Finnish cosmetics brand HejBuddy has developed a multipurpose, space-saving promotional package for its skin-care products, which include sugar scrubs and tanning serums, among others. Offering flexibility and luxury appeal, the new lightweight packaging is made of micro-flute corrugated board using Metsä Board’s white kraft liner.
According to Metsä, the new packaging is 50% lighter than a traditional rigid box made of recycled fibers. In addition, while rigid boxes are typically imported from Asia as assembled packaging that requires a lot of container space, the new packaging developed by Metsä Board requires minimal storage capacity as it can be easily folded into a box when necessary. Once the packaging has been used, it can be unfolded and easily recycled.
 | Read about another promotional package that balances luxury with eco-friendliness in this related article, “Elegance Meets Sustainability in Commemorative Bourbon Gift Pack” |
The lightweight micro-flute package format was developed over several years at Metsä Board’s Excellence Centre in Äänekoski, Finland, and was launched last year. “We were looking to provide the same experience [of a gift box] by remodeling a box that was strong and rigid but lighter and with a smaller environmental impact,” explains Ilkka Harju, Metsä Board’s packaging services director.
The best solution turned out to be micro-flute, which has a significantly lower flute size than traditional corrugated boards. The packaging solution was also designed to be production-efficient from start to finish and suitable for mass production on current production lines, with no major retooling required.
The cradle-to-gate carbon footprint of the new solution, which considers value chain stages from raw materials extraction until the paperboard product leaves the mill, was also calculated and found to be 59% lower than that of traditional solutions.
And that’s not all, notes Harju. “Since no harmful adhesives or other plastic laminates are used in the packaging solution, the recycling becomes much more efficient,” he says.
For the HejBuddy application. The packaging includes a sleeve that can be customized for different branding needs. In addition, the micro-flute boxes allow for greater flexibility for HejBuddy as local production can be done in smaller batches.
“We wanted eye-catching packaging, produced with the environment in mind,” says Niina Tuominen, founder of the HejBuddy brand. “Nature is an important value for our company, and I’m a forest owner myself. It was important that our partner shared our values, and Metsä Board’s sustainable approach made them the perfect fit.” PW
