Core77

Budweiser's New Package Design: Can Do, or Can Don't?

By Rain Noe - April 19, 2013

in Object Culture

As someone who previously worked in structural package design (that's basically bottles and cans, for you hotshots in automotive or furniture), I freely admit there's a whole slew of products for which the aesthetics of the package design don't really matter. I'd never buy a bottle of booze or can of beer because of the way the vessel was shaped, or how pretty the label was, for instance; I'd buy them because I want to drink what's inside of them.

Beverage giant Anheuser-Busch InBev, however, disagrees. On May 6th they'll be rolling out the new Budweiser can you see above, shaped to resemble that brand's bowtie logo. Now before we get to the big question, let's take a look at how regular straight-edged beverage cans are made, a pretty fascinating process in its own right:

Now we ask: Why on Earth would Budweiser do this? We can see from the video that they'd be adding at least a couple of steps to the production, using machines that presumably operate like the "necker" and "flanger" we saw towards the end, to get that hourglass shape into the metal. And I can tell you from previous experience that once you've got a new shape for a vessel designed to hold mass-produced liquids, there's all sorts of structural testing that needs to be done to ensure they can withstand stackability; on a fully-laden palette, the cans on the bottom will be holding many times their own weight.

These modifications cannot have been cheap. "The can has been in development since 2010," reports the Associated Press. "The beer maker says it made major equipment investments at its can-making facility in Newburgh to facilitate the 16-step process to create the cans."

It's possible that the Bud marketing crew believes the new can shape will increase sales, enough to cover the cost of the new tooling. But the cynics in us can't help but notice a glaring fact: Standard beer cans hold 12 ounces of brew. The bowtie can rings in at 11.3 ounces. Zero-point-seven ounces missing might not be enough for individual consumers to make a stink about, but multiplied by millions of cans, it's sure to save Anheuser-Busch some serious coin.

o

Favorite This
Q
18

Comment

Comments

Scott Hilker

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

I bought a 8 pack the first time I saw them. I do not think it will be a regular purchase. The cans say 11.3oz yea it's enough to bother me as the price was the same as if I bought 3 - 8packs or 4 -6pack. My can crusher would not crush the can and I had to place in bin whole. I do like Budweiser but not my first grab.
!Report as spam
Andre

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

If advertisement was based in "I'd never do it" or "I'd certainly do it" advertisement wouldn't exist at all.
!Report as spam
Antipodean G

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

Personally..... I think the Sapporo can (the design of which must be at least 20 years old now) is not only far superior aesthetically, but far more evocative in a design sense, as it looks like a glass...
!Report as spam
MS

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

"I'd buy them because I want to drink what's inside of them." Just give yourself a good ol' pat on the back. You are above us.
!Report as spam
Mike

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

...don't forget all the hacker/up-cycle opportunity there is in a new form factor. Some will be happy to have a new shape to play with.

But in the end, all I see is more package deception. A trend of shrinking the content, while bloating packaging. Or in this case blatantly shrinking the package? Staring down some 6-packs in the cooler side by side, it will be easy to see. But people are still buying all sorts of crap.

How about Heineken going to long necks? Taking the conservative route to assimilation...
!Report as spam
Curtis Jackson

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

While there are those who wouldn't buy a drink based on the shape of a cup. There are also those who would, based on the experience of drinking from the funny cup. You can see plenty of examples where this type of enthusiasm occurring. One example I recall on a vacation was a 2 foot beer glass which attracted large crowds of drinkers, and I simply just had to partake. It was the visual attraction within the large social setting. You may also see these cups in Mardi Gras, sport games, music festivals but in colorful plastic versions. You just have to have one! However after the vacation ends, you go back to drinking the norm.

