PACE: Packed With Insight

As snow descended on the rest of Europe, the opening of the second PACE Forum was treated to glorious sunshine. Renowned for its opulent venues, the second international Packaging and Converting Executives Forum carried on this fine tradition. Set in the beautiful Westin Paris Hotel overlooking the Rivoli gardens, delegates converged to discuss the latest trends, issues and developments in the packaging industry.

Chris Hayward, managing director of ViB events, a division of SPG Media, opened the proceedings by welcoming delegates to the PACE Forum on behalf of ViB and its conference partner, PIRA. He also explained the unique format of the one-to-one meetings scheduled between buyer and supplier delegates.

Approximately 150 senior packaging industry professionals from 15 countries participated in more than 670 formal face-to-face meetings. In fact, the event provided over 72 hours of concentrated networking opportunities for those in attendance.

In addition to the business meeting programme, a full series of workshops and seminars gave attendees the opportunity to gain valuable market insight and, in the case of the workshop meetings, discuss and debate issues and trends with their peers.

PLANNING TO INNOVATE

Michael Sturgess, head of strategic consulting at PIRA, and Andy Rushforth, PIRA's head of global business development, opened the seminar programme with a presentation on the importance of organising and preparing for innovation in package design and development. While stressing that innovation was the key to competitive advantage, Sturgess emphasised the importance of adequate planning in order to achieve the desired results.

PIRA has been working with packaging companies to understand the innovation landscape. Sturgess summarised PIRA's findings in his presentation, pointing to a somewhat confused approach to innovation. While most companies view innovation as a vital part of their business model, they disagree on where the responsibility for it lies within their organisation.

The presentation also discussed where innovation should stem from in the supply chain. While packaging suppliers often rely on their clients' ideas for design, positive change is more likely if suppliers and brandowners have a good working relationship. Brandowners have indicated that they want to deal with innovative suppliers and that price is no longer the main deciding factor.

Brandowners are increasingly demanding a new relationship with their suppliers, one where brandowners and suppliers communicate across many corporate functions. This view is shared by the supplier market, which has expressed frustration at the lack of interaction.

Sturgess told delegates that innovation needs to be a major focus for today's businesses: "Innovation is not a one-off, it is a constant process."

PACKAGING IN ASIA

Rusforth's presentation focused on the opportunities and challenges posed by outsourcing to Asia, particularly China. Although the average amount spent by Asian consumers on packaging is currently just half that spent in the West, it is rising rapidly. According to PIRA research, the Asian share of the global packaging market was 27.5% in 2005, and is projected to rise to 36% by 2010.

The key drivers for this surge in growth are improved GDP and increased consumption of pre-packaged foods, especially in China and India. Rushforth also highlighted the growth in Western-style retailing, which is rapidly replacing traditional markets and affecting consumption behaviour.

In analysing the Asian market, Rushforth reminded brandowners to be aware of the sophisticated and widespread counterfeiting in the region. He said the quality of fake products is now so high it is practically impossible to distinguish them from the genuine article.

Counterfeiting was a common topic of discussion throughout the seminar and workshop programme. For instance, Dr Elkhart Koch, director of brand protection at Thomson, covered the importance of combining digital and physical security for track and trace and authentication in packaging and labelling.

One of the key themes at the forum was sustainability and renewable packaging. PIRA's Michael Sturgess used his workshop to ask whether packaging can ever be sustainable, a question which was hotly debated by the attendees. Although they didn't come up with a solution, they did all agree that sustainability is here to stay.