Packaging is your silent salesperson…
It either sells for you or it creates friction.
Our old multi-pack looked clean, but here’s what we discovered:
Customers didn’t always realize there were 4 bars inside.
Some thought it was just one bar in a box.
The design leaned heavily on the flavor (“Cookie Dough”),
While Mid-Day Squares the brand took a back seat.
Both of those things caused hesitation.
And in the aisle, hesitation kills.
So we made two purposeful changes:
Louder “4 BARS” right on the front clear, fast, no guessing.
Mid-Day Squares big and bold, because our thesis has always been that these are made for the midday moment. That’s the ritual we’re building. We want to be the leader in the afternoon snacking space.
The result? Multi-pack sales have jumped since this hit shelves a couple of months ago.
Not because the box is prettier, but because it communicates instantly and anchors our purpose.
The lesson: Packaging isn’t just decoration. It’s strategy.
It’s your brand voice when you’re not there to explain.
This photo was taken at a store where the old and new boxes are still sitting next to each other.
#sales#retail#grocery#cpg#marketing#packaging
Ever notice how WILDLY different product categories speak completely different visual languages on shelf?
Take a look at these two shelf pics I snapped recently—they tell a fascinating story about consumer psychology that most shoppers never consciously register:
In the dried fruit/BFY snack section, it's a VIBRANT COLOR EXPLOSION. Crispy Fruit's neon purple packaging screams for attention next to Love Corn's sunny yellows. Every brand fighting to be the most visually stimulating option.
Meanwhile, the granola section is practically whispering with its sea of earthy tones. Kind, Bear Naked, and Purely Elizabeth all using the same muted palette playbook.
This isn't random—it's strategic color psychology:
For "serious nutrition" foods, we expect understated packaging that signals authenticity, purity and premium ingredients. The muted granola packaging says "I'm a thoughtful health choice" without saying a word.
But better-for-you snacks? They're competing with conventional treats for your dopamine hit, so they maintain that visual excitement while offering healthier ingredients. Their bright packaging subtly promises: "I'm still fun! Just better for you!"
The takeaway for emerging brands?
👉 Your packaging color strategy should acknowledge these unspoken category rules—while critically finding that differentiator sweet spot to stand out without alienating shoppers.
What do you notice about the packaging strategies on these two shelves? 👇
Stand Out or Get Out.
Grocery chains don't mess around when it comes to shelf space.
Limited space means tough choices...who stays, who goes. And as the Godfather famously said, "This isn't personal, it's strictly business."
Even well-loved brands get delisted if their products don't outshine both current competitors and the next big thing.
With strict label requirements, bargain-hunting consumers, and limited patents to lean on, making your food brand stand out through packaging is essential.
In today's market, the best-branded product wins, period.
Shoppers decide in seconds. Packaging must grab attention and leave a lasting impression.
Who are you designing for? A time-strapped mum? A health-focused Gen-Z? A shopper seeking indulgence in a world of restrictions? Knowing your audience is where great design starts.
Data is your weapon. Use it well. Social media trends, market reports, competitor analysis... every insight can shape packaging that resonates. The brands that win shelf space aren't just creative, they're strategic.
But let's not stop there. Hit the ground. Walk the aisles. Watch how consumers shop. Ask questions, find gaps, and identify where competitors fall short. Not just a box-ticking exercise, it's your playbook for standing out.
Just ask RXBAR. In a sea of protein bars shouting with flashy, cluttered designs, RX went the opposite way... and won big.
All based on consumer insight.
Its packaging—featuring a plain background with bold text listing core ingredients like "3 Egg Whites, 6 Almonds, 4 Cashews, 2 Dates"—eliminates the need for shoppers to sift through complicated ingredient lists, instantly conveying the product's clean, simple nature.
Bold, distinct colours for each flavour made the brand easy to spot, further enhancing shelf visibility.
No fine print, no gimmicks. Just clean, honest transparency.
This no-nonsense approach is perfectly echoed in their latest campaign ''The B.S. Blocker.''
Kicking off the year with a call to ditch unrealistic "New Year, New Me" tropes, RXBAR took their message of self-acceptance to the streets (literally).
Launching with bold OOH ads, a cheeky moving truck "blocking" bad vibes, and a partnership with @dudettewithsign—known for brutally honest messages—the brand doubled down on rejecting guilt and embracing realness.
