Futuristic NZ Food Packaging Designs That Draw Attention

Did you know that the revenue in the NZ food market currently amounts to US$13.15 billion and is expected to grow annually by 5.37% (CAGR 2022-20217)?

With every passing year, you can expect a surge in the number of food companies in NZ that can be your potential competitors in the industry.

So how do you successfully make your brand stand out from the rest?

A recent study found that packaging design drives more than 36% of purchase decisions among consumers. Even though the main goal of your food packaging is to protect your food items, your packaging design also plays a significant role in attracting customers from the retail shelves.

The ideal food packaging design captures the attention of your consumers, evokes a plethora of emotions, displays various nutritional information, benefits, uses, and makes your food brand logo instantly recognisable while creating an impactful and personalised experience for your consumers.

Today as we discuss the nitty gritty about the NZ food packaging industry and some creative inspirations for your NZ food startup, read along with us to find out how you can maximise your sales this year with the best food packaging designs in the market.

Why Is Packaging Design So Important for NZ Food Brands?

Over 50% of the purchases in NZ are based on emotions which are mostly triggered by Product packaging design.

Products that look good and are visually appealing on the retail shelves tend to get sold out way quicker than the others. Having a good quality food packaging design creates a positive impact on your sales count.

The more you invest in your food packaging requirements, the more powerful effect it has in any cluttered retail environment. The best food packaging design encourages consumers to reach for your products instead of the other alternatives.

Starting from communicating your brand identity to being transparent with the consumers regarding the nutritional value of your product. There are so many benefits of having a good and futuristic NZ food packaging design which we will discuss further in this post, along with some quality design inspirations for your food packaging startup.

How does quirky food Packaging Design Draw NZ consumers’ Attention?

Gone are the days when the boring product advertisements on television used to increase sales of food companies.

If you are familiar with the increase in the usage of the internet, especially social media, you may have already realised the power of witty, humorous and funky good packaging designs in NZ.

As consumers get exposed to more and more food brands in recent years, the expectation of stellar packaging designs increases simultaneously. Hence, food packaging designs that are quirky, fun and full of humour take the sale every time!

By evoking the feelings of childhood memories paired with the nutritional value of the food item, you can effectively attract consumers looking at thousands of options in a specific food category.

According to various studies, funny yet premium packaging can exponentially increase the global sales of sustainable foods by 10%! Furthermore, it also improves your brand image, positioning and identity. A quirky food packaging design will make a positive and memorable impact on your consumers that can effectively work for your customer retention strategies.

Hence, if you want to stand out amongst the vast chunk of food brands and increase your profit margin rapidly, it’s finally time to level up your food packaging design game with cool, funky and fun designs this year!

Design Considerations for Creating Attractive New Zealand Food Packaging

As we said, the volume of choices among consumers has been staggeringly high in the past few years. As new brands launch, you can always find food products that are similar to yours being ahead on the retail shelves just because they have a better packaging design compared to yours.

An appealing food packaging design lures customers through imagery, fonts, colours and a variety of information and other elements that we will discuss in brief. Let’s take a quick look at everything you need to consider when creating a captivating food packaging design for your brand.

• Develop Your Brand’s Identity

The first step to an exceptional food packaging design is to focus on your brand identity. Your food packaging design must align with your business’s values, mission and vision as it bolsters your brand identity.

For example, a premium box of exotic dry fruits must be packed in boxes with designs that exude luxury and uniqueness.

Similarly, organic fruit juice that has been popular since the 90s must be packed with designs that evoke feelings of childhood, nostalgia and familiarity to attract the right type of consumers.

Be it an expensive box of chocolates or a basic packet of bread. Since your brand identity is about conveying your company values to the consumers, you need to connect with them accurately to persuade them to invest in your food product.

When defining and demonstrating your brand identity in your food packaging designs, you must always start by analysing your company and target market. Proceed with establishing realistic goals, create buyer personas by segmenting your target consumers and set the right personality for your products.

This way, not only can you design a quality food packaging design for your consumers, but you can also develop reasonable goals and objectives that make you stand out among the consumers.

• Use architectural elements

Another crucial aspect you need to consider in your food packaging design is the architectural elements of your design which revolve around the three fundamental principles:

1. Form
2. Function
3. Beauty

You need to ensure that your food packaging protects the contents well, is aesthetically pleasing and is based on the size and shape of your product.

You must invest in quality designers to amp up your food packaging designs. However, suppose it doesn’t serve it’s purpose accurately. In that case, you will eventually deliver products in either spilt or torn condition, resulting in angry customers that demand a refund!

