The Challenge
Dolfin, an Italian confectionery company producing seasonal chocolate products, encountered a major challenge with the display of their football advent calendar, which included chocolates and a team flag. They asked us to create a new display packaging solution that would keep the flag visible while ensuring the trays remained stable, even when stacked or accidentally knocked. Their previous solution, though offering good visibility, had serious drawbacks: the calendars frequently fell out, and the trays were prone to toppling over. This instability, particularly during handling or accidental impacts, caused significant issues in retail settings.
The Approach
Our designers began by thoroughly analysing the previous design and identified three key issues: an unstable tray assembly, a weak front profile that allowed products to fall out, and ineffective stacking joints. In collaboration with Dolfin, we explored a range of display designs, experimenting with different assembly joints, reshaped front profiles, and improved stacking mechanisms. Prototypes were tested both internally and with their customers. The final solution featured several key improvements, including secure assembly hooks, angled side walls for better stacking, and a redesigned front profile that prevented the calendars from falling out while still ensuring product visibility.
The Result
The new corrugated packaging solution, named the "Earthquake Box," was a great success. It kept the display stable even when stacked with three or more trays and could withstand impacts and tilting up to 45 degrees without the calendars falling out. The results were so impressive that Dolfin decided to adopt the same design for their advent calendars under their flagship brand, Polaretti Fruit. This decision further reinforced their confidence in the project's outcome and their satisfaction with the solution. The benefits were clear: increased sales, elimination of point-of-sale issues, and strengthened trust and collaboration between Dolfin and the project team. Additionally, the Earthquake Box design proved to be both adaptable and scalable, offering potential for use with other products in the future.
