Interesting article and data  on the importance of continued investment into innovative packaging and graphics (Annie)

Year long survey consistently finds that structure might best communicate innovation, especially with supportive graphics. Materials and production also are good barometers. In any economic environment, innovation is key to growth. But, during a recession, many companies are tempted to reduce spending on innovation to save money. Luckily, this is not an absolute rule. Daring brands still pushed the boundaries of packaging innovation in 2009.Earlier this year, Shelf Impact! and international brand consultancy Dragon Rouge formed a partnership to ask branding and packaging professionals to evaluate recent product and packaging innovations. Each quarter, we asked a sample of hundreds of Shelf Impact! readers, from brand managers to designers to materials suppliers, to rate a selection of packages on matters of innovation. View an image and brief description of each of the 10 packages reviewed this quarter.

via Shelf Impact: “Achieving attention-getting innovation” Filed In:.