Mondi: E-commerce packaging in a post-pandemic world
06 Apr 2022 | Mondi
E-commerce expansion accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic, but what will this trend look like in a post-pandemic world? We speak to Daniela Dorner, Group eCommerce director at Mondi, to understand how new consumer groups are reinforcing e-commerce’s long-term growth and what shoppers perceive as environmentally sustainable packaging.
This is Louis Gur Langton for CNS Media.
Joining me today is Daniela Dorner, Group e-commerce director of Mondi.
Welcome, Daniela.
Hi.
Hi, Louise.
Nice to be here.
We'll get straight into it.
The COVID-19 experience greatly accelerated the growth of e-commerce, but what's lasting impacts and new features do you expect to see in online purchasing as a result of the pandemic?
As you just mentioned, the pandemic has certainly boosted e-commerce and we have done some, trend research as and consumer insights research, and we do see also from that research that confirmed that this trend is here to stay and it's going to last.
So what we will see lasting going forward is this behavior of online shopping.
People, we, we all, we got used to it, right?
And , what we also see is that more and more consumer groups are entering the online shopping world.
For example, silver surfers like, people aged 55+, which are also enjoying the convenience of shopping online and they're going to stay, doing so.
And what we also can observe is that more and more diverse products and product groups are purchased online.
Thinking of as , homeware, even furniture, appliances, so also products which require maybe specific packaging.
Also e-groceries.
So also here again, , an added challenge, for the whole supply chain and packaging.
And when it comes to features, thinking about packaging of e-commerce, we see that consumers do demand sustainable packaging, and we also see that, the unboxing experience is a trend and, and simply a factor which will receive also more and more attention going forward.
Brilliant.
And what does environmentally sustainable packaging look like to online shoppers?
For instance, are they showing a material preference?
So, we have surveyed, a number of consumers in, in Europe, end of last year, and this study shows that, consumers demand packaging to be sustainable.
And as you rightly ask, what does this mean and, and is there any preference, for materials?
So we do see that, consumers demand material which is natural and, which feels natural as.
And there is a certain preference, for example, towards paper-based, based materials.
And we also , see that, the choice of material, the choice of base material for packaging is an essential choice as to take for brand owners because the choice of material can underline as , the sustainability messaging or the brand image, the brand messaging which a brand owner wants to give to their consumers.
And what we also need to keep in mind, what else is required of this material to fulfill this, it should then be packaging which is easy to return, easy to recycle, which has a natural touch and feel.
And we can also see from, from our own data that, there is more and more trend, towards brown paper rather than white paper and there's, also an increased interest, towards recycled content.
And, when it comes to recycled content, we, we also need to keep in mind that we will need both.
We need the strength properties of the virgin fiber to protect our products, but we also, should, , consider that, paper can be recycled multiple times and, a combination of that, will be interesting in the future.
Right, and , given that, what are the challenges in retaining the protective qualities of e-commerce packaging with increased environmental sustainability?
You mentioned increased recycled content.
So, we, we need to keep the balance here, right?
So we want, to have, on the one hand, the virgin fiber with its, strength properties and its protective purposes, but also there is this increasing demand for recycled content and paper is an excellent material here because it can be recycled, 8 times or even more.
And, when we think of, what do we expect of our packaging, the primary purpose is to protect the goods which are in.
Side, right?
So, there's nothing more unsustainable or damaging than a product which was damaged, during transport.
So we need to ensure that with the material choice, with the paper choice, we, we take for our packaging, that we can fulfill this protective strength properties.
And, this is really a key and essential, yeah, element which the packaging needs to fulfill.
So this is something we need to keep in mind, so the right balance of recycled content and virgin fiber, of course, sourced from sustainably managed forests.
This is really a prerequisite, to ensure that in the end, the ultimate and optimum product protection at minimum material usage.
And , carbon impact is also an increasingly important thing to consumers.
In what ways is Mondi reducing its carbon impact, for e-commerce packaging?
Certainly, reducing our emissions and the impact which we have on the environment is on a very high agenda at Mondi.
And we do also agree and, we do also see that, packaging can play a crucial role here to really contribute to a better world and it should always be sustainable by design, as we say in Mondi.
And we really think that, the choice of packaging and the right size of packaging and packaging being fit for purpose can also contribute to make, e-commerce, The commerce shipping is more sustainable.
At Mondi, we do, regularly invest and we have a huge emphasis here as on, on, , on improving our footprint.
And, we have, for example, since 2015, invested more than €500 million in our assets, in our mills, in our plant network with the target to also shift the energy mix towards more biomass.
And, with these investments and ongoing efforts, we have, we have, Also achieved the reduction of our SOP1 and SOP 2 greenhouse gas emissions by 24% since 2014.
And, we do not stop here.
Yeah, we want to achieve even more than that, which is why we have also, we have also set ourselves, the commitment, to transition towards net zero by 2050 based on science-based targets.
So, the commitment is there and the emphasis is there, but, we always say, change really happens when you also take, certain actions.
So we have, , a vast action plan, which we have launched beginning of last year, and we call it the Mondi Action Plan 2030.
And this builds on three pillars.
So we want to take, action on climate change.
We want to drive forward with circular solutions, and all of that's done by empowered people.
So this is the pillars where, where a number of actions is focused on and Ultimately, we are also proud that we are externally recognized for our efforts and for the actions we are taking.
For example, Ecovadis awarded us with the platinum rating and, also CPD, awarded Mondi with a AAA rating, which we are really proud of because we are only one of only 14 companies out of 12,000 assessed which were awarded with a AAA rating.
So this is also making us very proud and also honored that the efforts are recognized externally as.
Brilliant.
And lastly, how important is the unboxing experience to brand loyalty, and in what ways can it be achieved?
Thank you.
As I mentioned already in the very beginning, the unboxing experience is something which we do see also receiving more emphasis and attention going forward.
And, when we think of the packaging, oftentimes, it is really the only physical touch point a brand has with their consumers.
It's like our shopfront.
It's our analog, experience in the home of the consumers, right?
And when we Google unboxing, or we watch certain YouTube videos, this is really also showcasing how this first impression has a lasting impact on many of the consumers and how they also enjoy it, right?
And, with the choice of material for our packaging, for example, choosing paper, we also deliver a hectic, a tactile experience, to the brand experience in online shopping.
So packaging and the unboxing does play an important and a key role in the whole e-shopping experience.
In our survey, which we have conducted with consumers in Europe, we also saw that about 50% of the surveyed consumers would be willing to even pay €3 more if the packaging and the experience they have meets their needs.
So if it's easy to recycle, it's made of sustainable material of the right size, and, and this is really a, a USB then as.
What we also saw from this study is that, a positive unboxing experience can even lead to repeat purchases.
So it is driving brand loyalty and then it can also increase the sales ultimately.
So we did, we see that there is an increased awareness and interestingly, close to 50% said they have already enjoyed this, , this, yeah, positive unboxing moment and unboxing experience, and specifically, consumers survey in Poland state, close to 60% of them state that they would even, consider to repeat the purchase at a certain brand if the experience were surprisingly, right and, and positive for them.
Brilliant.
Daniela, thanks for joining Packaging Insights.
Thank you for having me.
