Packaging
New RC Cola International Teas Tap Taste for the Orient
Monday 13. October 2008 - Crown enables vibrant Far East branding in Eastern Europe
With the thirst for ready-to-drink premium iced teas on the rise, RC Cola International (RCCI) (www.rccolainternational.com) is launching a next-generation “tea time” for Eastern European consumers.
RC Cola International is introducing its coveted Orient Emporium Tea Co. brand in entrancing 25 cl slim cans. Their intricate Asiatic designs are brought vividly to life with high quality print technology from CROWN Bevcan Europe and Middle East, a business unit of Crown Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CCK) (Crown) (www.crowncork.com).
The first bottler to launch the Orient Emporium Iced Tea is Kosova-based Fluidi, RCCI’s exclusive bottler in the former Yugoslavian markets.
“Innovative package design is a major brand positioning tool,” says Moshy Cohen, vice president for business development in Eastern Europe for RC Cola International. “Slim cans communicate trendy, modernity, and New Age – all of which fit the bill for Orient Emporium teas.”
Already popular in North America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe and the Middle East, slim cans offer brand owners a potent combination of form and design to promote value across all these markets.
Form following function is crucial in communicating the health benefits of the brand’s two introductory flavors: a powerful antioxidant-rich Green Tea and Pomegranate and a refreshing Black Tea and Peach.
The vibrant emerald and topaz jewel-toned cans are illustrated with natural elements as diverse as dragons, dragonflies, bamboo shoots, and chrysanthemums. This Asiatic aesthetic, traditional in ancient Far-East woodcutting and printmaking, created mass-production challenges that were met by RCCI’s long-time creative collaborators at Crown.
Crown’s printing and design specialists played a particularly important role in ensuring the final package met RC Cola International’s high standards.
According to Caroline Archer-Reed, Marketing Director of Crown’s beverage business in Europe, “Advanced can printing technologies were required to reproduce the elegant, fine designs of the Orient Emporium Tea brand.”
“High quality print makes use of special, high-resolution printing plates, which allow for improved dot separation, leading to superior print reproduction of complex images on cans,” adds Archer-Reed. “Our new process is ideal for the large-scale rendering of Orient Emporium Tea’s traditional woodcut-inspired graphics.”
“RCCI went with the best printing available,” agrees Cohen. “We are in the advanced stages of globally expanding our brand portfolio in the South America, Far East and Middle East markets. Its success will depend on superior design execution of our unique brand promise.”