The power of packaging is a major topic of our newsletter this week with two opinion pieces focussing on its pivotal role.
In the first piece Andy Hill, director of Sorted, looks at the inevitable fact that the green focus is likely to once again fall on the supply chain and delivery soon and he says retailers must be ready. It’s a valid point. Environmental lobbyists have already focussed on everything from plastic bottles and bags to disposable coffee cups and retailers that over-package face vilification too.
And of course that’s without the environmental impact of the fast delivery options we have grown used to expecting too. Hill says that retailers must work more closely with suppliers to develop packaging that best suits the ecommerce delivery model.
But of course it also needs to do its job – selling the product as well as selling it. In our second opinion piece this week Packhelp’s Konrad Kwiatkowski reveals three ways that retailers can enhance the customer experience through packaging, looking at the importance of sustainability, unboxing and the element of surprise.
In news this week it’s congratulations to MetaPack who have just been acquired in a £175 million deal by Stamps.com. The deal will see the US business use MetaPack’s strong European presence to expand.
Talking of Europe with uncertainty continuing around Brexit Wincanton and PwC have announced that they are to partner up to help retailers prepare for Brexit.
Back home Amazon is expanding its Dash Replenishment programme with new manufacturers and smart gadgets now capable of automatically reordering consumables when stocks get low.
Finally we have the news that eBay has partnered with Collect+ to use the network for click and collect for its buyers and sellers.
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