23 October 2012

Short-run printed packaging; spooky special – part 2

As Halloween gets ever-closer, it becomes more and more apparent through printed packaging how this is an event for kids.

While there are a few brands, such as Wychwood Brewery and its Hobgoblin ale products, that are providing adults with an opportunity to get involved with Halloween in the UK, many are focused on capturing the attention of children and capitalizing on their fascination with the gory and macabre, but making it a fun and enjoyable experience at the same time.

Cadbury is one of those brands that has made the most of its portfolio to great effect, with a host of products given a Halloween-themed packaging makeover in the run-up to October 31.

Some classics, such as the Creme Egg, have been rebranded as the Screme Egg and are packaged in darker, more gothic foils and cartons, while Vampire Mallows make the most of the jam inside’s blood-like appearance. Flavor variations of the much-loved Fingers range are also available, including Toffee Apple.

Mini Fingers are being marketed as perfect for trick or treating, an integral part of a child’s Halloween experience.

See more examples of Cadbury Halloween packaging here.

Dead Heads are another Cadbury product especially for Halloween, with mini milk chocolate heads with red caramel centers packaged in flexible bags featuring the face of a witch and an image of bats flying in front of the moon.

Sweet brand Haribo is similarly making the most of the link between kids and Halloween, with individual and multi-pack sweet wrappers featuring the brand’s golden bear mascot carrying a lantern made out of a pumpkin, another staple of the Halloween experience.

The overall Haribo brand message is that both children and adults enjoy its sweets, but you can’t help but feel the packaging on show is very much targeted at younger audiences.

Haribo Halloween cakes that are available are a case in point, with carton packaging printed with further Halloween-related imagery and carrying the message that they are “perfect for parties”.

Cartons from cake producer The Fabulous Bakin’ Boys are another clearly looking to capture the attention of kids. Spooky Choccy Orange and Slimey Limey mini cupcakes are being retailed in cartons featuring subtle Halloween imagery on the front, such as a silhouette of a bat, but with more prominent Halloween graphics printed on the back.

The cakes on sale this Halloween are actually DIY cupcakes, offering kids the opportunity to finish the decoration of the product with bands that fit around the case and feature a smiling ghost or witch, and a bemused looking Frankenstein’s monster.

Bats are understandably a key design theme of Halloween packaging, as underlined by their prominent use on cartons for Mr Kipling Shock & Orange slices (left), as well as previous examples. Likewise are ghosts, as visualized (right) on packs of Morrisons own-brand Spooky Hoops breakfast cereal.

To underline how Halloween is being used by brands to make the link between children and the gory and macabre, UK retail giant Tesco is selling a “Gory Eyeball Cake”, a sponge with a cream and jam filling decorated in a way that makes it look like a giant eyeball.

Out of the carton, I imagine this would have quite an impact, but even in the carton, with cut-away detailing and a plastic window revealing the vein-covered cake within, it stands out on the shelf. The carton is decorated with a flocked appearance including subtle images of skulls and bats.

The use of a comic font and squiggly die cutting for the window help lessen the gruesome appearance of the cake, and the packaging.

As with my summer packaging “study”, I’m interested to know what you see in your local store. If you see any packaging featuring Halloween decoration, please post it on Twitter using the hashtag #halloweenpack.

Alternatively, email them to me at [email protected].