For example, if you are selling maple syrups, you must create a design that highlights the feel and flavour of your maple syrup. You can also add some delicious-looking pancakes that can be paired with your maple syrup and make it aesthetically pleasing even further!

For it’s function and form, you must invest in materials built to safely transport liquid items to any grocery store and sit comfortably in between the other maply syrups on the retail shelf.

This way, not only can you grab the attention of your target consumers, but you can also convey the nutritional value and other elements that effectively lure them into trying out your product’s unique flavour and taste!

• Customise your packaging to increase visibility

Personalisation is one of the biggest winning traits of every successful company. Hence, to evoke the right feelings of your target consumers, you must personalise your packaging designs with customisation.

Start with studying your target market and analyse their pain points, interests, dislikes and other aspects. Next, utilise this information to create influential packaging design that can effectively trigger the emotions within them and compel them to try out your food products.

For example, suppose you are selling a box of premium chocolates. In that case, you can offer consumers the chance to add their preferred visual elements to the packaging to enhance the feel of this auspicious gift!

• Make your Packaging Design Communicative

Even if you have the most lucrative designs in your food packaging, it can never surpass the requirement of the valuable information that your food packaging must convey.

Your food packaging design must have ample space to effectively convey all the nutritional information, shelf life, directions to use, and other crucial elements. The more simplistic approach you have here, the better your chances of informing your consumers that your product is the best in the market.

Furthermore, your food packaging design must be relevant to the contents inside of it.
For example, suppose you are selling bags of potato chips with various flavours. In that case, you can easily note down the special flavours while highlighting the main content of your product – potato chips!

Can it be any more simplistic yet influential?

• Simple to Read Food Packaging Design

As we said, your food packaging design must effectively communicate all the valuable information to the consumers. You must ensure that your consumers can associate with the graphics to decode the information about your product.

Instead of adding multiple images and using multiple colours, the better idea is to stick to not more than three colours and simple scripts to convey the information to your consumer.

For example, if your product is peanut butter, simply having a neutral background with flavorful peanuts in the middle while highlighting the nutritional benefit of consuming peanut butter is an amazing way to design the packaging of your product!

• Produce Packaging With Variable Design

Your food packaging design must always be versatile. This way, you can easily utilise the same design on different packaging options of various sizes and materials.

For example, if you sell cookies, you must create designs that suit various sizes and flavours of your cookies! This way, you can use the same design for your coconut butter and chocolate cookies!

The two strict rules you must adhere to make your food packaging versatile are:

1. Ensure that you cater to various tastes and flavours in your target population.
2. It must be easily recognisable to ensure that you save money even if you re-invent a design for your products that may be packaged differently.

• Pick the proper packaging material

The next step is to choose the right material, which is a no-brainer.
You have plenty of options, such as cardboards, corrugated boxes, plastics, paper bags, styrofoams, boxboards, paperboards and more. The goal is to focus on usability when choosing the material for your food packaging.

For example, cardboard is a biodegradable option and is easy to print. This can be effective if your company vouches for an environmentally friendly and sustainable brand.

Think about the distance your food product needs to travel before it reaches your customers and the other crucial actors such as temperature requirements, type of food, etc. This way, you can invest in food packaging materials that will keep your products look and taste as flavorful as they should!

• Utilise Your Creativity To Reduce Printing And Production Costs

The cost of production, packaging and other requirements can be quite hefty, especially for food startups!

You must ensure that the cost of your packaging and production does not exceed your product’s cost. This is why you need to work with your manufacturers to choose materials wherein you can be creative and continuously reduce the costs of printing and producing the packages.

For example, suppose you sell tea biscuits. In that case, you can choose to stack the biscuits and pack them in a papery plastic material that not only has a delicious design over it but can be easily sealed even after being opened while reducing your production and printing costs to a great extent since these materials are easy to print and produce for most businesses!

• Play With Patterns And Color

The final requirement for your futuristic NZ food packaging is the choice of colours you implement in your packaging.

Be experimental with patterns and bright colors but always stick to a certain colour palette. You don’t want to overwhelm your consumers by choosing staggeringly contrasting colours in your packaging designs.

For example, if your product is frozen peas, you can always choose various shades of green and yellow to highlight the flavour and authenticity of your food product. This makes the design familiar to your consumers, increasing your sales.

Wrapping Up!

Even if you have spent nights perfecting the quality of your food product, without a good food packaging design, you may not be able to reach your target consumers effectively.

The food you serve must always be the star. To put your best foot forward, you must make the best design and packaging choices that ensure that your food arrives safely with a memorable unboxing experience.

Thus, to enhance your customer’s meal with your flavorful food items and rule the NZ food industry, follow the tips mentioned above when designing your food product packaging, as you can never afford to consider your packaging design an afterthought!