Luxe Pack panel: Innovation essential for keeping shoppers interested

Many more consumers today are looking to spend every dollar wisely, and continual product and package innovation are essential, or brands face potential extinction. This is especially the case with luxury goods, according to a panel of brand owners and retailers appearing at the recent Luxe Pack show in New York City.

Panelists mentioned that for today’s money-strapped consumers, brand loyalty isn’t what it used to be. According to Cosmetics Design.com, which reported on the panel discussion, the panelists said innovation is imperative just to keep shoppers interested in considering a brand as they make their purchase selection.

It’s another way of saying what Ernie Pang, an associate at Packaging & Technology Integrated Solutions, wrote in a February 2010 column in Packaging World: Packaging innovation has the potential to deliver results in a big way. But it has to be grounded in The Four Cs: Consumer, Customer, Category, Company.

Improving interaction with shoppers is crucial, the Web site quoted Debra Leipman-Yale from Arcade Marketing as saying in her presentation at Luxe Pack. A successful effort extends to packaging, and one way to engage shoppers is through innovation such as packaging with sensorial cues including surfaces and finishes that feel tactile in the hand. Such package surfaces give products “pick-up power” and engage consumers to interact with the product, making it much more likely they’ll put it in their cart.