Demonstrates that in the ruthless grocery game, clean, honest, and eye-catching design isn't just nice to have... it's a must-have for winning shelf space. The stakes are high and only the strongest survive.
Packaging (and great marketing) is your frontline soldier in this retail jungle. If it's not bold, distinctive, and clear, it's lost before the battle begins.
Ready to conquer the retail jungle or get lost in it?
Fan of what RXBAR are doing?
🎁 𝐈𝐬 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐏𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐫-𝐂𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐜 𝐄𝐧𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡?
Your Packaging Talks—But Is It Saying the Right Thing?
We’ve all had that moment—standing in front of a box we just can’t open, or struggling to return a product because the packaging makes it nearly impossible.
In an age where unboxing is a shared experience, and convenience is king, brands can no longer afford to treat packaging as an afterthought. It’s time we asked ourselves:
🟡 Is our packaging built for usability or just shelf appeal?
🟡 Is it frustrating or intuitive?
🟡 Does it delight... or disappoint?
In our latest article, we explore why the most forward-thinking brands now see packaging as a strategic experience—not just a wrapper.
Here’s a taste of what we cover:
✔️ Protection is the bare minimum — smart packaging goes beyond damage control
✔️ Frustration-free access — no more wrestling with plastic or scissors
✔️ Returns made easy — packaging that’s designed for convenience builds trust
✔️ A second life — reuse and repurpose equals sustainability and brand love
✔️ Emotional connection — from the color to the texture, packaging is a brand storyteller
✔️ Consistency — packaging is your most visible, most frequent brand ambassador
Brands that win loyalty are the ones that think like their customers. They ask, How can this box serve a purpose even after it's opened? How can it bring a smile, solve a problem, or say something about who we are as a brand?
💡 From tech gadgets to handmade soaps, packaging has become the interface between product and perception. It’s where marketing, design, and customer experience converge.
📦 Whether you're a founder, designer, or marketer, it's time to ask: Is your packaging just functional—or truly customer-centric?
👉 Read the full article (link below) to explore how packaging can become your most powerful customer touchpoint.
Let’s design boxes that open more than just lids—let’s open conversations, loyalty, and love.
#PackagingDesign#CustomerExperience#SustainableBrands#BrandLoyalty#EcommercePackaging#D2C#ProductDesign#ConsumerPsychology#DesignThinking#CX#BrandStorytelling#UserExperience
Water in milk cartons, olive oil in squeeze bottles, sunscreen in whip cream cans, moonshine in motor oil containers.
While most companies can't afford to invest significant sums into custom packaging like Califia, Welly, Olly and Method, many have still found ways to punch above their weight, disrupt categories and build brand equity by appropriating stock packaging options from other categories. The key is knowing which structures to hijack and why, as simply being different for difference-sake isn't enough.
Here are 5 approaches and principles to use when selecting a stock structure:
💥 Disrupt the Matrix
Stillhouse disrupted bottled spirits with a stainless steel can. Forty Ounce Wines broke the wine bottle mold with the infamous malt liquor bottle. Vacation's whip cream can turns heads in sunscreen.
The more common a particular packaging format is, the greater the opportunity to standout. The key to success is blending novelty with functionality to both fit in and stand out.
🧲 Attract New Audiences
Local Weather connected with Gen-Z by ditching traditional plastic bottles and becoming the first sports drink to use an infinitely recyclable bottle. Underwood spoke to consumers tired of wine's stuffy image by canning high-quality wine. Liquid Death needs no explanation.
Category codes are meant to be broken, particularly as each new generation of consumers arises, which makes packaging a powerful tool to subvert entrenched norms.
🥛 Leverage Associations
Paper board cartons trigger thoughts of milk, so Blue Bottle ingeniously used a milk pint for its first iced coffee product with dairy. Smart Home Farm's granola in a carton reinforces eating it with milk and enjoying for breakfast. Flo uses an ice cream pint for their tampons to cheekily hint at period-cravings.
The more common a structure is in a category, the more associations is accrues, which can then be leveraged to subconsciously communicate information, so long as consumers can intuit the meaning.
🎉 Create Occasion
Graza famously launched olive oil in plastic squeeze bottles to make in-home use fun, easy and fresh after recognizing this use in restaurants. Fred Water’s plastic flask bottle fit easily into the back pockets of bicycling urbanites on-the-go in cities like NYC, on top of giving it an edgy vibe. Underwood’s canned wine opened up pools, beaches and places where glass is prohibited.
