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The Rise of Refillable

Michael Rutchik, Creative Director of the OLIKA brand of hydrating hand sanitizer, answers PW questions about his brand’s pivot to durable, refillable packaging.

OLIKA hand sanitizer
OLIKA hand sanitizer

Packaging World:
Is there a unique process or methodology behind outside-the-box package design thinking? What’s your approach?

Michael Rutchik:Michael Rutchik, Creative Director of the OLIKAMichael Rutchik, Creative Director of the OLIKA
These last two years marked a turning point in the urgency we felt toward the environment and personal well-being. From extreme weather conditions to stay-at-home orders, we’re more aware of what’s in our home. Sustainability became top of mind and a dominant conversation topic for our team.

We started the OLIKA outside-the-box package design with a focus on form and married it with an ergonomic, yet eco-friendly, portable consumer experience.

Our team knew there was a heightened focus on hand care and especially hand sanitizer as a “rescue category.” Predecessors in the space delivered a less-than-stellar experience with boring plastic bottles, harsh chemicals, and wasteful packaging. We were primed to build a better-for-you experience with a blank slate.

I designed our hand sanitizer forms as [durable, refillable] “forever bottles,” and developed the packaging with paper that uses a hybrid between a die-cut card and a carton for the secondary packaging, allowing it to stand on the shelf while using the minimal material usually associated with a simple card. To our knowledge, no other personal care or cosmetic product uses the same form and packaging as OLIKA.

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