In recent years, cigarette manufacturers have introduced a number of novel packaging, and the British American Tobacco Co., Ltd. wallets manufactured by COLIN MEAR Engineering have made a difference.
The reduction of public places promoting tobacco products has forced cigarette manufacturers to become more creative. In recent years, packaging has become an important means for tobacco companies to differentiate their brands from competitors. Cigarette manufacturers try to beat their competitors by presenting their products in unusual shapes or materials.
However, most packaging changes so far have been small. Changed to a rounded corner here, adding a bit of novelty printing there, the boldest new product is just a slightly different overall package shape. At present, British American Tobacco has introduced an innovative packaging that changes the packaging design model.
The box was designed by the Packaging Group of British American Tobacco Research and Development in Southampton, United Kingdom. From the outside, it looks like an ordinary clamshell package. But after removing the film and lifting the flip, the box opens in both directions, like a wallet or a book. The cigarette packs contain 7 cigarettes on one side and 13 cigarettes in two rows on the other, each with 6 cigarettes and 7 cigarettes. After closing, the shape is like an ordinary 20 cigarette flip package.
At present, there are two brands of British American Tobacco Co., Ltd. that can be provided with purse cigarette packs - France's Lucky Color and the United States's Coul Brand cigarettes, both manufactured by BAT's Brown Williamson Division. British American Tobacco is considering launching such packaging in markets that are known for smokers’ eagerness to try new products.
However, the unusual structure of the box is not the only place where cigarette manufacturers attract consumers' attention. After the cigarette box is opened, the book also has a considerable amount of blank space that can be used to record information.
This space can be used for daily communication or to convey product information. For example, in the French market, British American Tobacco (BAT) consciously left half of the internal space blank for immediate recording, allowing smokers to have places to write phone numbers or other relevant information.
There are certainly some mechanical challenges in producing this complex package, but CME's engineers provide excellent solutions to various challenges. For example, since the 7 cigarette sections of the box are narrower than the standard flip box, it requires an advanced viscose device. The equipment that connects the two packaging parts together requires a more complex drying cylinder than ever. Unlike conventional flip-top packaging, such a box must be slit on-line in order to open the box. Since the inner frame is part of a white cardboard, the device does not have an inner frame cutting device.
Even according to traditional evaluation criteria, the device has high scores in terms of flexibility and efficiency. "The transition between fillets and square corners can be done in the same class and maybe even faster," said Gordon Kramp, CME's technical director. The device is also very efficient. “Although wallets are more complex than traditional flip-top boxes, British American Tobacco is still producing such packages without compromising efficiency,†Kramp said.
If initial customer feedback can be used as an indicator, this package should be successful in France, the United States, and other markets. For example, a pre-market survey conducted in France shows that smokers believe that such packaging is original and highly innovative. They said that the two parts of the package made it easier for them to track their cigarette consumption, and they also particularly appreciated the practicality of the record book. The results of the survey before the launch of the market were quickly confirmed in the market: A person in the tobacco industry reported that all inventory of its purse boxes sold out in one week.