Advertising, Forum, Lithuania

The highest honors this year were awarded to Kilig X Naglis’ hand creme package (BIOK Laboratorija and étiquette), Panda Vaajakoski pralines boxes destined for the Finnish market (Orkla and KOOR), the Obelių Crafted Vodka bottle solution (Vilniaus degtinė and Not Perfect), the Limited Edition Compass IV beer pack (Švyturys - Utenos alus and Not Perfect), label designs for Vasaknų dvaras beer (Vasaknų dvaras and FOLK), the redesign of the labels for LESTA automobile chemical products (Lesta and étiquette), and Fonos phone packaging (TELE2 and Godspeed Branding).

One of the members of the Jury and the Creative Director of the Hmmm Creative agency, Helene Vetik, commented that the overall design quality and presentation level were especially great this year, with special kudos going to not only the local designers, but also the photographers, art directors, and 3D artists behind the work visuals.

“I remember the times when clients simply didn't want to pay for proper product editorials and designers had to photoshop cheap-looking sets of bottles or cans,” said H. Vetik. “It seems that with imagery demand for social media these times are gone and business owners understand that design work doesn't end with finishing the package. As a bit of criticism - it would be great to see more biodegradable packages and packaging from recycled materials.”

Another member of the Jury, Dan Mikkin, who is a Partner at the Estonian Brand Manual agency, also noted that sustainability trends in the Baltics are still behind schedule, but expressed his hope that designers will gain more and more say when it comes to introducing manufacturers to the good practices.

“Responsible packaging is a competitive edge these days, not a luxury,” said D. Mikkin. “With that said, we were happy to see designs from the alcohol industry, which has the most solid base for impressive packaging, but also packaging from our region’s high tech electronics and home appliance manufacturers. It was great to see the overall good balance between work commissioned by small producers and the mainstream industry.”

The organizers of NAPA Baltic are continuing with the tradition of presenting the awards winners openly, but due to the pandemic situation in the region, the process is moving to the digital world. The winners will be presented in a virtual exhibition, available at www.napa.lt/expo-2020.

Different from previous years, the winners will be presented in a video format, which should better display all the nuance that goes into the packages, including the treatment of material, texture, etc., while also making the viewer feel as if he is at the real exhibition in person.

The most successful design companies at the awards were Not Perfect (6 prizes, Lithuania), Asketic (3, Latvia), and étiquette (3, Lithuania).

This year, 40 packaging designs were selected for the Finals out of 116 total submissions, mostly from Lithuania. The works were judged by a 7-person jury, which consisted of established Baltic marketing, creative, and packaging design professionals.