Speciality Packaging Parfums Jean Paul Gaultier : Steel enters the world of imagination and creation The Head Office of Parfums Jean Paul Gaultier is the sanctuary of design and creativity situated in the heart of Paris. It was here that the exceptional vision of using a simple steel food can for the launching of their world-renowned perfume «Classique» was conceived. Jean Paul Gaultier has always had the reputation of «l'enfant terrible» in the world of Haute Couture. The Head Office of Parfums Jean Paul Gaultier is the sanctuary of design and creativity situated in the heart of Paris. It was here that the exceptional vision of using a simple steel food can for the launching of their world-renowned perfume «Classique» was conceived. Jean Paul Gaultier has always had the reputation of «l'enfant terrible» in the world of Haute Couture. He is outspoken and daring in his creative designs and his authentic choice of the steel food can was intended to stimulate an impact of surprise and originality. The steel food can has an immediate impact of surprise and originality. High quality printing and embossing The design department of Parfums Jean Paul Gaultier is directed by Jean Paul Gaultier himself, who initiates all of the packaging concepts with the same incredible creativity as his Haute Couture. The unexpected pleasure of finding an elegant and sensual perfume bottle in an ordinary food can, a tribute to the eternal woman, was Jean Paul's idea of amusing his unprepared shopper. Although, at first sight, the packaging represents a typical steel food can, the quality of the printing and embossing for the design had to be in keeping with the legendary character of the Gaultier brand. Crown Cork & Seal’s expertise lay in developing the prototype and manufacturing the final product. These two elements were essential for the success of the project and required close co-operation between designer and manufacturer to bond creativity with modern craftsmanship. Haute Couture Steel packaging has now become an integral part of the Jean Paul Gaultier marketing team's strategy. The introduction in 1997 of the «Summer Collection», a summer fragrance renewed each year according to his fashion, was the beginning of the transition from the «classic» steel container to a highly sophisticated decorated can and perfume bottle. The decoration corresponds to the Jean Paul Gaultier fashion collections when one of the fabric designs is rigorously reproduced each year on the cans for the presentation of his perfumes. Every year has its special theme, for example, Asia, Polynesia and for 2001 the Floral theme. The rapprochement between perfume and fashion was possible due to the high quality reproduction now obtained through modern metal printing technologies. This permitted Jean Paul Gaultier to maintain a consistent brand image with a luxury packaging and achieve more awareness of his fabulous fabric designs through creative packaging. The «Summer Collection» has now become a tradition and the cans a collectors item Speciality Packaging : A source of creativity and design The total market in Europe for Speciality Packaging is currently estimated at 250 to 300 million Euro with annual growth rates in the order of 3 and 5 %. Driven by the top fashion houses and brand owners, the cosmetic market segment boasts the most creative and luxurious packaging designs, with steel in a strong position in terms of innovation and creativity of design, thanks to its numerous attributes. Indeed, in many cases steel influences design in the metal packaging industry as a whole. Traditional manufacturing techniques are still used in Speciality Packaging, although the development of new technologies has offered a new dimension in terms of design. Added value packaging employs modern printing techniques, a selection of steel surface structures, new coatings, printing inks and embossing, giving the designer additional scope for creativity. Despite the complexity of the new decorated shapes, it has been possible to obtain production efficiencies and maintain competitive production costs. The opportunity for creativity has never been so dynamic, hence why many famous cosmetic brands opt for steel as their packaging medium. Contact: Parfums Jean Paul Gaultier 28/32 Avenue Victor Hugo F-75783 Paris Cedex 16 France Tel: +33 1 40 67 80 00 Fax: +33 1 40 67 80 30