Label Summit Latin America shows region’s strength

Label Summit Latin America 2018, held in Guadalajara, Mexico, showed the strength of the local market
Julie Rodgers Vargas of Avery Dennison and Iban Cid (pictured) of Germark discussed smart technologies, the benefits of intelligent labels for brands and consumers, augmented reality and brand interaction

Label Summit Latin America 2018 welcomed 964 label and package printing industry professionals to Guadalajara, Mexico, for a two-day event and table-top exhibition.

Visitors came from 12 Latin American countries and territories: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, Puerto Rico and Venezuela. There were 87 exhibitors; a total of 620 companies – including converters, suppliers, distributors, brand owners and designers – were represented at the event overall.

The attendance figure ranks the event as the second most successful in the Label Summit series, after Mexico City in 2015, and represents strong growth from its previous edition in Guadalajara in 2012, which attracted 729 attendees and 70 exhibitors.

Tasha Ventimiglia, event director for Label Summit Latin America, said: ‘We are delighted with one of our most successful Label Summits in Latin America, which brought together the best of the region’s label and packing printing industry for two inspiring days of learning and showcasing the latest technology from world-class suppliers. Attendee feedback from the 25 countries represented has been tremendous.

‘Mexico has the region’s largest label and package printing market, so it was fantastic to see such a strong representation from our host country along with the rest of the region.’

Day one

Opening the Summit’s conference on day one was a keynote presentation given by Avery Dennison’s head of sales and marketing in Latin America, Isabela Monteiro. In her opening keynote address, Monteiro focused on four trends in the region: an increase of functional packaging, sustainability, intelligent labels and digital printing.

She said: ‘We are living in a more dynamic world with smaller families and single-family homes, so the consumption trend is more individualized, more practical, more functional.’

As in other parts of the world, Latin American consumers are increasingly experience-oriented and sustainability-minded, said Monteiro. Up to 60 percent of label waste happens at the converter level, while around 40 percent is at the end user. This means the biggest supply chain challenge is identifying recycling partners around the world that make financial sense for both the converter and the end user.

In a survey, Avery Dennison found that 60 percent of users express interest in knowing more about content of product through a scanning method. An intelligent label can provide that channel. In 2018, sales of intelligent labels will be $12bn USD. That number will be double in two years and by 2020 the market will reach about $30bn USD, Monteiro said. RFID and smart labels first gained acceptance in the retail and aerospace markets, but food, personal care and car companies are also seeing the benefits, which include track and trace, inventory control, expiration date management and more.

L&L editor James Quirk presented Latin American market data on behalf of research company and consultancy Smithers Pira. According to its studies, the Latin American packaging market was valued at $48 billion USD in 2017. The region is dominated by Mexico and Brazil, which make up $12.5 billion and $20 billion of the total respectively. The market is forecast to grow by 12 percent from 2017 to 2022.

The label market in the region is showing strong growth, according to Smithers Pira. From 2018 to 2022, wet-glue labels are forecast to grow by 11 percent in value, pressure-sensitive by 19 percent, shrink sleeves by 23 percent and in-mold by 25 percent.

The Mexican population is expected to grow by 4.7 percent between 2017 and 2022, while per capita GDP will rise by 24 percent in the same period.

The Mexican label market in 2018 is worth $452 million USD, and will grow to a value of $536.1 million in 2022. The shrink sleeve market in the country is forecast to have the strongest growth in value, at 34.5 percent. In-mold labels will rise by 21.3 percent; pressure-sensitive by 20 percent.

Smithers Pira data also show Mexico to be growing as a manufacturing hub for consumer products, particularly in personal care, which provides good opportunities to label converters.

A panel session discussed the challenges of attracting skilled labor and retaining key employees, with Heriberto Sánchez from Mexican association Acoban and local converter Etifilms, Keren Becerra from Etiquetas Lobo Impresores and industry magazine Label Pack, and Samuel Rodriguez de Landa from graphic arts school La Escuela Nacional de Artes Gráficas leading the debate. Emotional well-being and talent development were acknowledged as key to industry success, as was meeting the needs of younger entrants to the market who want a more flexible working life. This is a challenge for converters, where production jobs see a turnover of 3 percent.

The lack of certified flexo training offered by graphic arts schools in the region was also discussed, with converters in the audience acknowledging this key challenge during the Q&A section of the panel.

Juan Pablo Patino of Nilpeter and Juan Fransisco Saldana of Sun Chemical gave presentations which highlighted the opportunities for narrow web label converters to expand their product offering by moving into flexible packaging production. This fast-growing sector is seeing a trend towards shorter runs, which label converters – who deal with short lead times and fast changeovers – are adept at handling, while today’s in-line combination presses are able to print both self-adhesive (supported) and filmic (unsupported) substrates on the same press line.

Another popular session was led by Ideeo on diversification and moving from commercial printing to packaging. CEO of the Mexico City-based company Juan Sebastián Estrada described how it had ‘stopped being a printer a long time ago’. The company still produces printed materials, of course, but also has a strong augmented reality strategy and provides its clients with omni-channel offerings. ‘The package is a means of communication,’ he said. ‘I’m not selling a label or a package. I’m selling an experience.’

