Wine packaging is becoming much more personal and personable with shoppers. Vintners are giving the label much wider latitude to show whimsy, display humor, and even reflect cultural trends such as the Op Art movement.
Wine marketers are calling on the label to display much more marketing muscle than ever because consumers are becoming more discerning in their purchases, across virtually every category. Besides a product that works, they want a brand that “hits home” with their personal sense of style.
These observations are reflected in the thing behind 30 creative and unusual wine label designs featured on curiousread.com. Wine is gravitating into other packaging forms besides the traditional glass bottle. The stand-up pouch is gaining popularity in the category for its portability, and there’s even a wine brand on the market that really stretches the imagination. It’s in cans with screw caps—a packaging shape and form that calls to mind thoughts of mineral spirits or turpentine.
Be careful! The intent with this package was to emphasize the brand name, which is associated with garages. However, consumers readily associate some package forms with specific categories; there is a stock plastic bottle form that is synonymous with household cleaners that is beginning to appear in the food aisle. Mixing packaging’s visual cues when crossing categories can send the wrong signal to consumers, if you’re too careless, and the results can be other than what marketing intended.
