From Rigid to Flexible: Should Detergent Manufacturers Adopt the Packaging Trend?

There appears to be a new packaging trend slowly taking over our shop displays and local store shelves.

Can you guess it?

The switch from rigid to flexible packaging, as more and more product manufacturers are discarding cans, bottles and jars in favor of flexible pouches.

Every industry seems to be obsessed with these easy to use, easy to store, easy to transportflexible packaging containers. In fact, here at PremiumVials, we too have a long list of clients who love our flexible pouches and use them quite frequently in their packaging operations.

There is absolutely no denying the benefits of flexible packaging, but there is one industry in particular to which we don’t recommend using these pouches, especially if you’re new in that industry.

Which industry, you ask?

The detergent industry and we have solid reasons to back up our argument.

Remember HEX, when they first launched with their relatively unique anti-stink formula?

The company struggled BIG TIME to sell the product in their early days.

Who could’ve guessed it considering how successful the company is now!

And one of the main reasons they failed to initially capture the market was because they launched their product inside flexible packaging.

If our memory serves us right, they were one of the first few detergent companies in the US who started selling their product in flexible stand up pouches.

And make no mistake, the design of their packaging was simply immaculate. Use of bold graphics and colors that we don’t typically see in chemical aisles made their product looked very impressive. It won’t be wrong to say the design was a true example of packaging innovation in the 21^st century.

HEX partnered with Target and Wegman’s to sell their detergents in the market. Retailers absolutely loved the packaging of the detergent and showcased it at their front displays. However, the product failed where it mattered most: it couldn’t capture consumer money.

The HEX marketing team thought hard and long, and they realized they had got the very basic component of their product wrong – its packaging!

You see, laundry habits are largely built on tradition. The correct way to do laundry is passed on from generation to generation. Consumers identify laundry products with plastic bottles and containers.

And so, for them, Hex’s flexible packaging was something unfamiliar; they simply could not associate with it.

HEX revamped their packaging and re-launched their revolutionary formula inside plastic bottles. And this simple but very important change brought them the customers and made them the success they are today.

Today, if you visit your local store, you’ll find HEX detergents packaged inside the traditional plastic containers. Little do customers know about the history behind these bottles.

Yes, the sample size is very small to rule out the use of flexible packaging for the detergent industry. But the HEX example certainly is quite revealing.

We’re not discouraging future use of flexible pouches in the detergent industry. Our point is, wait to establish a loyal customer base before introducing your product in flexible packaging.

Are you looking for a packaging partner to help you in your packaging operations?

PremiumVials is at your service!

We are one of the leading manufacturers and suppliers of eco-friendly packaging materials including glass and plastic containers, standup pouches, caps and closures and packaging labels. We stock packaging materials in different sizes and different colors, and resource adequate capacity to supply orders in bulk. Call 888-545-3117 for more detailsor fill our online form to get in touch with us.