Shelf and Retail ready packaging has been a major revolution in getting products from A to B in the last 20 years. While making sure they look great at point B! However brands are still making simple mistakes with this common type of packaging. This can have a massive effect on bottom line profits from lost sales and increased costs of the packaging.
1) SRP is your brand’s salesman!
The reasons for the increase in SRP are pretty varied. Mainly the ease of use for stores, from Hypermarkets down to convenience, has been the major factor. SRP save loads of time for retail staff and that is the key to its widespread adoption. However SRP utilised correctly can add a huge boost to your sales. This is due to increased ability to promote and sell your brand. So keep this in mind when discussing SRP strategy.
2) Maximum pack size for minimum shelf space
One of the many advantages of SRP is the increased availability of your product in store. Instead of relying on staff to unpack and restock fixtures, SRP allows quick replenishment. As a brand or manufacturer you can’t do much about how quickly your product is replenished by the retailer. However you can ensure pack size is maximised therefore reducing the number of replenishments required for units sold. It helps working with a designer who has lots of experience of what shapes are acceptable to different retailers and how to make the most of space!
3) Make your packaging stand out from the crowd – but don’t spend the world on it!
Often Marketing departments go a bit overboard on packaging design. We have experience of receiving lithographic artwork on SRP cutters, where we have agreed a price with procurement for 4 colour flexographic print. Making the packaging in litho would have driven up the cost by over 100%, imagine if the starting point for procurement had been the artwork (which it often is!). Knowing how to print on different substrates and get a great result is something you only generally get from a manufacturer rather than a print manager or agency.
4) Keep the retailer happy, while minimising cost
There is nothing worse as a supplier than frustrating the main channel to your consumer. Retailers deal with SRP because it makes their life easier. This will not be the case if you get failures during transit or unusable designs for retail staff. The function of SRP is both a science and an art. We would recommend working back from the product and taking into consideration all aspects of your supply chain when specifying SRP. Work with a supplier such as Garthwest who would use the latest science, ECT, adjusted Mckee formula etc. to theoretically specify the correct packaging. You would then need to transit trial before sending any product to a retailer. Getting this mix right ensures you are not over specifying material and therefore increasing your costs.
5) Be Bold and Innovative
SRP has been great for brands and manufacturers because you now have the ultimate control over how your product is retailed. Use simple tricks to make your SRP stand out from the run of the mill. Exciting shapes, colours and designs can be achieved for very marginal increases in cost, sometimes cost free if considered at concept stage. Ensure you have an experienced partner on board, preferable someone who is actually manufacturing the packaging and knows both substrate and machinery.
We are glad to give impartial initial advice on any project involving packaging, in-store marketing or a combination of both!
Feel free to reach out to the team of designers and strategists at Garthwest here.
