Cooperation is key to private label design: manufacturers, retailers and others need to pool information and efforts to create the best private-label packages

Food & Drug Packaging, June, 2004 by Pan Demetrakakes

Packaging elements that become popular among national brands have a way of migrating to private label. One element that's now making its way across the divide is shrink-sleeve labeling.

Western Family Foods uses shrink sleeves for its line of non-dairy creamer (see "Prize packages sport distinctive looks" on page 19).

Elizabeth Johnson, Western Family's manager of packaging development and advertising, says her company is urging its product suppliers to use shrink sleeves whenever possible.

Trader Joe's, an upscale supermarket chain that relies heavily on its own brands, uses vinyl shrink labels for its line of soy milk shampoo and conditioner. The eight-color gravure labels, converted and applied by Ameri-Seal Inc., are reverse-printed to prevent water damage.

"The shampoo and conditioner bottles are perfect for a high-shrink PVC heat shrinkable sleeve because of their unique, four-sided shape," says Devin Millstein. Ameri-Seal's vice president of marketing. "Not only is the customer able to print on all four panels of the package's label, but around the neck of the bottle as well. If they had used a pressure sensitive label for this application they wouldn't have been allowed this much coverage."