Following the booming interest in beverage variety packs among North American consumers, many beverage producers are now considering implementing this packaging strategy in other markets. Sidel has distilled its expertise in variety packs into a new whitepaper to support producers and brewers in their decision-making.

The launch of Sidel’s new variety pack solutions whitepaper will aid brewers and other beverage manufacturers looking to capitalize on this surge in popularity of variety packs. The comprehensive and objective whitepaper has been designed to explore and address the pertinent issues faced by decision-makers when designing their variety pack packing strategy, from market value and industrial challenges to the transition to an inhouse solution.

Growing demand for variety packs

Variety packs of flavored alcoholic beverages increased by 833 percent from 2016 to 2020[1], demonstrating consumers’ increasing search for variety, novelty and customization, a trend mirrored by the huge increase in popularity of hard seltzers amongst young adults. First appearing in 2013 in the US, the demand for hard seltzers grew into a market worth more than $2 billion by 2021, with more than sixty brands[2].

Variety packs offer consumers a way to sample new products, cater to different tastes within a social group, present potential value for your money and are convenient to carry and store. With increasing promotion, interaction and now online sales, they also allow breweries the potential to offer on-demand Variety Packs, allowing consumers to create their own packages according to their personal tastes.

Transitioning to in-house solutions

Approaches to packing solutions for variety packs can vary significantly depending on the beverage company’s production need and technical choices, from manual to automated repacking lines with WIP storage or even a ‘mega accumulation’ on-the-line production model.

When the variety pack trend first started, beverage producers relied on contract packagers to avoid large and potentially risky investments. However, in-house manufacturing now represents a viable option and industrial opportunity for major players in the beverage market with dynamic product marketing, broad product ranges and high sales volumes.

Stan Hume, director Can & Glass Business Development Americas at Sidel, expands, “Beverage producers looking to capitalize on the surge in popularity of variety packs are considering internalizing the means of packaging them, striving for the best compromise between the capacities of the chosen packaging solution and the corresponding investment.

“In highly developed markets such as North America, producers can save co-packing costs and deal with the increased complexity thanks to the deployment of advanced production tools and processes.”

Overcoming technical challenges

The challenge of finding an industrial packaging solution for variety packs is significant, both in terms of additional production costs but also increased operational complexity. Considerations include optimal space utilization, line control precision, advanced automation to ensure productivity, flexibility to produce both variety & regular packs, ergonomics, agility, and complex SKU management.

Sidel’s new variety pack solutions whitepaper is designed to guide beverage manufacturers through the challenges, opportunities and decision-making processes required when transitioning to an inhouse production solution.

Whitepaper offers Sidel’s expertise in variety packs to beverage packaging decision makers

Using its forty plus years of expertise in building tailormade packaging lines, the Sidel whitepaper offers a suite of product management tips to help partners define needs and objectives, embark on a change management programme, and choose the right industrial partner for the project.

Sidel’s Stan Hume explains, “When it comes to line design, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution to inhouse production of variety packs. Each solution must be tailormade to meet specific requirements, using systems that rely on strong engineering and system design capabilities.

“Sidel has long-standing relationships and proven experience in packaging technologies and solutions within the beverage market. We work in close partnership with beverage producers to design and build complete lines thanks to our capability to engineer and deliver customized agile solutions for complex packaging needs.”