NEWS
Rev It Up
Leiviskä’s original package design
was that of a motorbike engine,
shaped like a V, with room for six
beverages. This was definitely
the ultimate six-pack to start the
proverbial engines of motorheads,
Leiviskä thought.

“I felt that the design would
resonate very strongly with people
who like to tune-up cars and enjoy a
drink every now and then,” he says.

“Then I found out that Olutmylly
already had customers in the
motor sports community – and all
of this started to feel like it was
meant to be,” Leiviskä laughs.

“We were able to make a really
specific product for a really specific
crowd,” he says.

That’s certainly a crowd that
likes their drinks ice-cold, too. In
recognition of this, Leiviskä made
room for cooler packs to be integrated
into the design. In addition, the
sixpack is easy to carry and recycle
– being 100 per cent paperboard.

“It’s easy to reuse as well,
since you can simply replace the
cans you drink with new ones.”
Mikko Silmälä notes that the
package is not only a visual homerun
– it’s also a technically rock-solid,
practical solution.

“We really got a good momentum
going, with everybody bringing their
best to the table,” he looks back at the
R&D effort.

Total Team Effort
With Leiviskä at the wheel, other
members of the Metsä Board design
team also contri­buted: Iiro Numminen
drew up structural designs, and Joni
Myyryläinen performed pressure and
strength tests.

“Everything we do is a team effort,”
Leiviskä says.

The packaging design team is also
always looking at the bigger picture: the
focus is on the packaging concept itself.

VISIT OUR WEBSITE | www.binstedgroup.com
SALES GO UP WHEN THE PRODUCT BREAKS FROM THE NORM
IN A POSITIVE WAY. EYE-CATCHING, MEMORABLE PACKAGING
ALSO SUPPORTS A HIGHER PRICE POSITION. THERE’S STILL
PLENTY OF POTENTIAL OUT THERE FOR US TO TAP INTO.

Marko Leiviskä, Metsä Board Graphic Packaging Designer
“We always evaluate the concept’s
over-all viability – what the user
experience is going to be like, what
issues are key from the functionality
and design perspective, what logistical
concerns have to be addressed,” lists
Leiviskä, who has almost 30 years of
marketing communications experience.

Spring Launch
Anne Silmälä reports that some beer
tasting packages have already been
shipped to selected customers. “The
beer tasting package has raised a lot of
interest in the field – and the design of
the six-pack is frequently praised, too,”
Silmälä says.

According to the Managing Director,
differentiating your product is a ‘life-or-
death issue’ in a highly competitive market.

“Looking at the supermarket shelf,
there’s beverages of all shapes, sizes,
colours and styles. It really takes a
ground-breaking visual approach to
stand out,” she believes.

Marko Leiviskä agrees: packaging
solutions today can go a long away
to boosting the brand and creating
customers’ awareness and loyalty.

“Sales go up when the product
breaks from the norm in a positive way.

Eye-catching, memorable packaging
also supports a higher price position,”
he says.

“There’s still plenty of potential out
there for us to tap into.”
Next-Level Co-Creation at Äänekoski
Metsä Board runs an Excellence
Centre in Äänekoski in Finland, to
accelerate paperboard and packaging
innovation. At the Excellence Centre,
the packaging design team strives to
improve sustainability by optimising
packaging design, materials and
recyclability. Another key aim is to
accelerate product launches through
faster prototyping and testing.

Furthermore, the packaging design
team is always looking for ways to boost
production efficiency, while zeroing in
on packaging design that really appeals
to consumers.

Metsä Board’s Packaging Services
Director Ilkka Harju says that the
Excellence Centre’s ‘secret sauce’ is
co-creation. “By collaborating closely with the
customer, we can discover the best
packaging solutions. The Olutmylly
collaboration is a great example of
this,” Harju says.

Key Package Specs
Package is made of corrugated board (e-flute) using MetsäBoard Prime
WKL 125g/m 2 , 26 lbs
1,000 ft 2 as top liner and MetsäBoard Natural WKL Bright 120g/m 2 ,
25 lbs/1,000 ft 2 as fluting and inner liner.

This copy appeared in Board Magazine 1/2025
15