Arrowpak diversifies into plastic packaging

The New York-based business has made a name for itself in the beauty arena as one of the most prominent suppliers of nail varnish bottles. But in an attempt to broaden its customer base, the company is stepping up its solutions for plastics.

“Arrowpak is aiming to rebrand itself as more than just a provider of glass bottles for nail varnish,”​ Jim Slowey, vice president of marketing and sales for Arrowpak, told CosmeticsDesign.com USA.

Increasing revenues through plastic packaging​

“Currently our business is approximately 25 percent plastic packaging and 75 percent glass packaging. I aim to turn this into a 50/50 division as a means of increasing our revenues from sales and ultimately increasing profitability.”​

The company’s plastics packaging business has evolved rapidly over the course of the last few years, focusing on providing second tier manufacturers with solutions that are backed up by the quality control procedures Arrowpak ensures.

Slowey said that the focus on plastics packaging for skin care packaging proved immensely successful during the course of 2008, but went on to explain how the economic downturn experienced in 2009 derailed this growth.

Nail varnish supply bucks downward trend​

“The downturn really put a stop to growth for this part of our business, although this was counterbalanced by the fact that the market for nail polish remained very strong, despite the tough conditions,”​ Slowey said.

However, as the economic recovery translates into a significant upturn for the cosmetics sector, the company is once again looking to the skin care market as a means of further developing the business.

Whereas the vast majority of the company’s glass bottle packaging is sourced in India, its plastics packaging is mainly manufactured in China, where a company representative is employed to keep a close eye on all sourcing matters as well as quality control.

Targeting in-house design​

On top of the push towards increasing its plastics packaging business, the company says it also wants to focus on providing in-house design solutions in an effort to give its customers an even more comprehensive service.

“We need to make this step to take the design in-house so we can get closer to our customers,”​ said Slowey. “We will probably get this process off the ground by going into partnership with a manufacturer as this kind of initiative does require a considerable investment.”​

Arrowpak will be exhibiting a selection of its offering for both the plastics and glass packaging categories at the forthcoming HBA expo, which will be held this September at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City.