When money is tight, brands need ways to offset costs. With inflation making everything more expensive, this is one of those times to streamline costs.

One way some brands attempt to lessen the blow of inflation is to fill existing packaging with less product. For example, brands selling various types of beverages, lotions, and different types of liquid might fill a 16-ounce bottle with fourteen ounces of product. The label will reflect the change, but the price will remain the same.

The average consumer might not notice. However, savvy consumers will notice more air (headspace) in the top of the bottle. This can make consumers feel like they are not getting full value or even worse, that the brand is being intentionally deceptive.

There are ways CMG Plastics can help you modify your packaging to reduce costs without turning headspace into a headache and sending the wrong message to the consumer.

First, it’s time to look for a slightly smaller stock bottle option that allows you to better match your brands desired fill volume but also does not create too much headspace or sacrifice shelf presence. CMG has several stock bottles available to help navigate the tightrope between too much headspace and a bottle that is too small.

Another option is to create a custom bottle. We have noticed one major consumer brand changed the shape of its bottle. It is the same height, but a different contour made the bottle slightly smaller. This brand not only reduced the ounces of fluid per bottle, but it also enabled the brand to freshen up its packaging.

The big takeaway here is that there are more ways to reduce costs than simply reducing how much product goes into the bottle and potentially creating too much headspace.

We’re ready to help!

CMG Plastics can help you offset the high cost of inflation by optimizing your packaging. If you would like to sit down with one of our packaging experts to discuss your options, contact us today. We look forward to helping you and will get back to you promptly.