Packaging Designer

Also known as:

Designer, Packaging

Introduction

Packaging designers create designs for containers such as bottles, cartons and boxes. In addition to design talent, packaging designers also need to understand the capabilities of packaging materials.

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Work Activities

Packaging designers create designs for all forms of packaging including bottles, cartons and boxes. Their designs must be versatile enough to protect and preserve the contents of the package, and look good enough to persuade people to buy the product.

They work on their ideas using traditional design tools such as pens and paints, together with computer-aided design (CAD) which is used widely. Meetings with clients and colleagues also take up a considerable amount of a packaging designer's time.

Once the designer has an idea of what their clients require they make a series of sketches or use specialist software to produce designs for customers to approve. The designer must be prepared to change design ideas to suit production processes, the clients' product image, or marketing requirements.

When the best ideas have been chosen, packaging designers use model-making techniques to see what their design looks like in three-dimensional form before it is finalised, and before production begins.

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Personal Qualities and Skills

As a packaging designer, you need to have real creative flair, original ideas and an excellent appreciation of colour, shape and form.

However, in addition you must have some technical knowledge of the properties of the packaging materials you might use, such as tin, glass, plastic and card.

You will also need an understanding of production processes, and how your designs affect the environment, for example the ways in which packaging may be disposed of after use.

Good communication skills are important as designers must work closely with other professionals and with clients. Some designers, including those who are self-employed, need to have business skills so that they are able to deal with costing, pricing, sales and marketing.

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Pay and Opportunities

Pay rates for packaging designers vary with employer and responsibilities.

The pay rates given below are approximate.

Packaging designers earn in the range of £17,500 - £26,000 a year, rising to around £31,500. Higher earners can make around £40,000 - £45,000 a year.

Packaging designers work a basic 39-hour week, Monday to Friday. However, late finishes and weekend work may be required, especially as deadlines approach.

Most packaging designers work for manufacturing companies as part of an in-house design team, or for a design consultancy. It may also be possible to work for a manufacturing company that specialises in packaging design.

Consultancy and fixed-term contract work may be available for experienced designers. You can obtain this work through specialist recruitment agencies.

Entry to this area of work is very competitive.

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Adult Opportunities

It is illegal for any organisation to set age limits for entry to employment, education or training, unless they can show there is a real need to have these limits.

Skills and abilities gained as an assistant in a design studio or workshop, or in a design consultancy are valued. Experience in related fields, such as advertising or marketing, is also useful. Commercial awareness and an understanding of the packaging industry is an advantage.

If you don't have the qualifications needed to enter your chosen degree or HND course, a college or university Access course (eg, Access to Art and Design) could be the way in. No formal qualifications are usually required, but you should check individual course details.

They can lead to relevant degree/HND courses.

Universities and other institutions of higher education (HE) will usually consider applications from candidates who do not meet their usual entry requirements, especially those with experience in arts, crafts or design. You should check the admissions policy of individual universities and HE institutions.

To enter this work or relevant courses, you need to have a portfolio of work demonstrating your creative ability.

• 22% of people in occupations such as packaging designer work part-time.
• 5% have flexible hours.
• 0% of employees work on a temporary basis.

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