The packaging for Ambuja, a natural skincare collection from Bavaria, Germany-based organic, eco-luxury skincare company Legart Forschungsatelier, was voted the Carton of the Year at the 2015 Pro Carton ECMA Awards.

Pro Carton is the European Association of Carton and Cartonboard manufacturers. The main purpose of the awards is to promote the use of cartons and cartonboard to brand owners, the trade as well as designers, the media and politicians as an economically and ecologically balanced packaging medium.

The winning packaging is made of Invercote G 200 g/m2 from Iggesund Paperboard and has an exciting opening and closure mechanism that makes excellent use of Invercote’s structural properties.

Made from pure virgin fiber sourced from sustainably managed Swedish forests, Invercote is one of the preferred paperboards by brand owners for its durability, design versatility and taint and odour neutrality. The Invercote family consists of a number of products suitable for various end-use applications, all manufactured at the integrated Iggesund mill in Sweden. It is a multilayered Solid Bleach Board (SBB), made from pure virgin fibre, chemical pulp produced by the sulphate pulping method. Using pure virgin fibre and a sulphate pulping method ensure Invercote is a hygienic and odour and taint neutral product that is approved for food contact according to current regulations.

In India, Invercote and the range of packaging boards from Iggesund Paperboards AB, Sweden is marketed by Mumbai-based CH Java & Company.

“I’m very pleased at the victory and I congratulate the brand owner,” said John Mitchell, who is responsible for Iggesund’s European sales to converters and brand owners. “The solution is brave and innovative and the brand owner has succeeded in combining a bold structural design while creating a tactile and high-quality experience for the consumer. And of course, we are especially pleased when Invercote is used to create packaging that has a really distinctive design and stands out on the retail shelves.”

Apart from elegant colour scheme, what sets the Ambuja package apart is its symmetry in its opening and closing. The focus on aesthetics is reflected in technological advance and uniqueness of the brand. Keeping with the organic nature of the product, the package opens like opening of a flower, an aspect which vowed the award juries.

Another unique feature of the package is the sound effect. The jury said in a statement: “This is a carton that was a joy to interact with. Whilst the feel of the carton in-hand was lovely and smooth, here was a carton that really impressed the judges on opening, as it opened with a flip-top where the rest of the pack opened beautifully and partway down the corner to reveal the product. The ace was the audible ‘click’ sound that the pack made when closed and the flip-top closing almost spring-like. When several senses can be engaged, including sound, then that makes for a very interesting consumer pack.”

The packaging was converted by the Austrian firm Offsetdruckerei Schwarzach for the brand owner Legart Forschungsatelier.