High quality perfume pack shows how Algro Design Duo can turn precise print and finishing into a stronger premium brand experience.
Sappi’s Algro Design Duo has won Gold in the new Art of Cartonboard category at the European Carton Excellence Award 2026. The award was presented at the ceremony in Rome on 17th September.
Designed by advertising agency klartxt and produced by finishing specialist GRÄFE Druckveredelung, the winning perfume pack was developed as a proof of concept. Rather than packaging a commercial product, it was created to show how the choice of cartonboard can give brands greater freedom to combine visual impact, tactility and finishing in a premium packaging solution.
Designed to show what cartonboard can do for premium packaging
Produced using Algro Design Duo 360 g/m², the pack uses the paperboard’s high whiteness, brightness and even surfaces to achieve sharp print definition and precise finishing on both sides. This creates a clean, high-quality base for silver cold transfer and blind embossing, allowing the perfume bottle to become a three-dimensional focal point that stands out visually and invites touch.
The inside is printed with a rich, luxurious solid blue, extending the design beyond the shelf and into the unboxing experience. By making both sides of the carton part of the design, brands can use the pack to carry their visual identity through more stages of the consumer experience.
The substrate’s smooth surface and structural reliability also support clean folding and consistent converting. This allows complex finishing effects to be translated into a finished pack without losing the precise appearance expected in premium applications.
Gold in a new category for packaging material
The Art of Cartonboard category was introduced for the 30th anniversary of the European Carton Excellence Award. It provides mills and converters with a dedicated category to demonstrate the technical versatility and creative potential of cartonboard beyond the constraints of a commercial packaging brief.
Sappi and GRÄFE Druckveredelung used the perfume pack as an opportunity to demonstrate these capabilities in a luxury application. The result brings together detailed printing, metallic effects, embossing and inside printing to show how material performance can directly influence the visual and tactile impact of the finished carton.
“Premium packaging has to make an impression before the product is opened and at the same time it provides the opportunity to elevate the unpacking experience. This pack shows how the right cartonboard gives designers and converters more freedom to achieve that – through sharp print, precise finishing, tactile details and a printed interior, all on the same material surface. Winning in this category is a great recognition of what Algro Design Duo can enable, but more importantly, it gives our customers a tangible example of how material choice can strengthen the experience they create around a brand,” says Matt Campbell, Head of Sales Paperboard, Sappi Europe.
Turning material performance into value for brands
The award demonstrates how paperboard characteristics can bring tangible advantages for premium packaging to Sappi’s customers. High whiteness and an even surface can help designs reproduce with greater clarity, while reliable converting and finishing performance give brands more freedom to use tactile and decorative effects to create differentiation.
The project is a result of Sappi’s continued work with printers, converters and brands to explore new possibilities for fibre-based packaging. By combining paperboard development with an understanding of printing, converting and finishing, Sappi helps customers turn ambitious packaging concepts into solutions that are practical to produce and create a stronger brand experience for the finished product.