----------
However, the shape itself also creates a proper vessel for handling. The shape is inviting. It's easier to drink compared to the regular cylinder cans, because you don't have to tilt it as high to drink the contents. So after the new shape phenomenon wears off of being fun and exciting, I see it continuing to afford the idea of being an easy convenient beer to relax and drink. Never mind the branding. The fact that it's Budweiser is the reason why it'll be last on my list of beers to choose from. Good idea goes to waste on a horrible beer? Well for its current drinkers, they've improved the drink. Not the contents, but the vessel that also effects the taste of the beer, which is the glass (in this case... can) its served in.

!Report as spam
Michael

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

Beer in aluminium tastes bad.
!Report as spam
c3

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

MIPS Marketing and ROI from Geeks and Greeks.

Bowties are cool.
Less Filling.

Authenticity Proved.
!Report as spam
nym

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

But it still says 12oz on the can...?!
!Report as spam
Will_GT

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

I think its a bold move, it may not save on package space, while increasing manufacturing cost. I would be curious if these would be easier to crush?
!Report as spam
Ryan

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

I agree with Oliverio. Craft beer is all about labels. I would love to see the statistics on wine under $20 purchased for the "taste" vs the label design.
!Report as spam
bryan Johnson

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

lets call it what it really is 0.7 oz does add up. nearly one can per 12pack sold 2 cans per case etc i could go on for days but I am not really a math fan :)....its all about squeezing profit from the consumer nothing more or less.
!Report as spam
RL

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

I have bought a lot of different beers for the shape of their can. While I do like to have the good stuff I don't mind trying brands that have good graphic design or interesting containers. An example being the Sapporo cans. I bought one because the can is quite unique and after it was empty I took a can opener to the top lip and now it's my change jar.
Also, while I was in Germany I tried all of the beers with resealable bottles because I liked the concept and often used them as water bottles afterwards.
I like to test them to see if their design or packaging matches up with the actual product. This occurs, however, only when I can afford to splurge a little.
!Report as spam
Sean

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

You really don't buy beer because of the shape of the bottle/can? I know I do. Swigging from a Corona bottle is lovely because the neck's longer; there's a bigger, slower 'glug' that you don't get with squatter bottles.
Then Heineken bottles are a little fatter than normal, feels chunkier in your hand, makes you feel manly (on this note, the bar scene in The Wild One made me want to drink Newcastle Brown Ale because it reminded me of their fatter 'ale' style bottles and the way it affects your grip on them - brainwashed by American film and television? Most definitely).

More so with bottles than cans (I don't like drinking from a can), the 'vessel' definitely adds to the experience, and I'm all for that.
!Report as spam
oliviero

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

"I'd never buy a bottle of booze or can of beer because of the way the vessel was shaped, or how pretty the label was, for instance; I'd buy them because I want to drink what's inside of them."
Either you're lying to yourself here or you are the statistical anomaly...
!Report as spam
MM

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

According to other websites, Bud thinks they are going to attract millenials with the new can. I'm not sure how using more aluminum (and being less green) while also taking away .7 oz of beers will attract millenials. Seems like the opposite of what most 20-somethings want...
!Report as spam
Beheld

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

Its tapered in the middle so that small kids can drink easier.. pure ergonomics ;)
!Report as spam
wr

11 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

That's another nice example of a miseducational movie.

a. While _in theory_ aluminium is 100% recyclable, the modern recycling process turns up to 15% of it into white dross through oxidation. The dross itself can be reprocessed to extract more aluminium, but this process generates its own waste, a highly complex and dangerous substance that is hard to contain (for starters, it violently reacts with water) and nearly impossible to process further. There were numerous attempts to use it as a concrete and asphalt filler, but many recyclers prefer to simply dump the dross.

b. No, the acid eats away the dull alumina (aluminium oxide) film, and not the "thin layer of aluminum".

c. "Water with no pH" is epic. The guy totally missed his chemistry classes in school, because there is no such thing as "no pH", the neutral acidity/alkalinity is 7. Also if the water was simply de-ionized, but not degassed (two very separate processes), it still has substantial acidity (up to pH 6.7-6.8) due to the absorbed CO2. Finally, the ideal pure water is still slightly acidic (though just really, really slightly) due to the water dissociation equilibrium.
!Report as spam