E-Commerce is expanding from retail products to essentials, kits, and curations.
In a world gone mad … well, not quite, but it is certainly a different existence which comes with the new challenges.
One of the biggest is shopping and how we acquire not only groceries safely but white goods, shoes, software, and even experiences. With that comes opportunity at both wholesale and retail level. Packaging is getting your brand into the hands of your customers directly and even more conveniently.
Consumers now find their WFH and home schooling routines taking up more than their fair share of a day and anything that arrives at the door, complete and on schedule is welcome. Convenience has reached into subscription shopping.
Weekly prepared meal kit delivery services like Marley Spoon, Hello Fresh and more are changing the world of in-home eating.
Late last year the Australian meal kit market was valued at $300 million and globally Hello Fresh has seen their sales double.
Subscription wine purchasing has come into its own. From the small and perfectly formed Good Pair Days to three months’ supply and a glossy magazine (Wine Selectors) boxed wine is no longer just limited to gifting occasions but also a bottle-o-to-the-door weekly treat. These fragile contents come in the simplest of cartons to slick presentation packs.
Everyday items like vitamins are now curated to your needs and delivered to the door regularly e.g Vitable, a pain free set and forget purchase.
How packaging changed for its new journey.
Our Covid-19 days have not just led to a craving for home delivered convenience but also for the reassurance that those products and how they are coming to us are safe.
More products are being delivered and consequently not just picked from the shelf and directly into the possession of the purchaser. Now there’s the pick and packing, transporting to facilities, the rough and tumble of Australia Post and finally the doorstep drop. Original packaging may not be up to the punishment and so new packaging is being developed and in operation asap. Simply put, all packaging needs to be shipping friendly.
At a more serious level, there is strong interest in how the parcel gets to the end user and how many sets of hands and been involved in the journey. A genuine physical and psychological concern, companies have modified and adapted for this need for packaging hygiene. This has seen a rise in use of tamper evident seals and traceable tracking options.
Technology added to packaging, like the QR code that we now know and love, can link customers to the kind of history of the product that offers reassurance. With information detailing shipping from farm to supermarket or home and more, this will become the new normal.
Personalised packaging and direct delivery have allowed brands access into the homes and hearts of Australian families. Let's see how the industry evolves as covid -19 rules change over the coming years.
