The retail shelf is a highly competitive environment, nowhere more so than in alcohol & beverages. GSM takes a look at using labelling stocks as a component in creating that ‘something’ extra special.
In issue 15, we featured BJ Ball’s new range of self-adhesive Wausau labels. The range, originally developed for the wine, spirits and beverage market, offers a huge array of distinct facestock options — including smooth, coloured & textured paper, metallic, fabrics, foils and even printable self-adhesive timber veneers.
Auckland based Rapid Labels, who (amongst other things) specialise in producing labelling for the wine, food & beverage sector, saw huge potential for the new Wausau labels. They were so excited that they developed their own promotional kit – “13 Spirits”. It also doubled as a client gift to celebrate 51 years in business. GSM takes a closer look at the individual labels within the kit, particularly the combinations of stocks and print finishes.
’13 Spirits’
’13 Spirits’ comprises a bespoke box (created by paper engineer Mat Bogust @ Think Packaging), plus a series of flat acrylic, contour cut bottle mock-ups. In the centre of the box is a backlit lightbox on which the viewer can place each acrylic bottle to create the dynamic effect seen in the above photo.
Each bottle within the kit showcases a particular Wausau product in the form of a label for a faux alcohol product. Alex Straight, Rapid Labels Technical Director, describes the kit as ‘both a keepsake and an inspirational showcase of ideas, with each label using a different stock printed with distinctive embellishments.’
The faux labels began with the team at Rapid Labels assigning each Wausau stock to a different alcohol spirit. As Alex explains, ‘Wausau Mikado Washi Fabric matched Sake perfectly and Wausau Aged Agave (made with Agave Sisalane fibres from reclaimed burlap coffee bean bags) fitted Tequila to a T.’ They then designed the labels in a style sympathetic to each type of alcohol product, with an emphasis on using embellishments that best showcased the Wausau stock.
Let’s take a closer look…
01: Rum
STOCK: BJ Ball Wausau Desert Sand Frontier
PRINT SPEC: Metallic Gunmetal Textured Foil + Metallic Brown Textured Foil + Debossing
NOTES: This is actually two different foils next to each other—the brown has been used for the main detail, the gunmetal is the texture fill. This creates different light effects as you move the bottle around in the light.
02: Schnapps
STOCK: BJ Ball Wausau Allure™ White Gold
PRINT SPEC: Gold Textured Foil + Champagne Gold Textured Foil + Embossing
NOTES: A little difficult to see in the photo, but the stock finish actually has a gold sparkle—onto which we have laid down two different shades of gold foil. The true magic happens when you view the stock from different angles in the light—it shimmers with a metallic glitz.
03: Baijiu (a Chinese Alcoholic drink)
STOCK: BJ Ball Wausau White Casa Blanca
PRINT SPEC: Gold Foil + Copper Foil + Hot Stamping
NOTES: As Baijiu is Chinese, we felt this label would work well if we could create a paper lantern look. We achieved this by using a hot foil block—where this makes contact, it turns the stock translucent. Most of the graphics use copper foil, with the name and highlights in a gold foil.
04: Woodstock
STOCK: BJ Ball Wausau Birch Wood Veneer
PRINT SPEC: Metallic Gunmetal Foil + Ink
NOTES: This stock is actually a sustainably sourced real wood veneer giving it an authentic, rustic appearance that print alone could not achieve. Onto this we flexo printed two colours and then added the metallic gunmetal foil which took on a somewhat used look as the timber grain shows through the foil.
05: Cognac
STOCK: BJ Ball Wausau Midnight Flocked Marquee
PRINT SPEC: Metallic Blue Foil + Matt Silver Foil
NOTES: This striking stock is actually real flocked material—so the black area on the label feels like velvet. They applied the two foils, which create this striking contrast, in one pass. We were impressed at how easily the material foiled and the sharpness of the detail on the flocking.
06: Sake
STOCK: BJ Ball Wausau Mikado Washi Fabric
PRINT SPEC: Metallic Red Foil + Gold Foil + Embossing
NOTES: Mikado Washi Fabric was always going to be a great choice for Sake as it looks just likerice paper and has a slight transparency to it. For a stock that feels quite light in gauge, it actually embossed very well. We hit it with a dual foil and then embossed areas of the foil.
07: Tequila
STOCK: BJ Ball Wausau Aged Agave
PRINT SPEC: Gold Foil + Matt Silver Foil + Red Sculpted Foil + Bronze Textured Foil + Knife
NOTES: This stock is made from 100% post consumer waste (Agave Sisalane fibres from burlap coffee bean bags). And of course—Agave is also an ingredient in Tequila. They created this striking effect by using multiple foils and cutting away the eyes, nose and mouth of the Lucha Libre mask (Mexican wrestler).
08: Sambuca
STOCK: BJ Ball Wausau Black Pearl
PRINT SPEC: Black (screen printed) + Holographic Foil
NOTES: As the name implies, this stock has a pearlescent finish which glistens as light catches it. They achieved the shiny black area using black screen print, the fine gold details are actually holographic foil and change colour as you turn the bottle.
WAUSAU is now available for digital print!
BJ Ball are about to launch a digital compatible range of Wausau labels (Dry Toner and Indigo compatible) which will be available in SRA3. Check out the digital Wausau range here.
