A quick visit to the super market and you’ll see stacks and stacks of fancy products with even fancier packaging. Products and packaging of unique shapes and sizes using solid colors, interesting graphic design and bold typography throng the retail space. No wonder, often the consumer ends up spending more on a product simply on the basis of how attractive it looks.
What’s interesting to note is that while the regular consumer gravitates towards excellence in packaging and product design, there is another category of design lovers altogether, who simply pick a well designed package or product to satiate their love for art and design. The good part, is that one does not always have to splurge to own a good piece of product design. Innovations are done in all categories and price ranges and so you’ll find anything well packaged nowadays – be it a matchbox or a nail cutter. The design solutions are ample and cost-effective options are definitely available.
Packaging and product design is a growing industry and there is a huge demand for the same. There are big companies and small dedicated to the cause and if that’s not enough, there are a lot of individual players thriving on this one. Be it design school graduates or regular people with a creative bent, this industry has a place for everyone. It’s not just the big cities but even smaller sectors that are actively in the game.
While product and packaging design was always big internationally, it has caught up in India in a big way. There are innumerable examples of it. Be it in the everyday hyper marts or in the niche design stores mushrooming all over the country. In fact, it’s not just contemporary graphic design but even kitsch Indian design that is in huge demand today. It only helps that design is in the very pulse of India, since we’re a nation rich in arts, crafts and culture. No design firm is complete without doing a series or a collection that represents hard core Indian style, look and feel. Be it animals like cow, flowers like lotus or even motifs of gods and goddesses, each of them is used for the purpose of design.
A huge amount of research goes into creating a piece of product or packaging design. What appeals to the consumers, what benefits the brands, how relatable the design is, how convenient and how saleable it is, is the branding strong or not are some of the factors that are kept in mind before the design firm allows its creative juices to flow.
Overall, product and packaging design as a market has a huge potential. And it’s definitely a boon for both – designers and lovers of design.