Keeping it Personal: Each Package is Different

Keeping it Personal: Soft, Strong, Thick or Thin, Each Package Has a Different Spec

By Christine Pietryla Wetzler, editor

When I was at Pack Expo back in October, I met with Will Cannon, industrial national accounts manager for Glue Dots International who walked me through their product line and shared some of the individualized ways people use their product to make their packaging presentation ‘pop.’

When you think of Glue Dots, the first thing that comes to mind are those sticky glue adhesives on credit cards—Glue Dots are a terrific solution for that application. However, what I found most intriguing was how each project could be augmented by something as simple as a dab of glue. A lot goes into the chemistry behind these dots – they can be customized to provide the adhesive strength and even thickness needed for a specific design.

At the show, I saw an example of how two bottles of a personal care product were attached close enough to package – but far enough away not to rub the packages together and ruin the label. Glue Dots has a number of such examples, one that is available in more detail on its website but, I feel, showcases the ability to personalize a package based on consumer or market need.

A contract packaging company specializing in packaging personal care products had a cross-promotion package design challenge. They approached Glue Dots to resolve the issue.

The manufacturer wanted to include a sample of a new lotion with a razor’s carton by shrink-wrapping the two items together. The contract packaging company encountered a problem during production because, the company says, “The force of the shrink-wrap film squeezed the razor and the sample tube too tightly, pulling the sample in front of the carton’s branding.”

To keep the products from moving, Super High Tack, High Profile Glue Dots were added to the razor carton. The lotion sample was then bonded to the package. The strength of the bond held the products in place, easily withstanding the force of the shrink-wrap as it moved through the shrink tunnel.

Glue Dots offers a wide array of adhesive solutions for packaging, printing and post-press, manufacturing and assembly and the food and beverage industries by providing:

• A clean, instant bond
• No drying or curing time
• An extensive selection of adhesive patterns, profiles and formulas
• No heat for application, eliminating burn risk
• No excess squeeze out
• Adhesive application equipment for any production process

You can imagine that achieving the desired aesthetic without having to materially change the product packaging was a great benefit to the manufacturer.

Usually, in this column, I talk about specific packages—but when I saw how versatile this solution is and how creative it can allow packaging designers and producers to be, I thought it definitely needed to be included in a discussion about personalized packaging.