Top 3 Reasons to Consider a Package Redesign

Reason 1 to redesign your packaging: changing consumers

If your business is doing well and your existing customer base is still strong, why should you change the package? Even within the same target audience, consumers are constantly changing and evolving.

For example, let’s look at Midol, a menstrual pain relief brand targeting female consumers.

Traditional female consumers were seen as “gentle and soft,” so the packaging was also designed with a soft, flowing feel and calm colors to match that image. But as time passed, women became more independent, and the ideal image of women that consumers expected also became more confident and stronger. In response, Midol also sought to redefine its brand image to suit the strong women of today.

The bright, resilient energy the brand wanted to convey should be reflected across the entire brand message, but most importantly, it needs to be expressed in packaging that every consumer can notice, connect with directly, and spot on the shelf. The only way to communicate a brand’s message visually on the package is to make sure everyone can clearly see the new identity. Midol captured the image of the modern, confident, and strong woman through bold typography, vibrant colors, and a much more structured design.

It also used different point colors to distinguish between product lines such as caffeine-free and long-lasting, linking performance with color, while maintaining visual consistency through a unified background color across the Midol brand. This balance of consistency and variety in color was also said to highlight the “diversity” of modern women.

Just as the new Midol aims to help women enjoy menstruation days as energetic and happy as any other day and reflects that goal in its packaging, if your target consumers have changed from the traditional market, try expressing your updated brand message through your packaging. A new package design will communicate the image consumers want and your brand values more immediately, and even if it doesn’t fully explain the value itself, it will stand out more on the shelf and leave a lasting impression.

Create a unique design with a 3D package editor – Packative Editor

Reason 2 to redesign your packaging: major shifts in the core consumer generation

Have you been targeting older generations all this time? Take a moment to think about whether you may have neglected the younger MZ generation. Even luxury brands like Gucci and Burberry are now targeting MZ consumers. If you miss the segment with the greatest purchasing power, it will become harder and harder to stay competitive in the market.

Characteristics of younger consumers: “my own individuality”

Gen Z and millennials, now the largest force in the consumer market, are more likely to visit lesser-known select shops rather than department stores, discover rare items through recommendations from stylish people around them, or enjoy customized products.

Unlike older generations, who tend to keep buying the same brands out of habit without looking at alternatives, younger generations naturally try different brands for different products and are always open to trying new releases. Expressing their own individuality and feeling like they are growing together with newly discovered brands also naturally builds attachment to those brands.

So, to target these individuality-focused young consumers, your brand should not look like random imported bargain clothing from Namdaemun Market. Instead, it should feel carefully chosen or designed, with sincere attention paid to creating a true brand sensibility. Even small details can bring consumers much closer to the brand.

The more discerning MZ generation

In an oversaturated information market, good quality and reasonable pricing are now expected. At a point where product quality is already recognized to some degree, consumers place the greatest importance on the product’s first impression before purchase. As a result, how eye-catching the packaging design is has become one of the biggest factors affecting sales. With the rapid rise of e-commerce in particular, more purchases are made without physically experiencing the product, making packaging even more important.

Therefore, if you want to target the new generation of consumers with higher expectations and make it onto the shortlist of purchase alternatives, plain and purely functional packaging is not enough. If the packaging and appearance are unappealing, they may not even consider buying it. So new packaging design has become an essential marketing and sales promotion strategy.

Learn more about new consumption patterns and the MZ generation – The MZ Generation and the New Market

New consumer value: “brand message”

Remember how we said consumers are now more discerning? That means they are not only looking at a brand’s aesthetic value, but also considering what values and messages the brand conveys, whether it is an ethical brand that creates real value, and so on.

A brand’s story should be emphasized at every touchpoint, so the brand narrative must be consistently carried across all channels, including advertising, marketing strategy, and brand social media. This also means brand storytelling must be conveyed through product packaging.

Just as the beer brand Peachonomics communicated its core identity through an image of peaches seemingly ruling the world, your packaging should also reflect your brand’s values and message.

Case Analysis: Taegukdang

Taegukdang, the old bakery filled with older generations’ memories, has also reinvented itself in search of survival and returned with a more youthful sensibility. While preserving Taegukdang’s classic feel, it adds a bit more of the kitschy vibe that younger generations like, making it a textbook example of newtro packaging and brand design.

Reason 3 to redesign your packaging: sustainability

As time has passed and interest in sustainability has grown steadily, the mainstream consumer mindset has shifted from “eco-friendly” to “must be eco-friendly.” In the past, people mainly recommended or praised eco-friendly products, but as awareness of the environment and the importance of taking action has increased, environmental friendliness and responsible practices are now seen as essential.

In the case of Dongwon F&B, the company announced a corporate goal of completely eliminating plastic containers. CJ Olive Young, for its part, reportedly saved 10,000 trees. In this changing market, if environmentally conscious consumption was once only encouraged or used to express personal values, the future will demand that brands adopt eco-friendly practices simply to survive.

In a world that is changing this much, are you still using plastic packaging? Or Styrofoam? It’s time to switch to plastic-free packaging. Simply changing to recyclable, eco-friendly paper boxes or corrugated boxes will generate far less waste.

Also, pay attention to the pollution caused by shipping and delivery in the age of e-commerce. Market Kurly, famous for early-morning delivery, realized in 2019 that packaging materials, cushioning materials, and refrigerants used to deliver products were harming the environment. In response, it announced an all-paper challenge plan to replace all packaging materials, including small parcels and tape, with recyclable paper and collect them for recycling on the next delivery.

If consumers in the past only cared about how fast and flawless delivery was, today they are starting to think about the negative impact created during delivery and choose to prioritize the environment even if it takes more time and cost. In particular, after the outbreak of the coronavirus, e-commerce consumption surged, revealing how much environmental pollution parcel delivery can cause and further increasing efforts to reduce environmental harm.

Changing from plastic to paper is already a big step, but if you want to be even more environmentally conscious, reduce the size of your packaging. Too much empty space leads to additional cushioning materials to fill it, causing more environmental pollution. And if extra volume means fewer packages can be loaded onto one truck, transport efficiency drops and carbon emissions increase.

Choose paper packaging in the right size for your product and achieve both sustainability and brand identity at once.

Learn how to create eco-friendly packaging – Packaging Production with Eco-Friendly Materials