Smart packaging
or how to knock the socks
off customers and sellers
Karl Knauer KG exploring new avenues with Bauerfeind AG
These days, packaging needs to be a real all-rounder: it needs to be sustainable, lightweight, robust, compact, multifunctional, secure, cool in terms of design and inexpensive, all at the same time. But this balancing act is not always successful, as anyone can tell just by looking at the average sales packaging. One positive example, on the other hand, is the innovative cardboard wraparound packaging that Karl Knauer implemented for the new SPORT socks range from Bauerfeind.
“It was important for us to provide the retail market with a packaging solution for our SPORT socks that works perfectly. This includes features such as integrated theft prevention, flexible hanging options and optimum presentation of the merchandise, as well as a modern and appealing design,” says Christian Naujoks, Global Product Manager Sports at Bauerfeind, describing the most important requirements for the packaging. While many manufacturers in the sports segment use plastic packaging for comparable products, Bauerfeind specifically chose a more sustainable solution. “As we have worked with the team at Karl Knauer for many years, it made perfect sense to contact our colleagues in the Black Forest for this project as well – to work with them to develop a cardboard alternative that surpasses expectations,” recalls Anja Metzner, who shares responsibility for Purchasing at Bauerfeind.
It took roughly 1.5 years to develop the exceptional packaging, which is protected by the German Federal utility model. One of the special features is the integrated theft protection developed and implemented by Karl Knauer: the special wraparound design holds the socks firmly in place with hinges on both sides but customers can still touch them. To ensure that the packaging remains attractive even when customers have handled it multiple times, it is finished with a visually appealing, scratch-resistant matt foil lamination. The robust surface and the open universal hanger that makes it possible to present the product at the POS on both 1- and 2-rod systems are proving very popular with retailers.
“Developing packaging that impresses everyone – manufacturers, purchasing departments and customers – is a standard we hold ourselves to,” explains Rita Schätzle, Project Manufacturer at Karl Knauer KG. “For this reason, we consider all eventualities, even whilst drawing up the first sketch. We have designed this packaging series, for example, to cover the entire/extensive product range of our long-standing client Bauerfeind – in this division – with a maximum of three packaging formats.” The chosen wraparound technology is not only able to package a variety of products securely, it also has another advantage: the packaging provides plenty of space to display product information on the inside as well as the outside. Even items that are not self-explanatory can thus be presented in an innovative, low-waste and environmentally friendly way – Karl Knauer has made sure of this.
