How HP Indigo is helping small businesses up their packaging game with innovative digital printing solutions

Mumbai-based brother sister duo Devansh & Upasana Parasrampuria founded Pink Harvest Farms with an aim to make superfoods like chia seeds and quinoa more accessible.

“These products weren't marketed well in India back then and had limited accessibility as they were expensive and available only in premium stores. We started growing our own chia seeds and quinoa, but I knew it won't be enough for us to just put them in a packet and stick a label. It had to be marketed right, so that the consumers knew about the benefits, use and unique qualities of these foods,” says Devansh.

Looking to leverage a packaging solution that would help him market Pink Harvest Farms better and in a manner befitting a premium and gourmet brand, the entrepreneur decided to go with HP Indigo. “I feel HP Indigo has democratised packaging. Being a startup we couldn’t place a large minimum order quantity (MOQ) like bigger FMCG enterprises. It allowed us to experiment with a smaller run and try different approaches to communicate with the customer.” Apart from making digital packaging solutions more accessible to smaller companies and startups, HP Indigo also helps reduce the go to market time significantly, he adds.

Packaging is more than just a tool to make a product last longer. Being the first thing that a customer notices about a product, the packaging becomes a part of your brand. Soon enough, it's what people will identify the product with, be it in a crowded supermarket or an online store. The recognition can help companies gain a competitive advantage both in offline and online stores and create a brand following.

Despite these advantages, many a time startups and small businesses are unable to meet their packaging goals. It can be due to limited budgets and marketing resources or just lack of information. For instance, budding businesses often struggle to keep costs in check as they print frequent short runs of custom-made solutions while trying different designs with offset printers. By skimping on packaging, they end up with a product that lacks a voice.

To that end, HP Indigo offers digital printing solutions that can enable even small businesses to meet their packaging goals and boost their brand's presence across e-commerce and offline stores, without having to break the bank.

Wooing customers with personalised packaging

As an affordable digital printing solution, HP Indigo is uniquely poised to empower small brands to add a touch of to their product and create brand equity. Customers tend to prefer products that resonate with them and good packaging can be a useful tool driving home the brand message.

For Mumbai-based entrepreneur Sangita Garg, HP Indigo was the solution to her concerns about the durability and reach of her artisanal batter range — Atta Girl. A highly successful doctor who decided to turn her love for healthy eating into a healthy business, Sangita didn’t want to be yet another health food brand.

As 'Atta Girl' wooed more people, Sangita found HP Indigo's solutions to be product friendly and practical. Unlike plastic packaging which decreased the product's shelf life, HP Indigo turned out to be a more practical option. It also solved the problem of spillage which was very likely with the transparent plastic packaging that Atta Girl products were earlier sold in.

Moreover, HP Indigo’s range of digital presses give enterprises the flexibility to add customisation to packaging materials, including shrink sleeves and in-mould labelling.

“Gaining quality customers is more important than just gaining customers. And, quality customers need unique experiences. HP Indigo can play a big role in helping create those unique customer experiences,” says Nitesh Chhapru, Global Brand Director, Tanqueray & Super Premium Gins, Diageo India.

One of the USPs of digital printing is that brands don't have to spend a lot if they want to change their packaging design with shifts in consumer behaviour. The agility can be instrumental in targeting different market segments with snazzy campaigns and effective brand messages. With plug-ins such as HP Collage for variable data printing, they can even create hyper-personalised packaging designs on a massive scale.

Small steps for big impact

Another factor that contributes to HP Indigo's list of benefits is that it doesn't require any cylinders or plates – it prints directly onto any media substrate – so startups can place orders for small and medium-quantity packaging runs with no MOQ.

With no limitations of MOQs, startups can also significantly reduce inventories and warehousing costs. And, because digital printing allows them to experiment and innovate rapidly with packaging, they can successfully launch new products at a much lower cost.

“Things in packaging which were thought to be impossible in the past are now being made possible by HP Indigo,” says Archis Bhide, Co-Founder of leading Mumbai-based advertising and design firm, Barn.

HP Indigo is carving a niche for itself with a focus on sustainability — a challenge that remains largely unaddressed in the digital printing industry. Its presses are manufactured with renewable energy and are certified as carbon-neutral. They are equipped with technologies that reduce wastage by eliminating plates, cylinders and other elements of conventional offset printing.

At the same time, the companies that use these presses can print on any substrate, including recycled materials.

To sum it up, HP Indigo’s innovative approach can help startups balance branding and sustainability, thereby giving them a unique vantage point to boost brand engagement.

HP Indigo can help startups and small businesses ace their packaging game by offering a sustainable and cost-effective tool to ramp up branding strategies. Its cutting-edge technology can steer enterprises towards reimagining their packaging to delight both online and offline customers, despite the former’s limited resources.

Interested in finding out more about how HP Indigo can help you boost your brand’s packaging?