The cannabis industry evolves at a rapid pace, and so does its packaging design. Every passing year brings a couple of new trends. Some of them change quickly while others occupy the market for years. 2020 has been a year of innovation. It brought a variety of trending designs, both in the terms of functionality and aesthetic appeal. The new branding and packaging of cannabis focus on users as more educated professionals, who are keen to know deeply about every aspect. Whether you want to design cannabis packaging for medical or recreational purposes, you have to keep in mind the latest trends to add more value to your products. The designs of 2020 favor the modern approach over the outdated look. This shows that the cannabis industry is growing exponentially. Let us have a look at some of these notable trending designs of the year:
Packaging with Compliance in Mind:
Even though the packaging for cannabis is becoming more creative over time, yet it is necessary to comply with rules and regulations. This has given rise to a new packaging trend that seems to be last forever. First of all, the potency of cannabis should be highlighted properly. The information should be bold, framed, and no smaller than 10-point font. It should also be printed with a bright color to shine against the background. The level for cannabis appears as a percentage of labels.
All CBD products must include potency statements as well. Creating child-resistant packaging is another rising trend. The manufacturers must comply with it to keep the children safe. For this, child-resistant caps should be placed on the cannabis containers preventing children from swallowing the cannabis product accidentally. Child-resistant regulations can be met by keeping your cannabis packaging design functional and sophisticated. Some companies also go for cleverly used hemp leaves to create pouches that lock.
Leafy Imagery:
Although the pointy leaf is a cliché, it is an instantly recognizable icon becoming trendy these days. It is used by various manufacturers for designing cannabis packaging. The leafy imagery is the fastest way to make your product identifiable on retail shelves. Many brands are continuing to use a cannabis leaf in their logo and packaging design, but they do it with a twist. These new logos can be a stylized version of the leaf; you may use attractive colors or combine them with other elements to modernize the design, keeping the basic theme the same.
Packaging that Focuses on Design and Branding:
Cannabis products have been recognized in the past because of their psychedelic imagery. However, this trend is dying out and more contemporary styles are evolving. The businesses prefer minimalism with clean edges, and fine-quality graphics, and a modern, professional display. Some of the latest design trends used for branding are:
- Frosted glass and embossing to add texture in line with the modern designs.
- Unique shaped cannabis boxes with clean edges and minimal package design.
Your cannabis packaging design should be such that it facilitates the customers to distinguish between recreational and medical cannabis. Over the past few years, there has been a shift toward making medicinal marijuana more accessible. So for getting the consumer’s attention a branded packaging design is necessary.
Sustainable Packaging:
As cannabis is itself all-natural, so the manufacturers thought to keep its packaging natural too. Sustainable packaging design is getting fame these days as more users are getting concerned about the environment. The four main factors to keep in mind while designing eco-friendly cannabis packaging are cutting down the waste, sustainable material, earth-friendly packaging, and non-toxic. You can generate less packaging waste by designing perfect-sized cannabis boxes for your products. Cut off unnecessary packaging and shipping material from your production. An eco-friendly packaging design often gives a minimalistic, sleek look that is no more elaborated than required to be to safely store and ship the product.
Sustainable materials like glass, recycled cardstock, hemp, and cotton can use to create your cannabis packaging. Hemp-based sacs are growing in popularity especially for recreational cannabis. The primary package is usually made up of green or blue glass bottles as it also offers natural UV filtering. The secondary packaging boxes are designed from the finest quality cardstock that is biodegradable, compostable, and recyclable. Green manufacturers have also started using plant dyes and biodegradable adhesives as eco-friendly options.
Packaging Highlighting Sourcing:
The consumers of today are attracted more toward organic and natural products. It means that your company has to be completely transparent. Realistic information should be provided that whether your cannabis is organic or not. In the case of medical cannabis, you may include medical-related symbols as a part of your packaging design to ensure the customers the quality of your products. Using the symbols and terminologies that highlight the sourcing is not only becoming the need of time but also a trending design that can be used to grasp the attention of buyers. It also gives customers the essence of a fully legitimized, high-quality product.
Playing with Stereotypes:
Although most of the cannabis packaging designs of 2020 are aimed more towards a clean and sophisticated display, the manufacturers of recreational marijuana tried to use humor to their advantage. As a result, it is expected to see many cheekier puns and wordplays that may attract consumers more than before. The use of eye-catchy colors and funky fonts is used on titles as well as in description labels. The trend of playing with stereotypes is becoming much popular for cannabis branding. It may either involve a clear play with words or hint at the old counterculture. As recreational cannabis has become legal, therefore the manufacturers prefer to be a bit more playful. Adding a little creativity and fun can make your cannabis brand stand out from the competition.
