This year we’ve creatively partnered with Melbourne based small business Inke Packaging. Founded in 2018, Inke helps brands across Australia and New Zealand grow customer engagement through packaging. Their mission is to modernise a traditional industry and bring the same joy you feel when ordering packaging to when receiving a package. We chatted with the team to learn more about the business, where they find inspiration and something from their wildest imagination.
Where do you find inspiration for package design (non-traditional places)?
We’re always blown away by the designs that we see our community of creatives come up with when ordering their packaging online with us. For us, however, we encourage brands to find package design inspiration from online platforms like Behance, Instagram and Pinterest. Design communities are also great places to seek inspiration and new ideas, like Facebook groups and websites like Dribble.
What’s the story or symbolism behind your logo?
The logo symbolises our key principles of simplicity and feel-good packaging. We encourage our community to ‘Send Joy’ and the icon of the box with a smile represents this. Our blue creates the feeling of calm, enjoyment and trust with a modern tech feel.
What is “different” about INKE and what does this intrinsically mean to the brand experience?
We’re totally Australian owned and operated, determined to disrupt a traditional industry of packaging through simplifying the ordering process whilst opening up accessibility to brands and individuals, and bringing creative freedom to designers.
Each order is processed using locally sourced materials and production, meaning we’re a local business supporting local businesses. The brand experience to us is all about creating positive and personal moments, so keeping our key focus on an Australian made circular economy aligns with our customer base core values and beliefs, whilst providing real time support to stay in touch with all our customers and help them through the journey.
What do you think of when you think of well designed packaging?
When we think of well-designed packaging, two words come to mind: personal and functional. Creating a personalised experience for customers is the best way to earn their trust and loyalty, so showing them you value their custom in your design is imperative. Functional design usually serves more than one purpose – we find that a lot of brands elevate their designs so their customers can repurpose their boxes for gifting, storage and other things.
What’s something small that brands can do to elevate their packaging design?
Custom packaging can be a great way to show new customers that you’re committed to taking that extra step to create a great experience for them. The best ways to elevate packaging design and leave a lasting impression always involve personalisation or storytelling to tap into your customer’s emotions.
Leave behinds inside the package, like a thank you note or an invitation to repurchase are welcome additions. Even designing a space inside the box where you can add a handwritten note – little details that show the customer is valued and cared for by the team will always elevate the experience.
Doing this right can do wonders for your business. With customers happily sharing your packaging on their social media platforms, you’ll reach new audiences.
How important is sustainability to the business?
Our focus on providing our services in a sustainable way is at the heart of what we do. All of our products are printed in Australia using locally sourced and recycled materials, through waste-preventative production methods. This means not only are we doing our bit to create a more circular economy, we’re also minimising our environmental impact by keeping operations onshore and using carbon-neutral delivery partners.
We also proudly donate 1.5% of the revenue from each order to Greening Australia – A non for profit organisation, committed to conserving Australia’s landscape.
How can small businesses make the transition to packaging sustainably with Inke?
For small businesses keen to explore the possibilities of what custom packaging can do for their brand, we recommend first trialling one of our sample packs to get an understanding of what materials and design options are available.
Otherwise, you can shop our range of endless product sizes and skip any set-up costs using your custom design (yes any design) in volumes as little as 10 units! You can then scale your orders up in quantities as needed to accommodate demand.
If budget is a main area of concern, as you can print multiple designs across the same order at no extra cost, we recommend forecasting for monthly or bi-monthly orders in larger runs. The cost per unit for packaging is scalable, meaning it decreases as your order volume increases, making it a bit more sustainable, price-wise, to plan ahead.
If you could build ANYTHING in your wildest imagination with cardboard boxes what would it be?
If the Olympic Village can make sustainable beds from cardboard, anything is possible! A cardboard venue for Finders Keepers perhaps?
Stay tuned…
We have an exciting competition with inke packaging launching very soon!