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Beverage labeling is hot, or maybe cold, but either way it represents one of the real dynamic segments in package printing.
If a labeling method or configuration exists, you’ll find it on a beverage container somewhere. Whether it’s pressure-sensitive, shrink-wrap, cut-and-stack, wraparound, glue-applied, thermal, or even the package itself in the form of a pouch, you’ll find it being used to help sell a liquid refreshment of some type.
What makes beverage labeling so robust? Nick Van Alstine, president of Macaran Printed Products says the reason is simple. “Beverages are really high-profile. They’re a part of our everyday life, and visible pretty much everywhere we go. There may be no better example of the product that sits on the shelf screaming for our attention. The label has to be in fashion, and like fashion, a new and trendy look becomes part of the landscape.”
It’s not just the label that is in fashion, but sometimes the whole product category. Remember when people used to drink water out of a water fountain? Most water fountains you’ll find today are gathering cob webs right next to pay phones. It’s sometimes amazing to look around in a crowd and see the number of people with a water bottle at the ready. If Charles Schulz was creating his “Peanuts” comic strip today, he’d probably give Linus a water bottle.
And athletes don’t drink water … it has to be Gatorade, Powerade, or some other sports drink.
Trends with staying power
Although the popular use of bottled water and sports drinks might qualify as trends, they have a lot of staying power. To go along with this longevity, they are generating huge revenues for companies in the beverage market segment, and are largely contributing to the excitement being generated by the category.
Gary Hemphill, managing director for the research and consulting firm Beverage Marketing Corp., notes the impact that these trends are having in the beverage segment. “We’re seeing growth in a wide array of niche categories like bottled water, enhanced waters, sports drinks, energy drinks, teas, and others that are driving the demand for liquid refreshment.”
Another growing niche noted by Scott Pillsbury, president of Rose City Label Company, can be seen in the wine industry. “Wine labels are very personal to small wineries. In the northwest, many small owner-operators produce wine because they love it—almost as a hobby—rather than a full time profession. Because of this, they are very personally tied to the image and the label—often with their family name on it … The changing tastes of the market, together with improved technology, have allowed very small batch beer and wine makers to compete in the market like never before. This increases the need for custom labels, with small runs.”
If a labeling method or configuration exists, you’ll find it on a beverage container somewhere. Whether it’s pressure-sensitive, shrink-wrap, cut-and-stack, wraparound, glue-applied, thermal, or even the package itself in the form of a pouch, you’ll find it being used to help sell a liquid refreshment of some type.
What makes beverage labeling so robust? Nick Van Alstine, president of Macaran Printed Products says the reason is simple. “Beverages are really high-profile. They’re a part of our everyday life, and visible pretty much everywhere we go. There may be no better example of the product that sits on the shelf screaming for our attention. The label has to be in fashion, and like fashion, a new and trendy look becomes part of the landscape.”
It’s not just the label that is in fashion, but sometimes the whole product category. Remember when people used to drink water out of a water fountain? Most water fountains you’ll find today are gathering cob webs right next to pay phones. It’s sometimes amazing to look around in a crowd and see the number of people with a water bottle at the ready. If Charles Schulz was creating his “Peanuts” comic strip today, he’d probably give Linus a water bottle.
And athletes don’t drink water … it has to be Gatorade, Powerade, or some other sports drink.
Trends with staying power
Although the popular use of bottled water and sports drinks might qualify as trends, they have a lot of staying power. To go along with this longevity, they are generating huge revenues for companies in the beverage market segment, and are largely contributing to the excitement being generated by the category.
Gary Hemphill, managing director for the research and consulting firm Beverage Marketing Corp., notes the impact that these trends are having in the beverage segment. “We’re seeing growth in a wide array of niche categories like bottled water, enhanced waters, sports drinks, energy drinks, teas, and others that are driving the demand for liquid refreshment.”
Another growing niche noted by Scott Pillsbury, president of Rose City Label Company, can be seen in the wine industry. “Wine labels are very personal to small wineries. In the northwest, many small owner-operators produce wine because they love it—almost as a hobby—rather than a full time profession. Because of this, they are very personally tied to the image and the label—often with their family name on it … The changing tastes of the market, together with improved technology, have allowed very small batch beer and wine makers to compete in the market like never before. This increases the need for custom labels, with small runs.”
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