When Somchana Kangwarnjit, founder and executive creative director at Prompt Design -- a branding and packaging design company -- had to design water bottles for A.S.A. Limited Partnership, he looked through details of other water bottles in the market in order to create a unique design.
"The drinking water market is competitive. While brainstorming the design, we had to define the problem of water bottles and figure out how to create a product that does not cause a negative impact on the environment. Since labels are made of different materials, they require more recycling, so we decided to create bottles without a label," said Somchana.
The new C2 Drinking Water No Label features a groundbreaking design, with a barcode on a black coloured cap, accompanied by beautiful embossing of wildlife, marine life and birds on transparent bottles. Due to its innovative and striking design, the C2 Drinking Water No Label has won six awards locally and internationally -- the Red Dot Design Award (Germany), the Dieline Awards 2021 (US), the Muse Design Awards (USA), the Core77 Design Awards (US), the Good Design Awards (Australia) and the Demark Award (Thailand).
C2 Drinking Water No Label has won six reputable awards locally and internationally. Prompt Design
The C2 Drinking Water No Label is one of many numerous designs by Somchana and Prompt Design. Last year, Prompt Design ranked 15 in the world's top 20 packaging design companies in Pentawards, the world's most prestigious packaging design competition.
"I was thrilled when I learned our ranking. I have spent half my life on packaging design, so the ranking means that our designs are up there. Prompt Design is the only Thai company to make it into the top 20 among 3,000 design companies," said Somchana.
Life spoke to Somchana about how he designed the C2 Drinking Water No Label and his thoughts on packaging design.
Are there any other drinking bottle brands without labels in the market?
Yes. We discovered that some brands such as Evian and Japanese company Lohas have launched products without labels before. We also found that consumers have a negative attitude about water bottles without labels. Although consumers think the lack of labels is good for the environment, they find products without them unappealing, leading to no consumer satisfaction. They believe product companies make more profit by not including labels.
How did you decide to replace labels with embossing?
By law, products must provide product information on labels. As a packaging designer, the idea of embossing came to me, so I decided to have product details on one side of the bottle. Since consumers stated that bottles without labels are not pleasing, I thought about using pictures to reflect the beauty of nature and the environment. As a result, on the back of bottles, there are embossings of deer, polar bears, birds and sharks to represent animals that live on the land, sea, Arctic and air.
Can you tell us more about incorporating a barcode on the bottle cap?
No brand in the world has done this before. Evian and Lohas are sold online, so they do not need barcodes, so when we were looking for space for the barcode, we thought of the cap. Creating an effective barcode was difficult. We went through many trials and errors before devising a barcode that could be easily scanned.
How did consumers react to C2 Drinking Water No Label?
They were surprised to see a bottle without a label. Most people do not read labels but when there is no label, they carefully look at the product information embossed on the bottle. They could see our attention to detail in the four beautifully embossed animals.
A barcode on a black cap. Prompt Design
How did you feel about winning six prestigious awards for the C2 Drinking Water No Label?
Prompt Design's mission is to enhance the packaging design industry in Thailand and raise it to a higher level. Thais usually admire international packaging design, especially Japanese design. I want Thai packaging to be admired by other countries like that. Thus, I am pleased that we can enhance Thailand's reputation. I am also glad that our clients are daring to do something new.
Why did you create an environmentally friendly packaging design?
I am always concerned about the environment since packaging usually ends up as waste. However, when an environmentally friendly packaging design concept was not a trend, it was difficult to get clients interested. I was aware of green packaging since 2017 when I noticed the trend of environmentally friendly packaging abroad.
How did you become a jury member on the panel of many prestigious international awards?
My packaging design won the Pentawards three years consecutively (2010-2013). A year later, I was invited to be on the panel of Pentawards. I was excited because other members had more experiences than me. I prepared myself by reading many textbooks ahead of time. The Pentawards is like the Oscars and I was invited for more than 30 awards in countries such as Italy, the UK, the US, China, Taiwan and Iran.
How does the packaging design in Thailand currently compare to when you first started Prompt Design?
It is better than 15 years ago. I would like to give entrepreneurs today an 'A grade' because 15 years ago, no entrepreneur cared about packaging. However, today almost every entrepreneur has the mindset that their company must have terrific packaging design. This kind of mindset enhances the packaging design industry.
Packaging designs by Prompt Design have won several international awards. prompt-design.com
What is your advice for people who want to export their products abroad?
They must study consumer behaviour in those countries. Most consumers in western countries spend more time reading labels more than Thais. Hence, entrepreneurs must provide enough information to consumers, so that they can use the information to decide whether to purchase the product. The back of a product should not be left blank. Products in the western world usually include information about the brand or the product. If consumers read this label, it is like a free advertisement for the brand.
What are some emerging trends in the packaging design industry?
Smart packaging is the trend today. Entrepreneurs should develop their products to keep pace with today's latest trends. For example, an entrepreneur can use augmented reality technology in its packaging. When a customer scans the QR code on the package with a mobile phone, he/she can view virtual images and information about the product. The other trend is 'design for good'. With this strategy, brands do not focus only on selling but also on giving back to society. For example, Singha Water features missing persons on its labels.
