Every brand that chooses to enter the world of licensing needs to have its own packaging program. And I'm not talking about a simple rectangle with the property logo and a background pattern placed inside of it that some licensed brand owners call a packaging program. I'm … Read More
Fortunately, in today's consumer product marketplace, most brand owners are fully aware of the value of great packaging. They realize that their brand's packaging is the single most important consumer touch point and that it is through packaging that consumers first come in contact with their brand … Read More
Whenever I see toys packaged in blind box packaging, it always reminds me of collecting trading cards as a kid and that feeling of wanting the entire set, but knowing the likelihood of that happening was directly tied to how much allowance money I was willing to … Read More
As one of the leading design consultancies to the consumer product and entertainment industries, we are continuously addressing the questions that arise as we interact with our licensing industry clients, many of whom are among our most avid BOLT! readers. After many in-depth conversations during the course … Read More
Over the course of the past year, many of our most avid BOLT! readers who are our clients in the licensing industry have asked us if we would address some very specific topics related to style guide and packaging program development in future issues. It's great to … Read More
About a year ago, I wrote an article about the downfall of the consumer product style guide as a highly-immersive, printed masterpiece that stopped us in our tracks and commanded our attention. In the glory days of the printed style guide, its purpose was to deliver brand … Read More
Not a single successful licensing program in the history of successful licensing programs has ever launched without exhaustive research first being conducted to clearly define its target audience. The key to success is having a deep understanding of a brand's market. And it's the only irrefutable way … Read More
When we think of a strong structural design strategy for a toy or entertainment brand's retail packaging, we imagine a dynamic, cleverly-conceived structural shape inspired by a dominant aspect of the brand that will resonate immediately with consumers. We envision that structural shape working seamlessly from blister … Read More
I decided to put our typical thought leadership aside for this month's newsletter to focus on something absolutely wonderful that's happening during this time of crisis. While we're all staying at home nurturing our families, practicing social distancing, thoroughly and frequently washing our hands and doing our … Read More
Although the simplification of package design has proliferated every retail category, as package designers, we still find ourselves engaged in an ongoing battle to eliminate visual clutter on-pack. Most brand owners know that, to effectively engage their target audiences, their packaging needs to adopt a clear system … Read More
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