Mass to Prestige Carton Design

Ah, the marketeers, our friends and foes. Our next project springs fresh from the fertile imagination of one of those marketing experts I mentioned earlier. This project will enable you to tackle a 3D carton design and explore some of the differences between mass-market and prestige packaging. You'll be given a generic carton for a nail polish remover and asked to give it a prestige makeover.

Figure 10.18. Hmm, this humble package needs to go uptown. What colors and details will you add to prepare it for the spa?

Project Brief: Anaf Spa and Salon

The marketing executive at a major drugstore chain has developed a brief to reposition an existing generic product package as a prestige brand. The client wants a designer to take its popular but design-challenged nail polish remover upmarket. Read through the brief, and then we'll talk about how to approach the project.

We at Mass Market Drugs want to upgrade the packaging graphics for our Nail Polish Remover Pads.

The exclusive Anaf Spa and Salon wants to use our product in its salon. We need to give the carton a face-liftto transform it from a mass-market box to a prestige package. The new carton should look completely different from the existing one. There should be no similarities. We also need this carton to work for us on the salon shelves, as the product will be offered for sale to convey that "at-home salon" feel. The product will be the first in a product line called Anaf Salon.

Please present your final redesign to our marketing director and explain how you see its counter animation working. Good luck with your presentation.

A few things to note about Anaf Spa and Salon. It's a Zen-inspired salon that isn't overly Zen or overly New Age. The decor uses lots of wood, metal, and deep earth tones. A visitor will see plenty of beautiful, imported tiles in deep, rich colors. The mood is very peaceful, private, and serene. It's a full-service salon, very exclusive with the finest amenities.

I think we need to spend a week at the salon in order to get "the feel" right, don't you?

Project Summary

Research the product type by doing a store tour to look at mass-market and prestige products.
STUDIO SESSIONS

www.studiosessions.net/portfolio

Post this chapter's project online for feedback from professional designers.

access code: STUDIOp
Take careful note of the product specifications.
Research, brainstorm, and sketch your concepts.
Create a flat package, 3D presentation, and counter animation for your revitalized product.

Project Steps

1. Do Some Product Research

Store tour No. 1Go to a local drugstore and find an example of a beauty product carton that is displayed on a shelf or in a counter. Briefly register what you saw. Ask to take notes or photos if you need to. Then try to answer the following questions.

How many sides of the carton are used to display the product?
How much space on the shelf or counter does the carton take up?
Are any merchandising elements provided with the carton (such as posters, bags, displays, table setups, banners, and so on)? If so, what are they, and what design elements do you find consistent throughout the "family" of merchandising?
How much of the front of the carton is decorated with graphics?
How many colors are used in the printing? Any special finishes?
Is the shape interesting or unusual? Does it work?
Do you see any good design approaches to remember for your own work?
Are any interesting materials or finishes used? Stickers? Die-cuts? Emboss/deboss? Foils? Tints?
Does the overall design work? If not, identify why notand remember not to do those things!

Store tour No. 2Now repeat the process at a fine department store. Find an example of a beauty product carton displayed on a shelf or counter. Try to answer the same questions as above. For an added bonus, try comparing mass-market and prestige packages in another genre, such as toys (try a large discount store and a higher-end toy "boutique") or food products (your supermarket versus a small gourmet shop).

Remember that there are always designs that challenge the notions of mass-market and prestige and try to be all things to all peoplea prestigelike mass-market product, or a mass marketlike prestige product (Target pronounced "Tar-zhay," if you will).

2. Note the Product Specifications

Carton dimensions: 3" wide by 1.25" deep by 3" high

Counter animation presentation should show flat panels side by side in a horizontal line as if on a real shelfshowing front, side, front, side, and so on, five cartons long.

Front of carton:

One to four colors, possibly six (full color plus two "spot colors") if the design merits.

Anaf logo

Anaf Salon

Nail Polish Remover Pads

Non-acetone for artificial and natural nails

6 individual pads

Back of carton:

6 individually wrapped pads

Non-acetone for artificial and natural nails

Directions: Use saturated pad to gently rub polish from all nails. Pad will absorb color while special formula conditions cuticles and nails.

CAUTION: Flammable. Keep away from heat or flame. Keep away from children. Exposed pad may damage furniture or clothing.

Ingredients: Ethyl Acetate, SDA35, Water, CDP Conditioner, Fragrance, Denatonium Benzoate, D&C red #33

Distributed by Mass Market Drugs, New York, NY 10001

3. Create the Design

Go to the online download area and save the Anaf logo as an .eps file. You will need it to create the flat package, the 3D presentation, and the counter animation. Let's break down the necessary design elements before we get into the design.

Figure 10.19. Different packaging of the same information, with a different branda true challenge for the packaging designer.

First let's look at the original, decidedly mass marketoriented box. This packaging serves its purpose, but it needs an upgrade for the spa and salon audience. Consider colors relevant to the company's story to create a mood. Think about the fine elements used in the Anaf salon decor so that your carton design fits right in.

Remember, we want to tell the story but we don't want to overcrowd the message. If you choose to leave a panel blank or just use a color field, that's a valid decision. Editing is very importantif something feels like too much, take it out. Listen to your gut, and if an element starts to irk you, remove itno second thoughts.

Ready to start designing? Use these steps to plan your attack.

1.	Plan and select your images or illustrations.
2.	Edit your images in Photoshop.
3.	Make a flat carton template in Illustrator.
4.	Import Photoshop images into Illustrator, add text, and save the flat package file.
5.	Create a 3D mock-up showing the carton panels in perspective.
6.	Create a counter animation by showing several examples of your 3D mock-up side by side (in either Photoshop or Illustrator).

Good luckand remember to read and reread the brief, research, follow your gut, relax, and have fun.

Student Work

What have other design students done with this project? Here are some work samples from the Sessions classroom: