The future will be sustainable: COSSMA

Packaging | The desire for sustainability in cosmetic products is great. But what does this mean for packaging in the near future? Daniel Traub knows how the market is developing and what will become more and more important next year.

We are currently living in challenging times – economically, politically, and socially. High energy prices are not only affecting energy-intensiveproduction, but all aspects of the economy and European society as well. After the Corona-virus pandemic and the resulting supply bottlenecks, anyone who thought that we had experienced the worst of it has been rudely awakened by inflation and the energy crisis.

But we cannot forget that difficult times present opportunities to reinvent ourselves and that it is vital to recognise and take on the challenges we are all facing. The many possibilities offered by digitalisation and automation, can be transformed into tangible success factors for the cosmetic industry to emerge from the crisis even stronger. It is now commonly accepted that digitalisation and certainly sustainability will continue to be in the foreground of industry for many years, if not decades, to come.

If we look at trends for the next year in the cosmetic industry from a packaging perspective, ecological sustainability will remain a decisive factor. Hardly any other business sector is as brand- and image-driven as the health and beauty market, and confronted with such high expectations from its customers, both male and female.

When it comes to finding and retaining customers, customer-centricity will be the magic word in the coming years. Branding and brand management will not only take place through marketing communication, but increasingly through brand presentation, online and at point of sale (POS), as well as through packaging. There is no doubt that outstanding workmanship and the right look and feel add value to individual brands.

A brand trying to successfully position itself in a high-quality and premium-priced cosmetic segment with inferior packaging is doomed. Customers’ demand for sustainability will remain very high, and most probably continue to increase.

Packaging design

Changing consumer behaviour is also reflected in the field of cosmetics and their packaging. Sustainable cosmetics may have been a niche product just a few years ago but today, they can be found in almost any drugstore, beauty salon, and especially on the internet. This is where it gets exciting. On the one hand, products ordered online must be securely packaged to ensure a positive unboxing experience, but on the other hand, packaging as a means of presentation must be compelling, in line with the brand and sustainable.

Consumers are now not only concerned about natural ingredients, but they also care about the sustainability of packaging. Many are unsure as to which choice will keep their ecological footprint as lean as possible. And most manufacturers or users of packaging feel the same way.

Packaging alternatives that may appear well-intentioned but are more harmful than beneficial to the environment, continue to flood the market. Waste management companies know all too well that what cannot be easily separated or only contributes a small share to the collection of recyclable materials cannot be recycled. This results in the recycling cycle missing out on material and recyclers miss-ing out on their margins. For non-recyclable materials, the only option is thermal recycling – a euphemism for the waste incineration plant.

Recycling

The social trend towards more sustainability is not the only thing that will dominate the future. Politics will set the direction for the in-dustry with stricter requirements and recycling quotas. In the meantime, several recyclers and dual systems have developed their own certifications with which the recyclability of packaging solutions is re-evaluated.

It is problematic for non-separable or difficult-to-separate material composites, such as PE bottles with PVC sleeves, whereas mono-material is rated as good. The cosmetic industry will have to rely more on the use of mono-packaging materials and paper packaging in the future. And, of course, the trend towards plastic-free packaging will increase.

In terms of sustainability, deodorants and shampoos will be setting the pace as solid and plastic-free variants. Dispensers in drugstore shelves will also be reduced to a minimum. Furthermore, the trend towards ‘refilling’ will increase as well. And this not only for water, but also for powder compacts and shampoo bottles that can be used again and again thanks to refill packs. Cosmetic manufacturers will have to follow these social trends if they are intent on selling their high-quality products to women and men in the future.

One of the challenges we will soon face is to provide clear answers to the determining trends of sustainability and e-commerce.

Interface-free complete lines for the cosmetics industry.

Changing consumer behaviour

Consumers’ sustainable demands on packaging and ingredients are one side of the coin; the other is the fast-moving pace in the cosmetic sector. Cosmetic products change almost quarterly and, of course, packaging must be adapted accordingly. Whether for seasonal promotions or in response to an emerging trend, product innovations, relaunches and new developments are now quintessential.

At the same time, mediatisation through social media and influencers is acting as a booster for e-commerce. The trend towards shopping online or having cosmetics customised will continue to increase. This means that production constantly needs to be adapted for larger or smaller batches. Quick scalability will become a prerequisite to success in the future. In concrete terms, this means that packaging machines need to be flexibly adapted to different packaging formats, new product packaging and changing materials.

Flexibility and efficiency

When it comes to filling and packaging cosmetics, ensuring maximum flexibility is what matters most. Seamless processes ensure a significantly improved line efficiency. The integration of individual process steps eliminates the need for conveyor sections between individual machines, as well as repeated indexing and, finally, product carriers.

The use of intelligent transmodul transport robots ensures that the product and components are always in a clearly defined and monitored state from the infeed to the pallet. This guarantees an enormous variety of shapes will meet the ever-increasing demands of consumers with efficiency and flexibility. And because ecological sustainability cannot do without economic sustainability, many references confirm a return of investment (ROI) of within two to three years at most.

Holistic approach to processes

By now, we all know that the mega-trend of sustainability will strongly influence the cosmetic industry through rapidly changing consumer behaviour and the advancing digitalisation of society. And in this new context, the actual products only represent a part of the overall process.

Sales, logistics and finally production are the key facets of a value creation process that will be readjusted through digitalisation and automation in the coming years. It is only by increasing efficiency, flexibility, and agility that this megatrend can be successfully countered in all its dimensions. To this end, production processes need to be considered holistically – from filling through quality control to the ready-to-dispatch pallet.

The key to a successful future in the cosmetic industry does not lie in innovative technical ‘silo’ solutions, but rather in adopting an holistic approach that considers all parameters of a seamless integrative filling and packaging process. Of course, facing the future with new ideas, daring and curiosity will continue to play a major role. And this will not be changing in years to come.