The beauty in packaging

Click here to see sidebar on market forecasts for cosmetic packaging

HBA Health & Beauty America is the largest industry-specific event in North America for the cosmetic, fragrance and personal care industries. Showcasing everything from formula to finish, each year HBA attracts more than 16,000 beauty and personal care professionals from all over the world.

Health & Beauty America
Sept. 27, 28, 29 . New York City
www.hbaexpo.com 609/452-2800

Its exhibit floor includes industry-sector, Personal Care Ingredients & Technology Expo (PCITX ), and international pavilions from Asia and Europe. The educational program includes a marketing conference that covers topics on the latest trends and strategies as well as packaging and display innovations. The PCITX Product Development Conference presents the latest findings in skincare, personal care, haircare and fragrance product advancements.

This year, the show will launch INSIDE BEAUTY, a new event focused exclusively on the convergence of beauty, health and wellness for the cosmetics and personal care industries. At INSIDE BEAUTY, marketers and manufacturers of cosmetics, personal care and fragrance products along with R&D formulators, drugstore and food market retailers, and medical and wellness spa owners will be able to source new minerals, proteins, oils, herbs, botanicals, functional foods and dietary supplements, packaging, private labels and finished goods that promote health, beauty and well-being. The two-day conference program will cover the latest marketing trends, scientific research and product innovation.

The HBA industry awards dinner on Tuesday evening at the Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers will honor industry executives for Lifetime Achievement in product development, packaging and marketing, as well as award an R&D technical team for the year's best product, the top international cosmetic ingredient companies and the International Package Design Awards (IPDA). Lorraine Ahart, vp, package development of Victoria's Secret Beauty, will receive the Packaging Executive of the Year Award. Tickets are required. For information, contact Barbara Wheat at 609/452-2800, ext. 124.

The HBA Educational Conference Program will feature five packaging-specific sessions on: Adding Value Through Great—Maybe Daring—Design; Packaging Technology; Labeling & Decorating; Prestige Packaging within Budget; and The Power of the Package. In addition, Susan Kropf, president and COO of Avon Products, will deliver the keynote address on Tuesday on Building Beauty Leadership: Five Drivers of Brand Power.

Show hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sept. 27; 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Sept. 28 and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sept. 29. For information, visit www.hbaexpo.com or call CMP Princeton, Inc. at 609/452-2800.

The following HBA exhibitors have a marketing message in this issue:

Bright outlook for cosmetic, toiletry containers

The demand for cosmetic and toiletry containers in the U.S. is projected to increase 2.6 percent per year to 24.7 billion units in 2009. In dollar terms, sales will climb 4.7 percent yearly to $3.8 billion, according to a recently released study from The Freedonia Group (www.freedoniagroup.com).

Container advances will reflect healthy prospects for cosmetic and toiletry product shipments, coupled with favorable population age distribution trends and the ongoing development of nontraditional distribution channels. Growth will also be fueled by a steady rate of new product introductions with improved performance features and/or appearance-enhancing attributes.

A broadening array of products aimed at male, teen and younger adult consumers, along with the acceptance of more involved grooming regimens among younger men, will stimulate unit expansion. Limiting growth will be low overall population increases, maturity in many markets and the commodity status of most personal care containers, which will put increased pressure on container producers, especially in light of price spikes for raw materials. Value gains will outpace unit growth, largely due to the importance of packaging as a selling point, especially in the mass-market retail environment, where many product lines continue to be upgraded and packaging serves to convey a premium image.

Among material types, plastic will register the fastest growth through 2009 in both units and value, with demand projected to increase 3.1 percent per annum to 18.4 billion units and 5.5 percent annually to $2.7 billion. Plastic will continue to increase its stronghold in cosmetic and toiletry packaging based on a combination of favorable cost and performance characteristics. While the displacement of glass, metal and paperboard packaging will continue to be a factor, expansion will arise primarily from new product introductions and relaunches of existing products that use new packaging designs.

Additionally, technological and resin advances offering improvements in container esthetics and performance will enable plastics to further penetrate prestige applications. While below-average prospects are anticipated for paperboard, glass and metal cosmetic and toiletry containers as a result of market maturity and competitive drawbacks, areas of opportunity will exist for each. For example, rapidly expanding segments such as tooth whiteners and wipes will provide some upward momentum for paperboard containers, despite ongoing source-reduction efforts aimed at holding down the use of secondary packaging. While a weak outlook for glass containers will be the result of inroads by resins resembling the thickness and weight of glass, glass will continue to hold its niche in cosmetic (e.g., nail enamel) and fragrance uses. In the metal segment, aluminum containers will log above-average gains as a result of lighter weights and esthetics, with the latter a key factor in differentiation or prestige image.

Haircare, skincare and oral hygiene were the three largest markets in 2004, together accounting for more than two-thirds of unit demand. Through 2009, the fastest growth is anticipated in the skincare and liquid soap markets. Skincare product-container demand will benefit from healthy expansion in the over-45 population, which will continue to fuel robust sales of skin creams and lotions. Solid prospects for skincare products targeted at men and ethnic consumers will also support container advances. Liquid soap container gains will benefit from the popularity of body washes offering skin benefits as well as heightened consumer concerns regarding safety and health, which will support increased use of liquid hand soaps. Tooth whiteners will stimulate the oral hygiene market.

Electronic tablet counter

Designed to meet the stringent efficiency and quality standards of both the pharmaceutical and nutraceutical industries, the Conta C300 high-speed electronic tablet counter can achieve speeds of up to 30,000 tablets/min. Featuring single-tablet reject technology, the system eliminates full-bottle rejects and associated rework, the co. says. A patent-pending camera vision system identifies rogue tablets and capsules for shape, color and integrity, removing bad pieces before they enter the bottle. The unit has a small footprint and requires no changeparts.

IMA Nova, 978/537-8534.
www.imanova.com
HBA Booth 1651.
PACK EXPO Las Vegas Booth C-1205.

Visual packaging

InSight(R) visual packaging is a patent-pending packaging system that combines printed paperboard or plastic sleeves with injection-molded endcaps. The endcaps hold the product securely and attach to the sleeves using a unique locking feature, the co. states. Endcap construction allows for rectangular or other nontraditional geometries like rounds, ovals and trapezoids. A variety of stock endcaps is available, including locking endcaps, which provide pilfer-resistance. The package can be designed for either vertical or horizontal orientation, and the sleeves can be offset-, flexo- or silkscreen-printed. Combination printing is also available.

AGI/Klearfold,
877/918-3023.
www.agiklearfold.com

Dispensing closure

The Omega flip-top closure features a European oval, snap-on design. A recessed thumb tab facilitates openings, and a plug seal prevents leaks. Other traits include a nonprotruding hinge, a self-cleaning pintle and glossy finishes. It's suitable for personal care products such as lotion, shampoo and conditioner, body wash, detergent and soap and cleaners.

Berry Plastics Corp.,
812/306-2696.
www.berryplastics.com
HBA Booth 201.

PACK EXPO Las Vegas
Booth C-1340
HBA Booth 2313.

Effects technology

Optically active sleeve technology comes in a range of spectral effects. Metallic, pearlescent, interference, photoluminescence and color-shifting pigments all provide eye-catching graphics. The technology includes iridescent and holographic film. Iridescent film changes color and look depending on the color of the package or product over which it is wrapped, or how the film is backed up. Holographic film is supplied in a number of different patterns, including both stock and customized varieties.

Gilbreth USA, 800/630-2413.
www.gilbrethusa.com
HBA Booth 769.
PACK EXPO Las Vegas Booth C-5430.