Stefano Vanoncini, CEO of Quadpack make-up packaging partner Brivaplast, explains what factors to consider when creating the perfect mascara and looks at current trends and innovations.

Quadpack: Make-up brands make all kinds of claims about what their mascara can do – longer lashes, bigger volume, etc – but just how much of these claims are true?

Stefano Vanoncini: With the right mascara pack, these claims can be entirely true. Women want to wear a different look on different occasions, at different times during the day and night. They buy mascaras in full belief that they do what they say – a brand’s credibility depends on it. That’s why Brivaplast works with leading make-up brands to choose the best brush for their formula to realise the effect they seek to achieve.

Nevertheless, every woman is different and every woman has different lashes. From the consumer’s perspective, the brush should be tested individually to find the one that produces the perfect result.

Q: Can you describe the basic elements of a mascara pack?

Stefano Vanoncini: A mascara pack is effectively an ‘integrated system’, comprising a brush, a stem and a wiper in a bottle. The various combinations of these elements give different results. Brivaplast is able to design more than 10,000 solutions, to achieve most desired effects.

Q: Brivaplast has a patented wiper. Why is this so important?

SV: The wiper ensures the correct quantity of bulk on the brush, avoiding over-charging and keeping the brush ready for use. We designed our own bi-injected wiper to offer superior functionality and reliability. We use rigid material on the outside for easy assembly in the bottle and soft material on the inside to scrape the right quantity onto the brush and ensure a good closure. The wiper is composed of TPE and HDPE, so that it always keeps the same shape with no deformation.

Q: How do you choose the right brush for your formula?

SV: It all depends on the texture of the formulation, which can be elastic, pasty, fluid, etc, and the desired result. There are many kinds of brushes, made of fibre or plastic, with different shapes, hard or soft, with combing or extreme charging capabilities and so on. There is always a perfect combination of brush features for each formula.

To use our new Smart Fiber brushes as an example, these are designed for volume, separation and lengthening. The brush fibre is composed of two filaments. One has ‘gloss grain’, creating an embossed surface that increases the charge. The other soft filament separates lashes and spreads the bulk smoothly across their full length for a great result. That said, choosing the right brush is almost an art form and specialist guidance is recommended.

Q: What are the most important aspects to consider when choosing a mascara?

SV: The pack design reflects the brand’s message and therefore has the most impact emotionally. There is no limit to the creative possibilities. However, the brush is the element that performs technically. So I would say it is the combination of the right high-performance brush and a great design accurately focused on the target audience.

Q: So what are the creative possibilities of the bottle? How can it match the brand?

SV: A host of decoration options exist to produce stunning results on the bottle, emphasising the brand image and the product’s claim. These include metallisation, spray coating, lacquering, four-colour processing, screen printing, pad printing and laser decoration to name just a few. In fact, we are preparing something very special that we will unveil at Make Up in Paris!

Q: What should you expect from your packaging supplier?

SV: Your packaging supplier must understand your brand image as well as your technical requirements. Mascaras are such high-tech systems that a certain degree of technical knowledge is essential. You should expect guidance in finding the right solution and a professional service from every point of view. And of course, you should expect to receive a product of the highest quality.

Q: What are the current trends in mascaras?

SV: At Brivaplast, we have noted an increase in maxi and instant volume mascaras. This is reflected in the packaging we have developed recently, with high demand for extreme charging brushes. Also, brightly-coloured packs are popular, aimed at a young and trendy audience. Trends change frequently and we have to keep innovating to satisfy a market that never stands still.

Q: In terms of innovation, is there anything left to do? Anything new coming up?

SV: Just wait and see…