Caps & Closures That Seal the Deal

The integrity of a beauty formula is only as secure as its closure, which helps extend product shelf life, provide a barrier to dirt and moisture, and balance the oxygen content of packaged products. According to a recent report from MarketsandMarkets, the total caps and closures industry will bear a value of $85 billion by 2026 (+5.5%), driven by an increase in demand for easy-to-open and sustainable packaging.

“A closure has to meet two aspects: a pleasant sensory experience, as it is manipulated during the use of the product, and an attractive look, to be spotted on the shelves,” says Béryl Tomaschett, key account manager, FaiveleyTech Orgelet, noting that each brand has its own way of achieving those aspects, which is at the core of how the objectives for the final product are defined.

“Our role, as packaging suppliers,” says Tomaschett, “is to advise and accompany the brands in finding the best combination of raw material, shape and composition (number of components and possible accessories) to meet functionality and aesthetics, while respecting environmental concerns and bringing innovation.”

FaiveleyTech is well-versed in innovation, having created the sophisticated spray caps for Paco Rabanne’s Phantom and Fame fragrances, Icon Banderas for Puig, and most recently, Eau De Rochas Citron Soleil. The citrus floral musk “is evocative of a trip to the Mediterranean Riviera” and the premium cap is described as “a sophisticated ode to modernity.”

FaiveleyTech designed the mono-injected cap with “ambitious dimension” as a symbol of strength and movement. Molded by FaiveleyTech’s Beauté business unit, the 100ml bottle’s white spherical cap features an elegant, soft-touch surface that the company says is a tactile reference to the soft sensation of white musk.

“The elegant soft touch effect on the surface, without treatment and with discreet parting lines completes the challenge given by the brand,” Tomaschett explains. “Our goal was to bring delicate and melting ‘sensoriality’ thanks to the raw material mix…without compromis[ing] the shape and surface.”

The recyclable PP Rochas cap is an extension of the company’s work with bio-composite materials. “These last months, we are proud to say that over 90% of our projects have a positive environmental impact: with refillable solutions, using a recycled or bio-sourced material and being recyclable,” says Tomaschett. “Most popular raw materials are rPET and biocomposites; recycled PP is coming though there is still a long way to go.”

TNT Group sees the refillable, recyclable beauty and fragrance movement as an opportunity for creating luxury-forward reusable caps. The company designs, develops and manufactures long-lasting, high quality metal and plastic components for the fragrance, makeup and skincare industry, such as caps, shells, decorative plates, luxury boxes and applicator components.

One of the company’s favorite materials is Zamak. “It allows [us] to create extremely sophisticated shapes, to obtain exceptional finishes like jewelry, and its ‘hold’ and ‘feel’ is associated to luxury,” comments Boris Schaefer, vice president of sales, TNT Group USA. “It is indefinitely recyclable, and TNT Group was one of the first players to organize its recycling channel in the world of luxury with Zamak other players.”

One of TNT Group’s most recent projects was for Jimmy Choo Lip Gloss. The company supplied the complete package, which is topped with a Zamak cap that’s finished with gold e-coating.

The lip gloss cap echoes that brand’s lipstick case, nail polish cap, and the cap and collar configuration of the six Jimmy Choo fragrance packages, which were also designed, engineered and produced by TNT. The lip gloss cap is spherical and hammered to create a textured finish. The lower part of the cap simulates a pedestal, designed as a geometric triangular frieze that continues seamlessly down the container.

“The technical challenge lay in the hammered finish of the sphere common to the fragrance cap, nail polish cap, and the lipstick base,” Schaefer says. “This effect is achieved after die-casting by a proprietary process specially developed for these items [which] allows for the best combination of aesthetic appearance and consistent texture and finish. The decorative, anodized gold aluminum plates which have a debossed logo also required precision and a meticulous polishing.”

Natural Materials

Àngel Pujolasos, marketing director, Pujolasos Wood & Pack, points to the relationship connecting aesthetics and sustainability as another key trend driving innovation. “It is clear that sustainability has become the protagonist,” he says. “Luxury is not at odds with sustainability, so the trend is to make products as sustainable as possible with different materials that meet consumers’ needs.

From Pujolasos’ vantage point, he says, pollution has helped to change the paradigm. “Single-use plastics are harmful to our planet, and we know it, so we have to anticipate new ways to transform materials that will be more environmentally friendly and prepare them for a longer life cycle or an easy recycling.”

Pujolasos combines luxury with sustainability and functionality by creating customized mono-material wood caps and combination wood and biodegradable material caps for the luxury perfumery and beauty sectors with the target of minimizing the impact on the environment. “Our innovations are linked to sustainability, with FSC/PEFC certificates for the wood and REACH (Registration, Evaluation and Authorization of Chemicals) certification for the finishes,” explains the company’s Montse Font, communication manager. “We are constantly working with continuous improvement policies in terms of sustainability, implementing different actions such as circular economy or collaborating with Plant For The Planet to raise awareness and reforest forests worldwide.”

Pujolasos recently collaborated with The Body Shop to create an environmentally respectful cap to crown the famously sustainable company’s new Full Flowers range. The Woork cap is based on the patented innovation by Pujolasos that’s made only with ash wood and encased cork with FSC Mix certification. It is entirely glue-free and, according to Font, the uniqueness of the wood makes each cap “a small work of art” because no two are exactly alike.

“The cap is presented with the logo of the brand engraved with a high-precision laser on the top, which gives it an elegant appearance,” he says. “The Woork closure allows the packaging to be fully recycled.”

The Woork closure is one of five recently launched, sustainably purposed closure innovations made using FSC & PEFC wood. There is also Woodle, a wood system that enables easy recycling of inner plastic componentry; the Woorigin mono-material click system that closes with a click ring; the P-Refill system for plastic jars; and Woon a natural threading system.

