge about communication in packaging. Few messages, conveyed with warmth and humour, are the cornerstones in his concept. Communication instead of information was the key message in his lecture to the young and enthusiastic participants which was fully attained in his own communication.