Packaging: Designed to Defeat?

The one that bugs the heck outta me is DVDs. The whole thing is shrinkwrapped in plastic but then the case itself is sealed with 3 "security seals" inside the shrinkwrap. Does anyone really think that if someone can get through the shrinkwrap those seals are going to stop them?

Seems like one or the other should be enough. Of course if you order your DVDs on-line they are likely to be delivered in a 3 cubic ft. box. lol

Don't know if you guys have 'em in the states, but here we have these Listerine Pocket Paks. This is the worst case of packaging abuse ever. Take a look at the pics here.

ever try to buy kids toys lately? scotch tape and twist ties galore.

I borrowed a guy's package opener and never returned it. It just works too well. I'll show you a picture so you know what to look for but whatever you do, don't tell him I have it. K?

I always keep an X-acto® Knife/Box-cutter handy for opening things...works real nice.

Like yours even better OB!!

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Btw Jer, you do realize there's only 6 more days till Sunday, Sunday, Sunday, July 11th, 2004 don't you?

Roberta, I understand your frustration and am here to offer some suggestions. Unfortunately, your poll doesn't list any of the equipment I use so I was unable to vote.

1. For Allergy Capsules, 12 on an aluminum pull back/easy lift-off cardboard sheet:
A. Magnifying Glass - to read instructions
B. Manicure scissors, very thin, sharp pointed (very sharp)- to pry up corner tab of aluminum covering on back of capsule
C. Bandaids - (pre-opened box) - preferably small enough to comfortably fit first finger of left hand as pointed scissors are inclined to slip during the process
D. Small flashlight to locate capsule after it pops into the air . Flashlight comes in handy when it splits in two pieces and lands under table.

2. For lift-up tabs for easy opening on canned pineapple:

A. Beer can opener, or if that's too thick, very heavy bladed kitchen knife
B. Right thumb guard to protect thumb from sharp edges of tab while prying with knife
C. Bandaid for either of two fingers of left hand as knife gets under tab and slips

3. For jars of pickled beets:

A. A handy little gadget that can be purchased through a catalogue (if you're interested , I'll give you the address). But bear in mind it is designed for sweet pickled beet jars only. It has a tendency to lose its grip on other jars.

I do hope the above will assist you and if I may be of any further help, please don't hesitate to ask.

I remember a lecture I once attended by Jerome Gould, one of the international packaging gurus. He designed the Pepsi logo, the NASA "worm" logo, and many other famous images & packages. He was the first to suggest packaging motor oil in rectangular plastic bottles instead of metal cans, to save space & increase volume on display. A lot of his once-revolutionary ideas have made their way into our daily lives now.

This reminds me of his story about being hired by the government of Spain to do something about olive packaging to increase consumption/sales. His first thought was, "How can I persuade Spaniards to eat even more olives? They eat tons of them." Then he realized that the way olives are sold represents the worst possible packaging of any product in the world.

You take small, round, slippery objects, pack them in oil (even more slippery,) then put them into long, narrow round bottles (holds as few as possible) that you cannot fit a fork or spoon into. Even your fingers are not long enough to reach past the top third of the olives. It's damn near impossible to get them out of the bottle. Think about it. Could there possibly be a worse packaging design? Make it THAT difficult to get at a product, and people will naturally only eat a few.

Gould repackaged olives into short, squat glass jars with openings as wide as the jars themselves so you could very easily spoon out as many as you want. Olive consumption in Spain increased by nearly 30% in the first two years.

Roberta--

Your poll choices skipped "repairman". If you have to spend the money anyway, turn the problem over to one of those $50 minimum repair people and smile.

Of course, grey hair and a crutch help, but at $50 an hour any woman can play.

Packaging nearly impossible to open is one of my pet peeves. I had to open a new package of dental floss yesterday - aaarrrggghhhh!

The guy who started much of the packaging mess by poisoning over-the-counter medications in Chicago should be drawn and quartered--after being tarred and feathered and securely packaged.

Oh yea. I forgot about that. Tylenol, right? Cyanide in the capsules?

The way things are packaged annoys me too. Grrrrr!

fishin', I'm happy to report that I don't buy CDs, so I don't have to deal with the packaging. (I'm living in the past.)

Jer, The packaging on those little strips boggles my mind. Is there were the world's natural resources are going? I keep box cutters handy, too. They work on some kinds of packaging but not on others.

pueo, I don't have experience with kids' toys, but I do have some experience with cat toys. No twist ties, just lots of plastic molded thingies.

Occam Bill, You've got the right idea. Where can I get one of those?

Raggedy, I love your suggestions. I've got the supply of band-aids to prove it. Yes, manicure scissors are wonderful for those pill wrappings. I don't eat pickled beets, so I guess the device you mention is not for me. That's a relief.

Eva, Applying sense and sanity to packaging is sorely missing from the packages I'm opening. Where's Jerry when we need him?

Noddy, The fifty bucks for the repairman seems like a bargain when you consider the expense of the chain saws, jack hammers, box cutters, and damage to expensive dental work. Yes the cyanide-laced Tylenol influenced a lot of packaging. That and child-proofing everything.

Jim, Your pet peeve is my pet peeve. Grrrrrrrr. I recently tried to start a new roll of dental floss. A knife, screwdriver, and nail file did the trick. Of course the floss popped out of the plastic. I got it back in, and after 20 or 30 tries I got it to roll smoothly.

My most recent annoyance--cat litter. The bag used to be sealed with simple stitching. To open the package, all I had to do was pull a string and the stitiching became unstitched. The stitching has been replaced with glue. New and improved! There's actually something on the package about easy-to-open. Hahahaha. I use scissors.

I bought something for my computer from Costco, forget what it was now, but I used a hacksaw, finally, to open the package of very thick plastic.

Growling with you, colorbook.

Osso, I'm impressed you have a hacksaw. Gotta get me one.