Deep Dive: How packaging can help cannabis brands gain a competitive edge
Image: MJBIZDaily Website
In an increasingly crowded market, well-designed packaging is one of the few remaining ways for cannabis businesses to stay competitive.
Marijuana companies looking to appeal to consumers through packaging are looking for materials that are:
Designed to showcase the product inside.
Following current design trends.
Made with environmentally friendly materials.
Packaging Trends Move Fast
Packaging trends come and go in a matter of weeks, like the brief phase California went through of putting eighths of flower into sealed metal “tuna” cans.
According to Pechetti, he has taken notice of big shifts in the cannabis industry regarding what type of packaging appears to be selling better than others.
“The biggest trend right now is the die-cut bags,” he said, referring to the bags die-cut with customized shapes.
“It went from jars to the mylar, to the sticker bags, then the directly printed bags, and now the die-cut mylar bags are very popular.
Pechetti attributed Sticker Farmer’s ability to keep track of packaging trends to staying in touch with as many industry professionals as possible.
Designing for Function
Packaging design is an ever-evolving space, and many companies are working to create their own proprietary packaging.
N2 Packaging Systems out of Twin Falls, Idaho has created a nitrogen-sealed can, which the company says preserves marijuana better than traditional cans.
“The enemies of product freshness of any kind, frankly, are light and oxygen,” said Thom Brodeur, the CEO of N2. He claims that the company’s cans help cannabis flower keep its smell and taste better for longer.
N2’s cans end up costing about 15%-25% more than traditional packaging methods, according to Brodeur.
A survey from Brightfield Group, a Chicago-based cannabis insight platform, found that 67% of consumers would pay $1-$3 more for marijuana packaged in N2’s nitrogen-sealed cans.
Sustainability Considerations
Environmental groups and consumers alike have long criticized the cannabis industry for using too many disposable plastics in comparison to other sectors.
Brightfield Group found that 21% of cannabis users “often buy eco-friendly products.”
“I can’t think of a single industry that isn’t addressing sustainability in their packaging right now,” Corbett said.
There have been attempts to create recycling programs for marijuana packaging, but with stringent regulations that vary from one state to another, cannabis companies have found it challenging to be sustainable.
Both Brodeur and Corbett attested that sustainability is a driving factor in their packaging design. N2 Packaging, for instance, is made entirely from recycled or recyclable materials.
In addition to using recycled materials, Brodeur and Corbett both opted to source their materials and labor domestically rather than overseas, further reducing the impact of additional CO2 emissions.
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How packaging can help cannabis brands gain a competitive edge (MJBizDaily)
