V-Shapes, a supplier of vertically-integrated products and services for convenient, hygienic and sustainable single-dose packaging, today reported that visett, a leading provider of branded and white label cosmetics and body care products, has added V-Shapes sachets to its packaging mix. The company currently has a V-Shapes PRIME single-lane fill and seal packaging/converting machine for on-demand production of unique single-dose sachets that can be opened with a single gesture using one hand, as well as a Trojan Label T2-C printer. The company is using a combination of printing on demand and pre-printed flexo substrates to meet the widest possible range of customer needs. visett, located in Germany and in business for two decades, offers its products via white label, B2B and B2C. B2B business for the company, which has nine employees, has grown in 50 countries over the last decade.
“We have historically offered a whole range of packaging for our products, including bottles and tubes,” says Michel Raad, owner and managing director of visett, “We had never offered sachets before because many of our competitors did. But as an innovative company, when we learned about V-Shapes, we saw it as the next-generation solution, a differentiator for us, and we didn’t spend a lot of time thinking about it.”
The V-Shapes PRIME has been so successful for visett that the company is currently in the process of seeking a larger facility in order to add two or three V-Shapes ALPHA six-lane packaging machines. Since based on volume, some substrate is preprinted with flexography, the company will likely configure one of its machines as an AlphaFlex with in-line printing and use pre-printed flexo rolls for the others. “In this way,” Raad says, adding, “We will have the ability to produce relatively large quantities with on-demand printing, but for the largest quantities, we can still leverage our flexo fleet as well.”
Currently, sachets comprise less than 10% of visett’s overall volume, but that share is expected to grow dramatically once the ALPHA units are installed. For visett, sachets represent an add-on offering, building on its overall growth rather than replacing any current production.
“As we have introduced these innovative sachets to the market,” Raad notes, “We have found a number of unexpected uses. For example, for sampling, we don’t need to ship large containers anymore, which reduces our sampling costs significantly. In addition, customers who might previously have purchased a full-sized container of a product now are frequently asking for full sets of 10 to 20 sachets in addition to the full-size container for more convenient use. For example, they might take sachets with them when they travel and prefer not to carry the full-sized container with them, or for handing out to their customers as samples to encourage those customers to purchase the full-sized containers. Sometimes customers find the single-unit sachets more convenient overall. A good example is our cream make-up removal. Some customers would prefer to purchase 10 or 20 single-use sachets rather than a pot of the product.”
The other opportunity is in restaurants and at events, Raad points out. “The Health Department has told us that as we come out of the pandemic, most certainly, large multi-use containers on tables in restaurants and bars, as well as at events, will be forbidden. So the demand for single-use sachets will continue to grow. And the V-Shapes sachets are so much easier, cleaner and more hygienic to open and dispense than traditional single-serve packages.”
Raad has also been extremely pleased with the support he has received from V-Shapes, saying, “It’s been a very good relationship, they are easy to work with and very supportive. Their response time is also very fast. I have two phone numbers to use with WhatsApp … if the first one doesn’t answer right away, the second one usually does, which means I literally have 24/7 service.” He also notes that, like his own company, V-Shapes is very proactive. He says, “At visett, once we have a good product range, we start selling it. But in the background, we are also developing new products and upgrading existing ones. V-Shapes has that same philosophy, and they are very proactive in communicating to us about upgrades or new developments. For example, they have already notified us we should expect to have another equipment upgrade soon, and we are also looking forward to implementing substrates made from recycled feedstocks. V-Shapes stays on top of all of that for us to make sure we are delivering the best product possible to our customers.”