Novel packaging in a given category can encourage new usage occasions and consumer opportunities to great success.
🗣️ Communicate Values
Culina yogurt used terracotta pots to reinforce it's plant-based ideals. Boxed Water fights for more sustainable futures. Underwood and Forty Ounce Wines knows quality doesn't have to come in a bottle.
Packaging, used wisely, can reinforce strong company beliefs amidst competitors.
So while custom structural design can create immense value, so too can the appropriation of stock packaging with the right strategy and insight.
Costco buyers don’t care about your sleek, minimalist DTC packaging. Here’s what actually turns their heads.
Many brands mistakenly assume their packaging designed to wow online shoppers will crush it at club retail. But Costco and Sam’s Club aren’t DTC scaled up — they’re COMPLETELY different worlds.
When it comes to packaging for club channels like Costco and Sam’s, here’s what buyers truly value:
—
Shelf presence at 8–12 feet
✅ big, bold graphics readable from a distance
✅ clear value messaging (“2X More”, “Family Pack”)
✅ simple color blocking (“billboarding”) — no fine print
👉 club shoppers are navigating massive aisles stacked high.
—
Tray & structural integrity are non-negotiable
✅ trays must hold product facing front and upright
✅ reinforced corners to survive “grab & drag”
✅ pallet height restrictions (often 60–72 inches)
✅ optimized pallet cube design = shipping & handling savings
👉 Your packaging is also your in-store display.
—
High velocity, fast replenishment
✅ easy to restock — quick to unbox, handle, and replenish
✅ meets Costco/Sam’s packaging test standards (32 ECT min)
✅ right-sized packs — no handling nightmares
👉 buyers love packaging that makes floor teams faster.
—
Brand consistency & club channel nuance
✅ stay premium — but adapt messaging boldly for club shoppers
✅ recognize club requires clear, visual storytelling
Costco and Sam’s buyers want functional packaging that pops at retail distance, survives brutal handling, optimizes pallet space, and instantly conveys bold value.
#cpg#costco#clubstore#retail#packagingdesign
----
🌭 pro tip: successful brands prioritize full-stack operational thinking early — packaging engineering, pallet optimization, and store-level shopper insight — not just pretty graphics.
Done properly, club packaging drives margins, velocity, and operational efficiency. All things Costco & Sam’s buyers care deeply about.
MrBeast sold 1 million chocolate bars in 72 hours.
Feastables did $10 million in revenue opening weekend.
From one YouTube video.
But here's what actually made it work:
He sold a golden ticket lottery.
Every bar had a code. 10 codes won a trip to compete in a real Willy Wonka factory he built for a video. Grand prize: Win the factory.
People bought 47 bars trying to find a ticket. Not because they wanted 47 chocolate bars. Because they wanted to be in the video.
But here's the retail capture strategy:
Most DTC brands never get customer data from retail sales. You buy at Walmart, the brand has no idea who you are.
MrBeast printed a shortcode on every package: "Text FEAST to 69420 for a chance to win $10,000"
To enter, you had to send a photo of your receipt.
This did two things:
1. Captured customer data from retail (which brands never get)
2. Turned one time retail buyers into SMS subscribers
30,000 new SMS subscribers from retail packaging alone.
Then they used SMS to ask: "What flavor should we make next?"
12,000 people voted.
Milk chocolate won.
When milk chocolate launched, those 12,000 people felt ownership. They told everyone "I voted for this flavor."
It's now their #1 SKU.
For your retail brand:
Can you put QR codes or shortcodes on packaging to capture retail customer data?
Can you turn product launches into competitions or lotteries?
Can you ask customers what to make next before you make it?
Your packaging is a data capture tool and a referral mechanism.
And who says Packaging doesn’t matter? Similar strawberries. Similar quantity. More than a $2 difference in price! 🍓
Why?
Packaging.
In the new packaging, the fruit is transformed; it's a thoughtful gesture or gift. It's a moment.
Often, I talk to clients who think of packaging as a cost rather than an investment. But look at how packaging impacts brand perception, top-line sales, and margins. Usually, CPG brands are concerned about getting the lowest price for their packaging to increase their margins without raising the price for their customer significantly, which usually means a few cents.
Here's another way to do it.
Instead of asking, “How do we make packaging cheaper?” Driscoll's asked, “How do we make the product worth more?”