Day one ended with a panel discussion led by Ricardo Stone of Etiquetas e Impresiones de Mexico, Ángel Calderón of Impredimex, Gerardo Gonzalez of Etiprint and Jorge Martínez of Groupo Etimex. They agreed that since much of the Mexican market is price-focused, it is important to find a niche and excel in it. Calderón said: ‘There is a lot of competition in Mexico, and sometimes the only way to compete is to lower your price, and that’s not good for the market. You need to find new niches or new opportunities.’ Gonzalez said: ‘Companies that want to be in Mexico think we are crazy given the prices we offer. Some American companies that have come to Mexico can’t play with our rules due to the low prices.’

Digital printing was also flagged as a hot topic, as converters are increasingly adopting digital strategies. Martínez explained: ‘If you don’t have digital machines, well you should worry. Those who do, you should still be worried. We have to plan very well when handling digital jobs. To be efficient, you have to plan well.’

Eighty percent of Stone’s products are exported, and because of the current uncertainty with the North American Free Trade Agreement between the US, Canada and Mexico, he opted to expand operations in the US.

Day two

Day two of the conference began with Jos Kabouw of Grafisk Maskinfabrik and Joaquim Correia of Arconvert leading a session on high-end label decoration. Kabouw discussed augmented reality, foils and embossing as ways for brands to stand out on a shelf, while Correia looked at premium material options. Echoing the session on day one, he said: ‘Today’s consumer doesn’t want status from the products they purchase: they want an experience.’

Alex Cruz of synthetic materials manufacturer Yupo discussed in-mold label decoration. While still largely a niche in the Mexican market, Cruz pointed to Nestle’s recently announced goal of 100 percent recyclable or reusable packaging by 2022, saying it will be a boon for in-mold labeling.

Taking the stage with Cruz was Cristian Reyes of Mexican converter MayaPack, a Yupo client which has significantly grown its in-mold label production on its HP Indigo digital presses. Reyes discussed digital printing and design and advised: ‘Don’t design for brands, design for the people interacting with the brands.’

Julie Rodgers Vargas of Avery Dennison and Iban Cid of Germark discussed smart technologies, the benefits of intelligent labels for brands and consumers, augmented reality and brand interaction. Rodgers Vargas explained that 89 percent of consumers say they are willing to share data in order to have a better experience online and in-store. With RFID labels produced at Germark, Cid helped his customer Festina with both inventory control of its watches and in preventing theft from its stores.

Regular Label Summit speaker Hernán Braberman of Tridimage, a leading 3D branding, graphic design and structural packaging agency in Latin America, highlighted eight major trends in global design: ‘Classicpack’, the blending of a classic and contemporary feel; ‘Wellnesspack’, the trend towards healthy and sustainable consumer products; ‘Decopack’, the increase in highly decorated packaging; ‘Place pack’, giving a sense of place and origin to the product; ‘Honestipack’, where informal designs and chatty text engage with the consumer; ‘Craft pack’, which lends an organic feel to the brand; ‘Funpack’, which employs humor as a resource; and ‘Essencialpack’, a simpler, more minimalist style with a vintage feel.

The summit ended with a lively panel discussion on branding, and in particular enhancement, personalization and private label versus premium brands. High-profile consumer brands were well represented on the panel, with Mónica Medina of Nestlé, Sergio Bojalil of The Hershey Company, Humberto Ojeda of Tequila Casa San Matías, alongside Manuel Antonio Melendrez of Norjal.

The recurrent theme of consumer experience was discussed, while Lozano explained how his company works closely with its label printer to choose the best papers and bright finishes for their tequila bottles. He said there are greater opportunities for brand marketers and designers to interact with their label suppliers, who in turn have a responsibility to educate their customers on the latest trends. Melendrez agreed: ‘Printers need to be in contact with the designers, so they can tell the designer about material or technologies, or the designer can ask questions about the processes.’ On sustainability, Bojalil said: ‘Green is the new gold.’ Medina added: ‘People are looking for health benefits in products, so packages should be clear and communicate that message.’

Exhibition

The accompanying table-top exhibition featured 87 leading international and regional suppliers. The mood among exhibitors was bullish, thanks both to the high number of visitors, and a pervading atmosphere of positivity around the growth potential of the Mexican market.

Many leading suppliers have increased their focus on the Mexican market recently, including Avery Dennison, which has expanded its capacity at its facilities in Guadalajara, Monterrey and Mexico City, and is bringing a new coater in Queretaro site later this year. Pamela Chanona, Avery Dennison commercial manager, Mexico, said: ‘Mexico has become an important hub for production and exporting to different regions. To bring a new slitter and a coater give us more flexibility in the region and is really important for our business model.’

Epson launched its SurePress for the Latin American market, after what the digital press manufacturer described as ‘significant requests’ from converters in the region. Epson wanted to ensure service and support teams were in place in the region before selling the press there.

RotoMetrics has also opened a sales office in Mexico. ‘We recognize the importance of the Mexican market,’ said Latin America sales manager Jackie Ramos. ‘It’s growing and people are investing in equipment. A lot of big brand owners are also investing and building in Mexico, which is good for the label market. It’s a very interesting market. We see it as a strategic move.’

Martin Automatic’s Mike Jesinsky described the event as the ‘best show I’ve been to in Mexico, and I’ve been to a lot.’

Joaquim Correia of Arconvert described the Summit as ‘an excellent opportunity to share and debate ideas, concepts and market trends through the different perspectives of the entire value chain of the label sector.’

James Quirk

James Quirk

  • Latin America Correspondent

Chelsea McDougall

  • Group managing editor