As packaging costs drop, it’s time to give back to the customer, according to head of merchant sales for Europe’s one-stop packaging shop, H-Pack, David Martin
“Having spent the past few years paying more in shipping costs and weathering the increase in the price of raw materials, costs are dropping for packaging suppliers now, which means that we can give more back to the customers and be generous in our pricing structure. Our customers have a choice – they can boost their own profit margins or pass these savings on. Either way, it’s good news!
“Price is what is currently driving the market. We sell to many wholesalers who serve the vending industry and our primary concern is to get the pricing right as our customers are still being squeezed to the limit on overheads like rental charges and utility bills and they simply can’t afford it.
“If pricing is most important then the second factor we have sought to address is product differentiation. You need your brand and your product to stand out in the market place and, to this end, H-Pack has invested in the launch of a new brand, Hot ‘n’ Fresh.
“Products sold in the UK, will be marked clearly with Hot ‘n’ Fresh logos in either green, red or blue to indicate the materials that have gone into the items: Green covers all eco-friendly materials from paper to wood and bagasse; the red logo is foils and the blue represents plastics. It’s simple – streamlined and effective.
“We’re hoping that this branding exercise will demonstrate that we are constantly evolving and are committed to serving all of our markets, regardless of what the competition comes up with. Being part of a larger global food packaging entity like Hotpack means that we have the resource to stay competitive and to pitch ourselves ahead of the crowd.”
