FEVE’s (European Container Glass Federation’s) latest Future Made Clear event investigated how luxury glass brands could survive the challenging times ahead.

An expert panel chaired by Adeline Farrelly, Secretary General of FEVE, discussed solutions to help luxury brands remain resilient.

The luxury industry is responsible for 10% of Europe’s exports and has produced over 2.1 million direct and indirect jobs.1

The industry is concerned whether sustainability credentials will remain the priority for consumers and brands in the future, especially during an economic crisis and downturn.

Patricia Beausoleil, Head of Home & Design at Peclers Paris, believed the luxury industry’s three main trends of the future would be sustainability, digitalisation and inclusivity.

She said the industry would need to increase investments in innovation and industrial solutions, such as materials, production components, recycling and refillable packaging.

Simone Baratta, Prestige Perfumes Business Unit Director of Bormioli Luigi, also believed sustainability was a key trend. He said co-operation was essential for inventing further sustainable solutions to decarbonise the industry: “If we want to answer the difficulty of the present, we have to invest in the solution for the future.”

Bormioli Luigi is currently co-operating with members of the ‘Divina’ project (Decarbonisation of the Glass Industry: Hydrogen and New Equipment) which aims to reduce emissions through hydrogen melting.

On sustainability, Beausoleil also said that enhancing glass imperfections could become a part of eco designs. For example, lighter glass with more recycled materials could produce bottles of different colours and opacities. Before, this would be considered a defect, but now unique characteristics such as this could provide added value to bottles. For example, by making them stand out on a shelf.

A full article on the event will be available in Glass International's October issue.

For the full talk, please click here.

References

1. https://altagamma.it/media/source/REPORT_ECCIA_Bain%26Co_V11.pdf