Branding beyond the box
As sustainability issues and shifting luxury cues see brands increasingly ditch outer cartons, and even bottle labels, it’s clear we’re at the brink of a paradigm shift in how we approach premium pack design. What do drinks brands need to know?
Bruichladdich made a bold move last week. It launched its first permanent high age statement range. Yet, counter to established luxury norms, it ditched card, aluminium, even wood for its outer packaging for Bruichladdich Eighteen (RRP £150) and Bruichladdich Thirty (£1500). Its material of choice? Paper pulp.
The bottle-hugging, embossed, print and label-free case made from 100% recycled paper, is believed to be an industry first. Go to the brand’s website for a sexy slow-mo video of its embossed curves. It’s a stark provocation to the rest of the industry, a statement that “sustainable materials don't come at the expense of luxury products” says the brand.
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Redefining luxury
It’s not the B Corp whisky maker’s first challenge to the wider industry to re-establish what signifies luxury packaging design, and what just doesn’t any longer. In 2021, it encouraged customers to opt out of secondary whisky packaging and forgo gift tins, under its One Tin Lighter campaign. In 2022, it went a step further, removing tinned packaging across its core single malt brands, beginning with Port Charlotte. And in 2023, it redesigned its signature The Classic Laddie, drastically reducing the glass weight and taking away its tin also, to reduce packaging CO2 emissions by 65%.
“As an industry, we’ve become accustomed to believing that single malt Scotch whisky must come with outer packaging as standard,” said Douglas Taylor, Bruichladdich’s chief executive. “Where most other spirits travel around the world in just the bottle, the majority of single malts have an elaborate or heavy secondary, outer pack. And it made us ask ourselves, why?
“Secondary packaging is not always necessary, and it’s certainly not sustainable. [This] is a significant step change for Bruichladdich. This is much more than a bottle redesign. It is changing the trajectory for the brand.” And in turn, perhaps the wider industry?
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