Unprinted – so plain, so sustainable For the new packaging, gray is the new color.

Those who act green should refrain from wielding the green brush. Sustainability means conserving resources. In this case, less is more. And so, the colorful packaging used by Phoenix Contact for decades will soon become a thing of the past. Gone are the days when the cardboard boxes used for transporting goods internationally featured the colors May Green, Blue-Green, and the familiar brand mark, the signal chain.

The two reasons for changing to a simpler design: sustainability and security of supply.

Furthermore, shipping packaging without elaborate branding can also be more easily reused beyond Phoenix Contact, which ultimately reduces the demand for packaging material.

From the perspective of material availability, unprinted folding cartons are also available more readily within the international goods arena and above all locally. Christin Schlieker: “We no longer have to worry about whether or not we can find a printing company in a particular country that can produce corrugated board in our desired colors for our material.”

So where does that leave brand identity? Even after the changeover, Phoenix Contact products will not be released into the world without a logo. The company from Ostwestfalen-Lippe, Germany, will be using the shipping label for this instead. This can be easily covered up later. “It was a tough decision for us,” says Louisa Sonntag from Logistics Marketing.

Even in the business-to-business context, “packaging is not just about function, but also about emotion”. But you can feel good and create a good brand image by no longer regarding the packaging material as waste. “We want packaging to remain in the chain for longer by allowing it to be reused. We don’t really mind having shed a little tear or two when that’s the outcome,” notes Louisa Sonntag with a wink.