Press

Try It, You’ll Like It

By: Lisa Samalonis
Beauty Packaging

“Some of the biggest recent trends we are seeing in our requests for sample packaging are environmental consciousness, multi-dose capability, larger sizes, sample kits, coupon packs and a greater need for increased information with the samples,” says Anthony Gentile, director of art and marketing, of Xela Pack.

“The entire packaging industry is experiencing this trend toward ‘green’ packaging. Product companies of all kinds are finding out that their customers appreciate buying products that are not overpackaged with excessive materials simply for the sake of aesthetics or shelf-presence,” he says, adding that Xela Pack has produced environmentally conscious sample packaging, with an emphasis on material reduction, for nearly 25 years. Read more…

Sample Sizes Show Growth

By: Steve Katz
Beauty Packaging

Anthony Gentile, Xela Pack, Inc., Saline, MI, points out that any beauty product that offers the user a noticeable benefit with only a few applications should be a good fit for sampling and unit doses. “The purpose of a sample is to provide enough product for a consumer to properly experience the benefits of the product. Any time that is achieved, a good fit has been found. The brands that benefit most from sampling are those that give results the fastest. If it takes weeks to experience the benefits of a skin cream, that skin cream likely won’t benefit from sampling as much as a cream that shows benefits with one application,” he says. Read more…

Creating Brand Impact With Sample Packaging

By: Aniko Hill
CGI Magazine

In the world of branding, packaging can be one of the most important touch points a consumer interacts with before making a purchase. For lesser-known or start-up companies, packaging is often the first brand touch point a consumer interacts with and can be one of the only opportunities to make an impact. Even for well-known brands, the tactility of a package—along with the brand story and message—can often influence a purchase decision. In sample packaging, this idea is taken to the extreme. Read more…

Organic Foods Producer Banks on Sample Packs

By: Linda Casey
Packaging Digest

Lucini relies heavily on sampling done at tradeshows and consumer events to get people hooked on its high-end products. Traditionally, olive oils and vinegars are sampled using pieces of bread that are dipped into an open container holding the product. According to Neuman, this is not the best way to experience a product’s true flavor. He says the olive oil must be able to stand on its own with a clean flavor and a peppery finish.

To encourage this type of sampling, Lucini ordered more than 60,000 standup sample packs from Xela Pack, Inc. Read more…

Xela Pack Gets Demand for Eco-Friendly Items

By: MTKolar
Packaging World

“We wanted to have something unusual to give to our customers as samples, and this promotion has been a good one for us,” says Regis public relations manager Andrea Johnson.

The sample packs used by Regis come from Xela Pack®, Inc. (Bridgewater, MI). The material used to make them has a total thickness of 12 mils. From the outside in, it consists of paper/linear low-density pe/foil/LLDPE sealant.

Xela Pack refers to these packages as “Coupon Packs.” It forms them from flat, die-cut blanks provided by an unidentified vendor that prints the paper in five colors plus varnish, via letterpress. Read more…

Sampling & Unit Dosing: Big Developments

By: Jennifer Kwok
CPC Packaging

With the buzz surrounding environment friendliness, suppliers have been working to improve the sustainability of packaging. The Xela Pack has been one of the more earth-friendly packages because 75% of it is constructed from paper. For a few jobs in the past, Xela Pack (Saline, MI) has been asked to work with 100% postconsumer recycled (PCR) Kraft paper, which is brown in color. Recently, however, the company went a step further for some new Burt’s Bees samplers by using white PCR paper. Read more…