Brand-owner and retailer packaging specialists will give presentations on packaging trends at the Propak Packaging Innovations Conference, being held from 18–19 February 2014 at the Sandton Convention Centre, Johannesburg.
The key session focus areas will be: creating packaging that stands out on the shelf and sells; achieving convenience and functionality; procurement and supply chain efficiency; and means to increase recycling.
Retailers and brand-owner packaging leaders giving presentations include South African Breweries, Distell, Parmalat and Woolworths. Technical expertise on efficiency gains from intelligent plant automation will come from Coca-Cola while new packaging priorities in the supply chain will be covered by Nestle SA’s regional supply chain director. Shoprite Checkers will share best practice on packaging’s role in track-and-trace and brand protection and Royco/Mars Africa will address means to boost recycling through material replacement.
Kiril Dimitrov, Packaging Manager, Foods at Woolworths, will give a presentation on Woolworths’ new labelling system which is intended to assist recycling efforts by making it easier for customers to recycle correctly, while stimulating the growth of the recycling sector. Dimitrov says that one of the global emerging consumer mega-trends is for customers to actively seek products with minimal environmental impact, including the packaging the products come in. ‘We are not seeing that buying habits are changing yet purely based on packaging, but they are definitely based on overall product environmental attributes. One of Woolworths’ values is sustainability in everything we do. Packaging is one of the many areas we are trying to address and to minimise our environmental impact. As leaders in retail packaging in South Africa, our customers expect us to do more all the time. They also engage with us regularly and question some of our design ideas and choices.’
Janice Ashby of Janice Ashby Consulting, will speak on infusing packaging with creativity and will address, among other topics, what South Africans need to do to catch up with global competitors. Ashby has just returned from New York and says that in terms of graphic design, in many ways, ‘South Africa is ahead of the game’ compared to the U.S. and can be ‘more closely to be compared with the UK who’s packaging graphic design is so much more imaginative’. ‘When it comes to packaging systems I believe South African manufacturers keep up well with all the latest innovations world wide through international trade shows and on line research,’ she says. Ashby will also address the importance of branding as part of the pack design graphic solution and some of the notable packaging innovations making waves overseas. ‘The Propak conference is an essential tool for manufacturers to keep up with global trends,’ she says.
Converters, brand owners and retailers wishing to attend should contact:
Zelda Jordaan: (+27 11) 835 1565 zeldaj@specialised.com www.packaginginnovations.co.za
Costs: Standard rate R7 395+VAT; association partners members rate ZAR 6 995+VAT. Africa Print Journal Readers will get a 10% discount when booking – please quote reference ‘APJ’ on the booking form at the top next to ‘REGISTRATION FORM’.
Date and time: 18 February 9am–4.30pm; 19 February 9am–3pm.