Fine Tuning a Low Profile

In addition to providing the practical functionalities of sealing, protecting and dispensing formulas, closures are a visual branding element that helps create a first impression at retail and a lasting impression in terms of convenience and product usability. 

Conveying the Message

For Giflor Closure Technologies, a well-designed closure adds value by conveying a brand’s sense of quality and professionalism. “It can differentiate a product from its competitors and help establish a strong brand identity,” comments Stella Bozzato, the company’s marketing manager. “Moreover, closures that are user-friendly and visually appealing contribute to consumer satisfaction and can foster brand loyalty.”

Giflor specializes in the production of injection-molded plastic caps that embody Italian design, cutting-edge technologies and eco-responsibility and its Eco Low Profile (ELP) collection represents the nexus of those three tenets. The caps are characterized by a reduced height and minimize the use of the virgin material used to 50%.

Bozzato says ELP caps are the result of Giflor’s commitment since the early 2000s to develop eco-responsible closure systems and promote an innovative concept of packaging design, increasingly oriented toward “reduction” and respect for the environment. The line began with offerings for bottles, then for extruded and laminate tubes in diameters of 50-, 35- and 40mm, which is on track to launch this year. These caps are among the thinnest on the market and available in PP, PE and PCR PP. Bozzato says PCR ELP caps are made entirely from 100% recycled Post Consumer Resin and when applied to a tube with at least 20% PCR, they achieve a minimum recycled content of 50% for the entire package.

Giflor recently entered a distribution partnership with Plastube, enabling Plastube to offer ELP dispensing closures in 2024. Plastube currently offers high percentage PCR tubes, mono-material tubes for simplified and uniform recycling as well as 100% PCR flip-top dispensing closures on its tubes.

Sylvie Charette, president, Plastube, says the combination of the sustainable tube offerings by Plastube with the assembled Giflor ELP dispensing closure creates a tube offering unique to the North American market with enhanced functionality and design and with high levels of sustainability. Not only do ELP closures offer a 50% reduction in plastic compared with existing traditional flip-top cap designs, there’s also a 20% packaging (carton) reduction and increase of 25% in carton pack-out and the fact that the caps make an entire tube configuration 100% recyclable.

Emerging Opportunities for Closures

Closures can take many shapes and forms and hybridized closures with built-in applicators work double duty to extend product functionality and usability.

“It is interesting to note the evolution of the role of the cap in the world of cosmetics in recent years, becoming multi-function[al], in addition to protecting the formula,” says Maud Lelièvre, marketing and communication manager, Cosmogen.

Sustainability and product reusability are also creatively important considerations and played heavily into the creation of Cosmogen’s novel Tint’n Re-Use applicator closures for use on tubes, bottles and stick pack configurations. The applicator enhances the user experience and can be separated from the primary package and reused as often as needed on subsequent packages.

Personal care brand Care selected the Tint’n Re-Use closure/applicator configuration for its Super Cleansing Oil. The package consists of an airless pump bottle with a 2-in-1 Tint’n Re-Use brush-cap, which allows the formula to be dispensed directly on the drop-shaped kabuki brush-cap, then applied to the face. Not only is the brush-cap reusable once the initial bottle is empty, it’s also easy to clean after use.

Another of the many trends influencing the evolution of lids, caps and closures is the growing penchant for aluminum closures.

“Aluminum stands out as the most infinitely recyclable raw material currently accessible, aligning perfectly with the sustainability drive,” comments Anthony DiMaio, CEO, Cameo Metal Products Inc., which specializes in producing a comprehensive range of continuous thread closures, covering a spectrum of sizes from 8- to 89mm in the most popular GPI neck sizes, as well as an assortment of closure options tailored for fragrance packaging, tube packaging, roll-on packages, and more.

Cameo recently unveiled a comprehensive range of aluminum closures accompanied by complementary glass jars. “This offering empowers our customers to acquire a complete package that showcases our manufactured metal closures,” says DiMaio. “Available in a diverse array of sizes, ranging from 7.5- to 200ml, these packages boast an extensive selection of finishes and glass decorating options.”

Within the next six months, Cameo also intends to launch a recyclable cap suitable to be recycled in all 50 states, seamlessly compatible with various stock glass jars readily available in the market.

Cameo has dedicated efforts to develop the innovative Eco-Coat process, aiming to significantly reduce the carbon footprint associated with manufacturing closures. DiMaio says, “This pioneering technique eliminates the need for some chemical-based cleaning processes and reduces electricity consumption in our process, leading to the creation of a more sustainable closure that aligns with our commitment to a greener future.”

Deco Details

And finally, closures represent another avenue for customized decoration, and Tapematic, a manufacturer of fully automated, in-line deco machines, offers two options that Tony Denning, the company’s president, says facilitate conveniently customized, automated and in-line options.

Tapematic’s PST Lines metallize caps and closures and other packaging using sputtering technology in a way that’s efficient and sustainable. The PST Line I is an entirely self-contained system for applying a stable, high-quality varnish and metal coating to packaging items in-house with only one operator. Its robotic spray works on-demand accurately, using less varnish and producing fewer rejects, making it economical and eco-friendly.

In addition, Tapematic’s IDM II In-line Hot Stamping Decoration Module produces stunning metallic effects, vibrant colors and captivating textures via 360° hot stamping decoration and laser engraving to place variable data on each piece, allowing any single item to be uniquely tailored to a brand’s identity. The unit is fully automated in-line and allows complex decoration in one continuous process, by linking and synchronizing multiple hot-stamping stations. It is thereby capable of endless color and shape combinations, and a serialization/variable data feature that allows any single item to be uniquely distinguishable.