Driscoll's has changed their packaging and raised the price by more than two dollars. With this simple change, they have improved brand perception, increased top-line sales, and created a huge margin on a prettier but similar package. The heart clamshell packaging creates a gift or display that justifies the price increase for a select group of customers who are willing to pay more for these strawberries.
These are the same strawberries, but in the heart-shaped packaging, they tell a very different (and more profitable) story. 🍓
#PackagingDesign#BrandStrategy#CPG#MarketingStrategy#DesignThinking
In U.S. retail, success is not about size.
It is about fitting the system you enter.
And in 2026, each major retailer is pushing a different strategy.
The mistake is entering with only one.
If you manufacture for the United States, this is what is really happening:
🔵 Walmart: System, scale, and extreme efficiency
Walmart is not obsessed with novelty.
It is obsessed with frictionless operations.
What wins here:
↳ SKUs that rotate without constant intervention.
↳ Packaging optimized for logistics and replenishment.
↳ Prices that can be defended under pressure.
↳ Products that work the same in physical and digital retail.
2026 strategy:
Fitting the system matters more than attracting attention
🔴 Target: Curation, brand, and design
Target sells functionality, yes.
But above all, it sells aesthetic, style, and brand.
What wins here:
↳ Well designed packaging.
↳ Clear and aspirational claims.
↳ Products that feel giftable or visually appealing.
↳ Strong brand storytelling.
2026 strategy:
It is not only what you sell. It is how it looks on the shelf.
🟢 Whole Foods Market: Justification, not impulse
Here, nobody buys “just because.”
They buy because they can justify it.
What wins here:
↳ Clear ingredients.
↳ Claims that are solid from a regulatory perspective.
↳ Full transparency.
↳ A functional benefit that is easy to understand.
2026 strategy:
If the consumer can not explain why they buy it, it does not enter the cart.
🟠 Costco Wholesale: Volume, value, and trust
Costco Wholesale is not just a retailer.
It is a filter.
What wins here:
↳ Large formats.
↳ Extremely clear price per unit.
↳ A brand that inspires immediate trust.
↳ A product that works for families or groups.
2026 strategy:
Fewer SKUs. More rotation per SKU.
🟡 ALDI USA: Radical simplification
ALDI USA is growing because it is doing the opposite of many others:
↳ Less assortment.
↳ Less complexity.
↳ More clarity.
What wins here:
↳ Easy to understand products.
↳ Clean packaging.
↳ A direct value proposition.
↳ Cost optimized from origin.
2026 strategy:
Those who fit into a simple model survive.
⚫ Amazon retail: Physical and digital hybrid
Here, the product does not only live on the shelf.
It lives in data, searches, and ecosystem.
What wins here:
↳ Packaging that looks good in photos.
↳ Strong logistics performance.
↳ An optimized digital product page.
↳ Compatibility with omnichannel shopping.
2026 strategy:
It is not physical retail. It is connected retail.
The lesson many do not want to hear
The product can be the same.
The strategy can not be.
In the United States, failure is often not about quality.
It is about choosing the right channel with the wrong logic.
If you are thinking about entering or scaling in U.S. retail,
the first question is not “who will buy me?”
It is: In which system can my product survive without friction?
That is where real strategy begins.
What happens when you put a great product in mediocre packaging?
Let’s talk about The Ordinary.
When it launched, it didn’t look like your typical beauty brand.
No airbrushed models. No glossy, rose-gold jars. No poetic product names.
Just plain dropper bottles, clinical labels, and a name that says “ordinary”.
And yet, it disrupted the entire skincare industry.
Here’s why:
They led with value, not vanity: The focus was on the ingredient list, transparency, and education. Customers cared more about “Niacinamide 10%” than a shiny logo.
They built trust through simplicity: The unpolished packaging made it feel honest, like you were paying for science, not fluff.
They turned “boring” into a statement: In a market drowning in overpromises, their minimalism became their differentiator.
The lesson?
Packaging matters, but not always in the way you think.
When your product delivers exceptional results, even “mediocre” packaging can become iconic… if it aligns with your brand story.
So maybe the question isn’t “Does my packaging look premium?”
Maybe it’s “Does my packaging tell the truth?”
What do you think? Would The Ordinary have grown even faster with premium packaging, or would that have broken their brand identity?
#BrandStrategy#PackagingDesign#TheOrdinary#BeautyBranding#MarketingStrategy