Sep 10th 2024
10 Budget-Friendly Ways to Spruce Up Your Confectionery & Specialty Food Packaging
Try these 10 eye catching, easy on the budget packaging ideas
When it comes to selling specialty food or high-end confections, the packaging that surrounds your products can be as important as the items themselves. If you want to catch people’s eyes and keep your customers returning for more, you need to refresh your product packaging once in awhile. You definitely don’t want it to get stale.
If it’s been awhile, it might be time to change up your packaging or add seasonal flair to your products’ presentation. Going through a total packaging overhaul can be fraught, time consuming, and expensive (though sometimes that’s exactly what you need to do). If you don’t need a complete packaging makeover, there are, thankfully, a lot of small changes you can make to your product presentation so your product makes an impactful impression.
1. Change Up Your Choice Of Ribbon
You’ve already perfected your packaging, so why mess with it? If that’s the case, you can always keep your core packaging the same and simply switch out the ribbon color. Test out colors to see what sells, or add a color that’s trending, or use multiple colors to infuse variety and pop to the presentation. Don’t forget to freshen up your packaging with seasonal ribbons. Consider jewel tones for the winter holidays, pastels for spring, and blazing primary colors for summer. Small, seasonal changes in ribbon colors, patterns, and widths can make a big impact on the shelf.
2. Hot-Stamped Ribbon Looks Amazing
Another ribbon idea that won’t break the bank is hot-stamping, also referred to as foil stamping. You can order as little as one 100-yard roll of custom-branded ribbon, making it cost-effective for small product runs. A ribbon with a personalized message along with your name and logo will help your packaging look new and significantly enhance your brand. Plus, you can switch up the colors by season for better merchandising opportunities.
3. Try A New Type Of Candy Cup
Bored with the same old brown candy cups? Try switching things up with white, black, gold, kraft, or even gold striped candy cups. If you want to truly elevate your prized confections, perhaps it’s time to roll out the Royalty of Cups—foil candy cups. Something as simple, and as inexpensive, as a new cup color can transform the appearance of your chocolates. You might also consider using multiple candy cup colors in one box to take festive to the next level.
4. Shake Up The Color Of Your Product Boxes
It’s easy to drop into a rut and use the same box colors month after month, year after year. Hop out of that rut and switch up box colors for a few months or during a holiday season. Try mixing and matching boxes, using a top of one color and the base of another. It’s an easy, inexpensive change to make, and with a little color coordination will add fun and joy to your products, helping them jump off the shelf.
5. Foil Stamped Boxes Add Shimmer
Let’s get back to hot stamping for a minute. Custom boxes can be pricey, and the minimum quantities high. Not to worry! Add customized pizzazz by foil stamping a limited run of stock boxes. Hot stamping is like putting your logo, company name, and a seasonal message in lights. It looks terrific and is an easy way to put your packaging on a pedestal without splurging on large fully customized rebranding.
6. Give Your Product Labels Some Love
You can always make a super quick change-up to your current product label. Consider a new design or accent color. Or you can add a custom label to most existing packages. The shapes, sizes, materials, and designs are limitless, and labels are less expensive than you’d think. Include your logo, a fun design, or a timely message. Seasonal graphics will help your product feel current, and the ease of using labels means you can seasonalize as many or few items as you want. When the holiday’s over, simply put the roll away until next year. With low minimum quantities, you can get creative without going long on budget.
7. Add A Twist With New Packaging Bows
Sometimes the little things completely change the way something looks. Consider twist tie bows. They’re a quick, easy, and inexpensive way to freshen up the attitude of any bag. You can use traditional seasonal colors, but you may want to try something sparkly or patriotic. Change a bag of candy with an autumnal twist tie bow into something dressed up for the winter holidays by simply switching to a silver, gold, snowflake or red plaid twist tie bow. Inexpensive and quickly changed, twist tie bows can be just what the packaging doctor ordered.
8. Everyone Loves Novelty Shaped Boxes
A little shape can go a long way! Try adding a few seasonal novelty boxes to your displays. They’ll transform the look and add more than a little fun. Scatter pumpkin shaped boxes for Halloween, smiling Santa or mitten shaped boxes for the holidays, and a buzzing bee or ice cream cone box during the summer. And of course you’ll always want heart-shaped boxes for Valentine’s Day. By adding a few carefully placed novelty shaped boxes – your displays and products will grab attention. And customers will appreciate your attention to merchandising detail.
9. Swap Out The Shred For A New Color
Shred filler may be but a humble packaging accessory, but don’t underestimate a fill color change to grab customer attention. Consider white, gold or silver for the winter holidays, or red and pink for Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day? Changing out shred is easy and inexpensive, and it can produce a meaningful shift in the way people look at your products.
10. Foil Sheets Infuse Flair In Confectionery Packaging
Lots of confectioners and merchants have had success using inexpensive foil sheets to accent a few key pieces of candy in a greater collection. Seasonalize your products quickly and inexpensively by adding a few shiny flashes of specific colors to your packaging. Using foil sheets, which come in many colors and sizes, can brighten up bars as well as individual confections. Wrap pieces in colors associated with a school, a bridal palette, a season, or holidays like St. Patrick’s Day, Easter, and Fourth of July.
Using some of these budget-friendly tips, you can keep your packaging fresh and seasonally merchandised. Plus, don’t underestimate the sales power of something new. A small touch here or there can be both fun and help give you energy for other packaging and merchandising projects. So give your sweets the packaging makeover they deserve. Your customers just might eat them up!