Thinking Inside the Box: Good Products, Strange Packages

By Mike Schuster Jun 04, 2009 10:10 am

The best & worst attempts to turn cardboard and cellophane into a surefire sale.

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Those who say you can't judge a book by its cover clearly don't work in marketing. A product's packaging is the first chance a manufacturer has to set itself apart from its competitors. Optimally, it strikes a delicate balance between form and function, but sometimes all a package needs is to be eye-catching.

Of course, companies have to be wary of packaging that has style without substance -- like Mcdonald's (MCD) McDLT, which kept the hot side hot, but left consumers cold -- or of wasteful-if-attractive materials - like the iconic plastic eggs that once held L'eggs (HBI) pantyhose.

It's nowhere as easy as it looks. Minyanville selects the 10 of the best and worst examples of boxes that think outside the box.