Best of Summer-Inspired Packaging Designs

As the sun-and-fun season eases into fall and back-to-school milestones, let’s take a quick look at our favorite summertime packs and hold on to that relaxed, vacation mindset for just a bit longer.

Tequila bat bottle

Baseball-bat bottle:

The favorite from this gallery of baseball-themed packages is the Tequila bat bottle. This 1-liter glass bottle is molded into the shape of a bat, like the WonderBoy homemade bat from the classic baseball movie The Natural.

Other baseball details — a simulated wood-grain shrink-sleeve and a classic baseball handle and end knob closure — add authenticity to the packaging. The bottle sits upright on a wood “base” in the shape of home plate.

As Senior Technical Editor Rick Lingle wrote: “The packaging design, which is trademarked in the US, is a tape-measure, grand-slam homerun.”

The photo above shows the bottle sideways and upright so you can better see the details.

Soda’s QR code for free music:

PepsiCo’s “Press Play On Summer” limited-edition campaign gave consumers free music for the summer months. By scanning a special QR code on any 20-ounce bottled beverages across PepsiCo’s carbonated soft drinks portfolio, consumers gain free access to Apple Music’s catalog during the three summer months.

“Summer is the season of the year that we all get excited about, the one that brings the heat, when we seek the beach, friends, good music and just have a good time,” says Bad Bunny, Apple Music’s Artist of the Year in 2022 and promotion partner. “I’m happy to partner with Pepsi and Apple Music to bring fans more of what we love and unites us: Music, through this ‘Press Play On Summer’ offer.”

Rock on.

Yogurt’s hidden messages:

General Mills knows consumers eat its Yoplait Go-GURT different ways: refrigerated, frozen, or frozen then thawed. This summer, the company introduced a new product to delight consumers who eat it frozen (a cool treat for hot summer days).

Go-GURT’s Freeze to Reveal packaging is printed with hidden messages in thermochromic ink that are revealed only when the tubes are frozen.

A General Mills spokesperson explains, “The ‘revealed’ designs were primarily text or small creative additions to the ‘refrigerated’ tube artwork. There were themes around ‘ice’ and ‘frozen’ shown through our Yeti, penguin, and other designs.”

She adds, “Go-GURT has a history of bringing fun packaging innovation to consumers. We are always looking for new ways to surprise and delight [consumers] and have heard so far that they’ve been enjoying our latest summertime innovation.”

Energy drink’s unique packaging designer:

Hungarian brand owner Hell Energy Magyarország Kft asked an artificial intelligence (AI) to design its next energy drink, including the can’s packaging design. The result is Hell A.I. beverage, which was introduced this summer, with further rollout through the fall, in more than 60 countries.

After analyzing extensive data about energy drinks on the internet, the AI formulated the recipe: a combination of “tutti-frutti & berry-blast, a fresh flavor unlike any other.” The product’s digital intellectual property is protected on a secure server.

For the packaging design, AI infused the can “with a youthful and trendy aesthetic, harmonizing the brand’s identity with the AI’s digital flair.” The colorful and wild design reflects the character of its energy drink consumers.

Lisa McTigue Pierce is Executive Editor of Packaging Digest. She’s been a packaging media journalist since 1982 and tracks emerging trends, new technologies, and best practices across a spectrum of markets for the publication’s global community. Reach her at [email protected] or 630-272-1774.