At Deuce Studio, we see packaging as more than just a container—it’s like your brand’s first warm handshake with your customers. Before they even taste, touch, or experience what’s inside, they’ll first connect with the packaging. It has the wonderful ability to invite, intrigue, and truly persuade. That’s why selecting the right packaging format is such a crucial step when you’re launching or growing your brand.
Over the years, we’ve worked with brands across the food, drink, and lifestyle sectors, helping them navigate the complex relationship between design, functionality, cost, and consumer expectations. From superfood granola in resealable pouches to hydration tablets in travel-ready tubes, we’ve seen firsthand how format shapes perception and how the right decision can help a brand stand out on the shelf and connect with its audience.
In this article, we’ll explore why packaging format matters so much, what questions you need to ask before committing, and share some inspiring examples of brands that’ve used format to their advantage.
Why Packaging Format Matters
Packaging is often the first direct point of contact between your brand and your consumer. It tells them what the product is, who it’s for, and why they should care, all in a split second. A well-chosen format makes that message clear and compelling.
But format is about more than aesthetics. It’s about usability, sustainability, cost, and storytelling. A juice in a carafe-style bottle feels homely and fresh, while the same juice in a carton feels functional and everyday. A vodka in a skull-shaped glass bottle screams creativity and collectability, while the same vodka in a generic bottle risks blending into the crowd.
Your brand identity performs on the stage of your packaging format. Get it right, and your audience immediately understands you. Get it wrong, and they will overlook you.
It’s Certainly a Balancing Act
We tell our clients to view packaging design as an investment, not a cost. However, budgets are real, and margins matter. The challenge is finding a format that strikes a balance between affordability and effectiveness.
Spend too little and you risk a format that feels generic, undermining your brand story. Spend too much and you may not see a return, especially if the format is over-engineered or impractical for your category. The sweet spot is packaging that elevates your brand and drives sales, while still being viable at scale.
This is why selecting the right packaging design agency is crucial. At Deuce Studio, we work closely with clients to understand not only their brand values but also their commercial goals. We never design in isolation; we design with your business in mind.
Standing Out on the Shelf
Consumers make purchase decisions in seconds. In that brief moment, your packaging must cut through the noise and make a lasting impression. Format is one of the most powerful tools you have to do this.
Take Crystal Head Vodka. Its skull-shaped glass bottle is unlike anything else in the spirits aisle. It’s bold, memorable, and instantly communicates creativity and collectability. Compare that with more traditional vodka brands like Smirnoff or Grey Goose, whose formats, while sleek and premium, stick to conventional bottle silhouettes. Crystal Head proves how a daring format can transform a bottle into a talking point, while competitors remain anchored in tradition.
Or look at Innocent Drinks. When they relaunched their orange juice range in 2015, they deliberately avoided the traditional carton used by Tropicana or supermarket own brand. Instead, they chose a carafe-style plastic bottle, a design cue borrowed from the kitchen table rather than the supermarket aisle. It instantly conveyed freshness, simplicity, and transparency, values that are central to the Innocent brand. That choice of format helped position them as a challenger brand, one that consumers could trust for its honesty and clarity.
It’s Time to Tell Your Brand’s Story
Your packaging format tells a story before anyone reads a single word. Think of Smartwater: tall, sleek bottles with a clean, minimal look. Compared to competitors like Evian or Volvic, with its classic mountain imagery, Smartwater’s format feels modern and refined, signalling purity and innovation. It’s not just water; it’s aspirational hydration.
This kind of storytelling through format is subtle but powerful. It effectively communicates brand values without needing to explicitly state them. At Deuce Studio, we often explore format options that can embody a brand’s personality, whether that be playful, premium, eco-conscious, or everyday, in the most immediate way possible.
Won’t Someone Think of the Planet!
No conversation about packaging format today can ignore sustainability. Consumers are increasingly aware of the environmental impact of their choices, and many actively seek out brands that align with their values.
Choosing a recyclable, compostable, or refillable format can be a powerful differentiator. However, sustainability is a complex concept: materials can significantly impact cost, durability, and shelf life. Switching from plastic to glass may look eco-friendly, but glass is heavier to transport and more prone to breakage. Compostable films may not provide the same level of barrier protection as plastic, which could potentially impact product quality.
For us, sustainability is not about following trends but finding genuine solutions that work for the brand, the consumer, and the planet. A thoughtful approach to format can demonstrate to consumers that you care, while also protecting your product and maintaining your margins.
Case Studies: How Format Shapes Perception
We’ve seen time and again how format decisions can elevate a brand.
- Gr8nola: When we rebranded this superfood granola, the choice of a resealable pouch wasn’t just practical; it communicated freshness and positioned the product as a versatile, all-day snack.
- Phizz: For this hydration and electrolyte brand, the format was about convenience and functionality. Slim, portable tubes hold the effervescent tablets, making them easy to slip into a gym bag or travel case. This reinforced Phizz’s positioning as a product designed for active, on-the-go lifestyles, where hydration is essential and portability is key.
- Budweiser: Here, format became a canvas for storytelling. The Can design itself was the format that carried the campaign, transforming an everyday beer into a collectable moment.
Beyond Functionality: Emotional Impact
The best packaging formats go beyond practicality to evoke emotion. They become part of the ritual of using the product. Opening a corked wine bottle feels celebratory in a way a screw-top never can. Pouring juice from a carafe feels homely and wholesome compared to tearing open a carton. These small moments create lasting impressions that build brand loyalty.
That’s why format isn’t just about logistics, it’s about designing an experience. As a packaging design agency, we consider how it feels in the hand, how it looks in the fridge, and how it integrates into someone’s life.
Key Questions to Ask Before Choosing a Format
When working with clients, we encourage them to think about packaging format in relation to five key questions:
- Who is your audience? What do they value? Convenience, sustainability, luxury?
- Where will the product be sold? Online formats need to survive shipping, while retail formats must stand out on crowded shelves.
- What’s your brand personality? Is it playful, premium, functional, or innovative? Format should embody this.
- How will consumers use it? Single-serve, resealable, giftable? Format must match the use case.
- What are your sustainability goals? Can you make eco-conscious choices without compromising performance?
Answering these questions creates a framework for making confident format decisions that align with both brand strategy and practical needs.
Looking Ahead
As consumer expectations evolve, packaging format will only become increasingly important. With the emergence of new technologies in biodegradable materials, refill systems, and smart packaging, brands have more opportunities than ever to innovate.
But the core principle remains the same: format is your first chance to communicate who you are and what you stand for. Whether you’re carving out space as a challenger brand like Innocent, creating instant distinctiveness like Crystal Head Vodka, or reinforcing heritage like Budweiser, format has the power to define perception.
At Deuce Studio, we see packaging format as the foundation of brand storytelling. It’s not just about holding a product, it’s about shaping experiences, signalling values, and building trust.
So when it comes to choosing the correct format for your brand, don’t treat it as a functional afterthought. Treat it as a strategic decision that can set you apart, capture attention, and connect with your audience on a deeper level.
If you’d like to explore how the correct packaging format could transform your brand, get in touch with our team or take a look at some of our case studies, from Gr8nola superfood granola to Phizz hydration and electrolytes, and Budweiser’s limited edition Labor Day campaign.
Packaging is the start of your brand story. Let’s make it unforgettable.
Deuce Studio is an award-winning, London based branding and packaging design agency.
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