Pushing the definition of what packaging can be
Innovations are the lifeblood of the packaging industry, whether that’s new formats and functions that subvert expectations, or cutting-edge materials that take packaging forward toward a sustainable and circular future.
Those on the bleeding-edge are taking packaging in new directions and forging the path the rest will follow.
Packaging today is rapidly becoming something entirely new. It is experiential, collaborative, functional, and transformational.
Packaging innovations are key to this and show us what is important today and point towards the future.
Take sustainability, as an example. Recyclability is the topic on the tip of everyone’s tongue today but in the next 5-10-15-20 years, fully biodegradable and home compostable packs will be the norm. Or perhaps the industry will take a cue from nature and packaging becomes part of the product. Think egg shells, banana peel, and orange skins. Maybe even edible, like kiwi fruit skin (despite the popular misconception, you can safely eat the highly nutritious skin of a kiwi; whether you want to or not is another story).
The bold and the brave
The Innovation Awards that are celebrated each year as part of London Packaging Week make a point of shining a spotlight on what packaging could, nee must be.
Technical breakthroughs and artistic craftsmanship, integrated intelligence and multi-sensory design: it’s all there to see, touch, and feel.
Every single entry loudly and proudly makes a bold proclamation, and the class of 2025 was no exception. The 2026 cohort is set to be even more impressive.
Take for example, Vitals+ by Heights, which claimed the top prize in the Consumer Pack Innovation Award in 2025, for an elegantly curved jar and lid that combines striking design with practical stability and convenience of use. Vitals+ is a high-end, science-backed multivitamin that is designed to improve focus, energy, and sleep. By combining this on-trend product with a beautifully designed pack with improved functionality when in use, the brand was always onto a winner.
Or there is the Homeware Innovation Award category, in which Aroma Therapy’s Cashmere Candle – Essential Oil Blend won with a design carefully crafted to minimise environmental impact while delivering a premium sensory experience. Its outer box is made from agricultural by-products and mycelium, so can be fully broken down and returned to the earth once unpacked, blending sustainability with luxury.
In the Sustainable Packaging Innovation Award, PA Consulting and Diageo received top honours for the Dry Moulded Fibre Bottle entry. This is a groundbreaking step forward in low-carbon, fully recyclable paper packaging for drinks. The Johnnie Walker Black Label paper bottle, created with PulPac’s Dry Moulded Fibre technology, is 90% paper with a thin plastic liner and around 60% lighter than glass and with up to 47% potential carbon reduction.
In a similar vein, high-end confectionery brand Hotel Chocolat triumphed in the Food Packaging Innovation Award with its Extra-Thick Easter Egg entry that uses 100% kerbside recyclable paper pulp infused with cacao husks. Kintsugi-style gold foil detailing celebrates craftsmanship, natural inspiration, and circular design.
Even the everyday and mundane such as a packet of biscuits can be made inspirational. Whilst not a winning entry, the outer banding system for McVitie’s Digestives demonstrated the high impact of a seemingly simple change. In this instance, a film band replaced an outer flow wrapper on twin packs for one of the brand’s flagship biscuits. This change cut plastic use by 70% at the same time as offering the strength and branding real estate required.
Legacy alcoholic beverages can also be given a fresh look and feel with innovative packaging. The Whimsical Watering Can and its theatrical, collectable design proved this for Hendrick’s Gin, by vividly bringing the brand’s eccentric personality to life. This all-metal design from Hunter Luxury was part fully functional watering can, part cocktail decanter, part ornament, and part storytelling device.
Ardbeg’s The Abyss transformed whisky packaging into an immersive, collectable experience. Inspired by a diving helmet, the design features a bespoke 3D-printed locking mechanism, a chamber that reveals hidden treasures, and integrated comic artwork that tells a story as bold as the Islay distillery itself.
Another example from the world of whisky, A Study in Oak – 33-Year-Old 1991 Origins Sherry & Mizunara Edition, achieved the same. The winning concept combined artisanal leatherwork, precision engineering, and timber craftsmanship to transform opening the box into a ceremonial, immersive experience.
A Study in Oak allows whisky connoisseurs to experience a quintessential fine and rare Scotch whisky side-by-side with the same liquid aged in a Japanese Mizunara oak barrel. This exclusive offer sees a 1991 Highland Single Malt distilled at The Macallan Distillery, which has remained in its original first-fill Oloroso Sherry cask for the full 33-year aging process, offered alongside its Minzura aged ‘twin’. The latter has been finished in a curated Hokkaido-grown Japanese Mizunara oak cask that has been air-dried for 36 months, with the ‘twin’ aged for over 10 months to allow the whisky to absorb the oak’s distinct characteristics while retaining the classic Macallan elements.
In collaboration with Bill Amberg Studio, the exquisite wooden cabinet is covered in a vegetable tanned, debossed leather honouring the history of the Scottish whisky and the cultural significance of Japan’s native oak. The interior has been lined in cream calfskin. The box mechanism features an articulated plinth expertly engineered specially for this project. The twin decanters rise elegantly as the box opens, giving a sleek transition between the closed and opened casket.
Eyes on the prize
What this handful of examples from the 120 entries and 80 finalists in the Innovation Awards 2025 demonstrate is that packaging today has no limitations.
In fact, it is those on the bleeding-edge and pushing the envelope with truly innovative and inspirational solutions that are forging a path for the rest of the industry to follow. They are showing brands that there are only gains to be made and no need to fear the unknown. Consumers are waiting to be delighted, amazed, and surprised by what packaging can be.
It is bravery that moves the industry forward, pushing brands to greater heights and bringing consumers along for the journey and reshaping expectations.
Only by being brave will we truly discover what the future of packaging needs to be.
Learn more and enter the London Packaging Week Innovation Awards 2026. Winning entries will be honoured during London Packaging Week 2026, which takes place 16 & 17 September at Excel in the UK’s capital city.
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