Color of the year: Pantone’s Color Institute VP discusses the impact of Peach Fuzz on packaging design

15 Jan 2024 --- Pantone, the “globally recognized color authority,” announced Pantone 13-1023 Peach Fuzz as the Color of the Year 2024. The “velvety gentle” peach is described as a shade that enriches mind, body and soul, offering a fresh approach to a new softness and a symbol of tenderness and communication.

Pantone says the selection of Pantone 13-1023 Peach Fuzz is a response to the growing need for “nurturing, empathy and compassion as the world grapples with turmoil.” The color represents a desire for togetherness, creating a sense of sanctuary and warmth. According to the company, Peach Fuzz “brings a feeling of belonging, inspires recalibration and provides an opportunity for nurturing in times of uncertainty.”

Packaging Insights speaks to Laurie Pressman, vice president of the Pantone Color Institute, to learn about the packaging industry’s applications for Peach Fuzz.

Pressman notes that Peach Fuzz is “seemingly tactile and touchable,” creating an enticing quality for various products, including F&B, cosmetics and accessories. The color’s warm and welcoming nature is expected to influence consumer behavior and engagement, making it a standout choice for packaging in multiple industries. 

“Heartfelt peach hue”
Delving into the emotions and associations that Peach Fuzz evokes, Pressman describes it as a color that inspires thoughts of “sweet and delicate tastes and scents.” 

Conveying a message of tactility, Peach Fuzz can be incorporated for a soft touch finish or  matted, sueded, velvety, quilted or furry textures.She suggests its suitability for the wellness industry, emphasizing its calming qualities and ability to create a multisensory consumer experience.

“A heartfelt peach hue whose all-embracing spirit enriches mind, body and soul, [it] conjures up an air of calm, offering us a space to be, feel, and heal and to flourish from,” explains Pressman. 

According to her, this sentiment makes the color “ideal” for packaging associated with wellness products, such as moisturizers and skin creams, where tenderness and softness are valued.

“A clean peach tone with a vintage vibe, Pantone 13-1023 Peach Fuzz reflects the past yet has been rephrased to have a contemporary ambiance, so a great color for anything retro inspired.”

Combining vintage and contemporary
Offering practical advice, Pressman suggests designers consider the color combinations and messaging of Peach Fuzz, incorporating it into their designs if it aligns with their vision. As the color reflects the past yet has a contemporary ambiance, it presents a unique opportunity for brands to create a multisensory and personalized consumer experience. 

“Conveying a message of tactility, it is a great color to be able to incorporate a soft touch finish or a finish that is softly matted, sueded, velvety, quilted or composed of furry textures,” says Pressman.

Addressing its adaptability across industries, Pressman sees Peach Fuzz as a versatile shade that can seamlessly transition between physical and digital spaces, making it a contemporary choice with a vintage vibe.

Pressman encourages collaboration between designers and brands, suggesting that the color brings “a feeling of kindness and tenderness, communicating a message of caring and sharing, community and collaboration.”As Peach Fuzz reflects the past yet has a contemporary ambiance, it presents an opportunity for brands to create a multisensory and personalized consumer experience.

In the age of augmented reality and digital experiences, Pressman envisions Peach Fuzz’s impact, stating: “Sensitive but sweet and airy, Pantone 13-1023 Peach Fuzz evokes a new modernity.” 

“While centered on the human experience of enriching and nurturing the mind, body, and soul, it is also a quietly sophisticated and contemporary peach with depth whose gentle lightness is understated but impactful, bringing beauty to the digital world, expressing this whole idea of soft futurism.”

Cultural tone in color
Peach Fuzz marks the 25th anniversary of the Pantone Color of the Year program. Over the years, the program has become a cultural touchstone, drawing attention to what is taking place in our global culture and how it is expressed through color.

“With this year’s Pantone Color of the Year 2024, we see an increased focus on community and people across the world reframing how they want to live and evaluating what is important — the comfort of being close to those we love. The color is one whose warm and welcoming embrace conveys a message of compassion and whose cozy sensibility brings people together and enriches the soul,” adds Pressman. 

“In the spirit of Pantone 13-1023 Peach Fuzz, we reflect on the last 25 years of the Pantone Color of the Year program, grateful to provide an avenue where designers and color enthusiasts all over the world can engage in a conversation about color, be inspired by color and showcase their creativity within their communities. We look forward to continuing this for many more years,” she concludes.

By Radhika Sikaria