People born in the years 1980-2000 form a group of consumers that should be targeted from the point of view of the packaging industry. As many as 4 out of 5 millennials regard packaging as important in the process of making purchasing decisions. 85% believe it to be an element of the brand image (according to the report Stora Enso, Pokolenie milenium zmienia rynek opakowań, 2015). Experts indicate several important trends in packaging designing that may affect the purchasing decisions of this social group and help to build positive associations with the product. Tango also pays attention to these trends while preparing projects for our customers. What is important for millennials?

Ecology is important

Ecology has been more and more visible on the shop shelves for several years now. This trend strikes a chord especially with millennials, who are ready to pay more for a product packed in line with this trend. Our designers use the eco style in their conceptions, proposing an economical graphic design, minimalism, natural colours, straight fonts and patterns imitating wood. The packaging designed by us in this way protects while also decorating such products as pressed juice, pâtés, and vegetarian food.

For one time

Another trend that merits our attention is portability. Millennials are people who are always busy and in a hurry. When they go to a shop, they look for snacks to drop into their bags and eat at any time and in any place. This is why all kinds of sachets, cups, small bags and trays – disposable packaging – have been so popular in recent years. Until recently, such packaging was used mainly for chocolate bars and instant soups. Now this trend is extending into healthy food. Millennials are eager to choose sushi or salads that can be eaten on the go. A plastic cup with oatmeal to take to work, a small sachet with kabanos sausages to eat on the go, or a container for a hard-boiled egg – this is what we offer to young and busy people.

Tell me a story

Storytelling is another way to distinguish your product from hundreds of other products in a shop and reach millennials. Our offer in this scope includes juice packaging on which we tell with the use of iconograms how the product has been produced and how this influences its uniqueness. It is a great way to reach modern young people, who are much more experienced as consumers in comparison with their parents or grandparents. Millennials like to know the origin, manufacturing history and content of the product. This is why they take the time to stand by the shop shelf and analyse the information on the packaging. It is a great idea to present the manufacturing history of the product in an approachable, brief and graphic form.

Personalisation makes a difference

It is also worthwhile to mention personalisation, thanks to which the customer gets the impression that the product has been designed especially for them. The Tango portfolio includes a handy packaging for kabanos sausages – a product that has been addressed, in our customer’s intention, especially to busy young women. The sachet that we offered will fit into any handbag. Its smart and luxurious design – gilded ornaments on a navy-blue background – are intended for women who appreciate beautiful forms. This way an ordinary product has gained an unusual design, which is clearly associated with its target group.

There can be no doubt that millennials will soon set the directions to be followed by producers. The packaging industry has been trying for years to meet the needs of this generation and it has been doing so more and more effectively. In the pursuit of goods sales figures, it is important to remember that packaging must correspond to its product. Young consumers appreciate not only an interesting form, but also a coherent message.