What makes a great package? And what are some of the most important criteria package designers use when thinking about their next great design? And do purchasing executives have priorities that differ from brand managers?

Those were some of the questions Weatherchem posted to its database of package industry decision-makers in a survey conducted to understand key drivers in the package and closure markets. And in some respects, the opinions were surprising.

In many instances, in fact, priorities for brand managers and purchasing executives were actually closely aligned, despite what many might have assumed. When asked to rank company performance attributes that are most critical to purchase decisions of caps and closures, “Most Reliable Supplier” and “Most Cost Efficient” were #1 and #2, respectively, in terms of company priorities, with nearly equal scores received from both brand managers and purchasing executives. “Best Delivery” was the third most important criteria, followed by “Vendor Reputation and Integrity.”

“It seems that trust in the supplier’s performance is of paramount importance,” notes Weatherchem VP of marketing Anna Frolova-Levi. “In an age when many organizations and institutions haven’t acted in ways that were ‘trustworthy,’ buyers are seeking true partners they can depend upon to provide quality products, on time, and in a cost-effective manner.” Design of the closure itself was a top criterion for selecting a closure supplier, according to the survey. “Better closure design” received a 4.1 (out of 5.0) score as the top factor to influence choosing one closure over another.

Weatherchem
www.weatherchem.com