The Wine Bottle Bag
Which Represents
Functional Elegance
LUXURY GIFT BAG INVENTION AND PRODUCTION STORY
Creating a system of structural elements to support a signature packaging design
Our cooperation with Château de Pommard started in 2017. They trusted a design agency with the artistic design of their bags and approached us for its assessment and for upcoming order production.
The project challenged our creativity and expanded our industry knowledge to a new extent.
The object of design validation and production readiness review was the screen model of a bag for 1 wine bottle. The bag had a die-cut handle and a trapezoid body and its flap had a signature shape. The future production included two variants of artwork.
A process of design verification accompanied its validation. After establishing an agreement on certain details, we proceeded to their affirming through pre-production samples made in the real production environment.
Although we had a clear idea about the bag features from the artistic design, the approval of working structural details was yet to come.
Together with the team of designers and brand managers, we went through all the details, step by step, until we reached the perfect, steadfast result.
We made and sent pre-production samples in 18 combinations of type and thickness of the base material and the reinforcements – we gave the client the opportunity to test and comment. Then, in the next steps, we improved the models even more.
We worked on:
The shape and size
The die-cut handle
The artistic flap
A custom solution to benefit the bag’s sleek silhouette
The key point was to keep the shape of the bag in its original proportions and dimensions, which provided an elegant and distinctive look. How this task would affect the existing production technology for a trapezoidal bag, was discussed by our experts. They concluded that the standard shape would cause the bag to bend, albeit slightly, but unattractively.
We had to keep the overall bag size but avoid the tension between the bottle and the bag’s sides. It took a series of discussions, prototypes and tests to get to the solution that still works today. In it, the gussets have a non-standard shape.
This solution required a non-standard production process. Based on our experience in bespoke production, this was entirely possible.
The way one functional element makes it possible to keep the bag’s purpose
Our goal was to keep the size of the handle, which is universal for each hand, but again to preserve the original shape, size and proportions of the bag. Of course, we also had to guarantee its strength.
In the early stage of discussing the technical drawings, it became clear that when the gussets fold, they partly occupy the handle space. This was not only ruining the aesthetics of the bag but also didn’t leave enough space for a person’s hand.
In a delicate way, we kept the unique design of the bag by offering a solution in which parts of the gussets were cut.
The specific shape of the cut allows it to remain completely invisible when a bottle of wine is placed in the bag.
For a perfectly neat look, the die-cut handle clippings have different, specially calculated dimensions.
The handle cut visible on the flap is smaller than the one located on the body of the bag. Thanks to this uncostly, subtle solution, a slight shift of the flap won’t make the bag body core material visible.
We took care of its strength while working on the details of the flap.
The detail that’s nearly unbreakable and still exclusive
The flap is a signature element in the design of the bag. Keeping its shape was not a challenge for us, based on our previous experience with special and bespoke bag outlines. We had to concentrate on the goal of making it easy to open and resistant to repeated opening and closing. All these details had to work perfectly in combination with the die-cut handle.
After prototyping and testing, we had to reduce the capacity of the flap compared to the original dimensions, which made the bag comfortable to carry.
We specially developed a production technology that guaranteed the extreme durability of the flap and the rigidity of the handle.
The ease with which the flap swings open and closed, even though it is made of two layers of 320 gsm cardboard, is also the result of a specific structural element, created through the mastery of our team. Flexible crease lines allow the smoothness of movement.
Easy opening and safe closing of the flap was achieved by adding velcro in a shape that corresponds with the artistic design.
The tailored bag outlines required tailored processes, both for production and packing.
We helped in making this signature design become a remarkable message of Château de Pommard’s brand recognition.
Using no other material than paper and board, we established the mass production
technology that keeps the elegant look, strength and reliability of the luxury wine bags, as well as full compliance with the artistic design.
Design with confidence
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