To connect with this consumer, we needed her perspective to drive the work. What inspired her? What triggered her interest? We wanted to bring these insights back to the forefront of our creative minds to craft something cool, fresh and unexpected that would be bold and impactful at shelf. It was an opportunity to affirm Tampax’s leading-edge heritage story and push the design boundaries further than the traditional packaging. But rather than start completely anew, we would look to a strong brand heritage and thoughtfully re-evaluate how current assets could be optimized and harmonized. It was imperative that the consistent use of these firmly established assets hold strong and recognizable through each design approach, and work with—not against—our innovative concept.

We wanted this consumer to know Tampax was paying attention to her and listening to her—and we did it by giving her delightful details such as sparkles and sweeping light waves, which combined with graphic elements to evolve the brand’s equity assets. The bold juxtaposition of sharp line work and soft watercolors signified a balanced tension of confidence and self-expression, inciting excitement and delight while maintaining credibility and trust. Gone were the modest wrappers of traditional Tampax packaging, and in their place were engaging patterns and illustrations that broke through category norms to create a distinctly unique proposition for the consumer. We showcased the new wrapper designs with a front-panel window framed in sparkle, whose bull’s-eye effect drew her in at shelf. And while the new look was recognizably Tampax, it had a freshness, vitality and overall “cool” factor that was all its own and unique to the tampon category.

The Tampax Pocket Pearl packaging launched in grocery, drugstore and mass-retail environments in Spring 2015. The packaging design was introduced across all product-absorbency offerings and in varying pack counts to create a robust billboard effect at shelf. Since the launch, Tampax has experienced unprecedented brand growth across all measures, even helping grow the overall tampon category. Strategic design innovation leveraging consumer insights has set Tampax up to continually refresh the dialogue between consumers and the brand without interrupting brand credibility for future growth.