“Traditional pub” style copper: Ardagh expands beverage end range with new color formats

30 Jul 2019 --- Ardagh has extended its range of can-design customizations with a new addition to its Coloured Tab and Shell portfolio: copper. The company notes that the copper color option is unique to Ardagh, offering customers the chance to enhance their product packaging for standout shelf appeal – particularly for brands linked with copper-still distilling or with the feel of a traditional pub. The “eye-catching” tone is suitable for a diameter 202 can end as well as a diameter 200 end on which it was developed.

The new addition follows the company’s production expansion of its beverage can end and tabs by 10 percent at its Valparaiso plant in Indiana, US, in January. The move was said to address the growing demand for attractive and highly-differentiated can packaging in North America.  

“The capabilities that innovative ends and tabs provide to a brand are numerous,” Claude Marbach, CEO, Ardagh Metal – North America, tells PackagingInsights. “When the top of the can package is characterized by different colors, it stands out on retail shelves, attracting consumer attention. In a market where price is often equal, a brand differentiator such as color, graphics and functionality, can make a strong difference in purchase decisions.”

The color has been approved for both the Coloured Tab and Shell range.In the highly competitive alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverage markets, a standout aesthetic feature can be influential for consumers at point of sale. It is especially effective where the design reflects the product inside. The elegant burnished copper color can, therefore, be an apt choice where the product is linked with copper-still distilling, traditional pub themes or, more broadly, where the brand is positioned at the top end of the market and is seeking an exclusive appeal.

“A further excellent example of the growth in the use of innovative ends and tabs is across the energy drink market. This beverage category continues to show strength, with established and newly-launched brands utilizing the entire space of the beverage can package to position their brand in multi-color attraction, taking full advantage of the beverage can’s shiny, metal surface area,” Marbach adds.

The color has been approved for both the Coloured Tab and Shell range, meaning customers will be able to choose this on-trend look for both parts of the beverage end together or match it with Ardagh’s other color options in a wide range of combinations. 

“We are proud to be introducing this unique copper tone as a new color option for the tab, the shell or the entire beverage end. At Ardagh, we’re constantly innovating, looking for new ways to meet customers’ branding needs and to support new trends in design,” says Dirk Schwung, Sales Director at Ardagh Group’s European Metal Beverage division.

Ardagh highlights that beverage cans are widely recognized as a strong sustainability choice. Beverage cans support brand environmental objectives with a high recycling rate and recycled content percentage. Additionally, the company highlights that beverage cans are filled, shipped and displayed at retail more efficiently than other beverage packages, as there is no wasted space due to the package’s stacking capabilities.Funkin Cocktails have opted for the streamlined cans to deliver its range an on-the-go format.  

From cocktails to wines, a range of beverage categories are adopting canned packaging options. In June, Ardagh’s Nitro Can was adopted by UK cocktail mixer company Funkin Cocktails in a collaboration that sees the first-ever range of RTD nitro canned cocktails hit the shelves. With premium cocktails increasing in popularity, but traditionally demanding time and skill to serve to customers, Funkin have opted for the streamlined cans to deliver its range an on-the-go format.  

Earlier this month, Ardagh launched a new slimline 187ml aluminum can, specially designed for wine and wine-based drinks. With its special design characteristics and unique sizing, the can, set to launch in Q1 2020, was the latest addition to Ardagh’s Wine Can range. The packaging solution’s capacity is a personal wine serving of 187ml – a quarter of the standard 75cl bottle – and is marketed as an attractive option for the increasing number of consumers who wish to enjoy a single drink with a meal or while on-the-go. 

Only last week, Ardagh Group replicated the distinctive flutes of brewery Jupiler’s glassware in an embossed can, providing an added functional benefit: the smaller surface area keeps the beer colder for longer. Ardagh reports that the Jupiler project has led to tooling innovations that enable the supplier to render embossed designs with greater definition, creating new branding opportunities for customers. 

By Laxmi Haigh