As a champion of your company's packaging needs, you always have to be in-the-know on the industry trends and changes that could cause you a real shake-up.

Game-changers can happen rapidly––especially when it comes to the technology and demand behind your consumer product.

That's why today, we're diving into 6 of the biggest trends happening in essential oil bottles and packaging this year. How will you embrace these changes to benefit your brand?

1. Move to a larger size:

From a consumer perspective, this completely makes sense. Why pay more for a smaller quantity, if you know you can save money on a "family size" version or if you buy in bulk?

This shift means you, as the producer, might be changing your focus from the traditional ½-ounce size to 1-ounce, 2-ounce, and 4-ounce (120 mL) products. Lavender, cedar, peppermint, tea tree oil, and eucalyptus are all fast-moving and demand bigger sizes.

You need your packaging to reflect demand for more ounces with each purchase. This is why we've recently begun offering the 120 mL glass bottle (pictured here) to meet your needs. If you're interested in adopting this option, contact us here.

2. Sourcing conversations are more than price:

When it comes to sourcing, you may have chosen an initial supplier years ago––and felt hesitant to shop around again or graduate to a higher quality relationship. In past decades, sourcing was mainly about one thing: price.

Today, you're likely comfortable with the idea of combined products from Chinese, German, and American suppliers.

There are pros and cons to each of your options, and your best solution will depend on your budget and flexibility.

However, we're also seeing the sourcing conversation steer away from just price and start to talk about some other key factors:

• Quality: German and USA dropper caps have more consistent quality than Chinese options. The resins are traceable, have published specification sheets, and are approved for food contact by the FDA. Unfortunately, dropper caps produced in China can lack all of the above. That does not mean they don't work, but they may fall short when higher demands are placed on them. As quality becomes such an important piece of your sourcing needs, more companies are choosing to work with a supplier who will guarantee quality––no matter the manufacturer––and only require you to pay for the product that works.

• Glass Composition: Your company's concern with ingredients can now be a top priority. We're seeing a greater concern with lead content in bottles today. While the lead content from Chinese bottles (which have a higher content than European versions) will not leak into the product, customers are increasingly concerned with the recycled feedstock filtering into U.S. supply.

• Availability: As a distributor with stock, partners like Carow can drastically reduce your timeline. This ends the pattern of "place order, wait months, potentially run out of stock, package, repeat." We can store bottles, caps, pumps, sprayers, and more in our warehouses and keep everything you need in stock right now. We have a dedicated “forecaster” to continually look at the inventory and make sure that we have continuous supply just for you. This availability is becoming more important in the conversations around distribution because it allows you to have more product, in your ideal form, in the least amount of time possible.

3. Retail programs:

If you wanted to relieve your child's stuffy nose with the help of peppermint, you no longer have to research a top-notch health food store or aromatherapy retailer.

In the last year, we've seen an explosion in the retail essential oil segment––where store brands such as Walgreens, TJ Maxx, and grocery chains hire out the development and production of their own essential oil lines.

This trend will increase your competition with more store brands entering the market.

4. Specific market verticals to differentiate products:

In the vein of #4, this is leading many oil producers to develop specific verticals in which to stand out. For instance, oils for freshening shoes, oils for babies, and food-safe products their customers can ingest orally or use with home remedies.

In an increasingly saturated market, it's good to be the "other."

5. Contract filling and capping:

Experienced fillers are noticing the growth in essential oils as well, and if you have been curious about the business case you could make for hiring out the filling and capping arm of your business, you couldn't be researching it at a better time.

This is especially true if you have been struggling with technical difficulties or leaky products. Hiring experts in the fill-and-cap stage of your production is becoming even more common, and may not be as expensive as you might have thought.

6. Dropper bottles are everywhere:

The essential oil market is growing rapidly at an estimated 7% annual growth rate! In the past, many customers might have used Boston round bottles to contain these oil products.

Now, in order to compete, they must use dropper bottles with a consistent, easy-dispensing type of cap and dropper, such as the EuroDrop®. This product will continue to grow in popularity alongside the demand of household aromatherapy.

To Wrap It Up

How many of these have you already heard of or began adapting to? Are there other trends you're perhaps wary of, or interested to see how other buyers are adjusting to certain shifts?

We would love to hear your stories in the comments below. And, as always, don't hesitate to contact us if you have packaging projects in the works you'd like to ensure are up to your best standards.