For Kraft Foods, Packaging Is Key To Its Products' Success

By Alec Italiano, contributing writer

Teamwork-oriented approach to packaging design is a big part of the food-manufacturing giant’s success

The Packaging Conference provides a regular reminder for companies of just how important packaging can be when consumers are on the fence about their purchases. This year, Kraft Foods took full advantage of the opportunity The Packaging Conference presents by leading a discussion panel regarding the integration of 2D and 3D brainstorming into the packaging design process. As Peter Borowski, the lead designer for Kraft, stated at the conference, the company blended ideas from its labeling department and its graphics department to create a package that will “stop consumers in their tracks.”

As the orchestrator of all the different people who have a say in the design of the packaging, Borowski is well aware of all the components necessary for a product to be successful.  He duly notes that while advertising creates awareness, it is the packaging that will actually prompt the purchase in the grocery store.  This goes back to the basic saying of retail, “the customer is always right.”  While that may not ring entirely true in the food packaging industry, the discussion on designing the package needs to revolve around the consumer.  The package itself should be able to convey a clear message to consumers that the product inside is a safe, quality product that belongs in the pantry of every person walking through grocers’ aisles. The ability to illustrate that to the consumer through packaging is every designer’s ultimate goal. For Kraft’s Mac n’ Cheese, it’s the bold, colorful outward appearance that is crucial in developing the packaging’s stopping power.

Having a common goal and focusing on teamwork leads to an effective design.  From the product creation process, to the engineers who create the system to make and package the product, to the artists making the cheesy macaroni  graphic grabbing every person’s desire to indulge, if no one works together to achieve the common goal, the product will fail. And although many people contribute to the development and manufacturing of a product, it is equally important to have a strong leader who is able to make a final, and often difficult, decision that everyone can trust.  This is how Kraft is able to stop consumers in their tracks and have them pick up a box of Mac n’ Cheese.

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