Shanghai hosts the Luxe Pack packaging exhibition every year, so I decided to coincide my trip with visiting a few selected suppliers and going to the show. The show gave me an opportunity to see what’s out there and what the cream of Chinese packaging are doing. This compact show had lot’s to offer from specialists in glass for scent bottles through to makers of bags, box and fine papers. I’m always on the look out for anything new and although I felt that the show was not particularly innovative I did make a couple of good discoveries. The processes involved in bags are generally not particularly green and necessary laminates make recycling difficult. However, I discovered a fantastic film manufacture that has developed a laminate equivalent that can be produced in any colour and ticks the green boxes. This can massively enhance the potential for packaging, can’t wait to try it out so watch this space!

Here are a few examples of what we saw whilst at the show.

Stella McCartney – KIDS

PRADA

The show has many seminars and I was interested in the talk about social media working with business. Facebook and such like are banned in China and a packed auditorium were kept waiting along time before being told that this particular show was cancelled, I wonder if big brother pulled the plug!!

It became apparent when visiting factories how resourceful China really is. The luxury packaging that is all around us is put together by large teams of hand workers who are working with very basic equipment. Yet somehow they produce large volumes of quality products. When walking around the factories you can see the dedication and organisation of the staff and how they are grasping any opportunity……..I can’t imagine many other places coping like these guys!!

As for China, I had a mixture of emotions during my visit, not only is it hectic, crowded, noisy but also incredibly interesting and all round fun place. Shanghai has 18 million residents alone and if you think London is overcrowded well this takes it to another level. Shopping is a big player and the mayor brands are here in force. Many of the shopping malls have superbrand floors and no expense has been spared in giving an experience. High end fittings and displays such as giant fish tanks in the windows are the norm. See my picture to prove how superb these tanks really are!

Packaging obviously plays a big part in brands show casing their sales but strangely many shoppers conceal their purchases inside black bin liners, don’t you dare stare at my bag! Finally, before arriving have a think about what animals and their body parts you could eat (or think you could eat). I love Chinese food but my chicken chow mein takeaway on a Friday night is very different to the local fare. Dishes involving snakes and rodents are readily available and no part of their bodies escapes the wok. We ended up with whole geese heads and chicken feet on our table one evening………all came with ornate side garnish!

Moving away from the culinary delights of China, there are many other superb activities to get yourself involved in and I found the architecture particularly striking! I would highly recommend that you visit Shanghai and attend the next Luxe pack show!