How to choose a designer who understands packaging, not just graphics

You've just realised your product's current packaging doesn't reflect what your brand has become, or it's not standing out on shelves the way you need it to. Now you're hunting for a designer. The problem: plenty of designers call themselves packaging specialists, but many are really just graphic designers who've sized up a logo and called it done. The ones who truly understand packaging don't just make things look good—they solve the physical, commercial and practical problems that live inside the box.

Production reality versus visual appeal

A designer who understands packaging knows that a beautiful render on screen can become a nightmare in the factory. They think about die lines, colour separations, substrate weight, and how ink sits on different materials. They've worked with printers enough to know where corners get cut, where budgets get squeezed, and what decisions made during design cause chaos during print.

When you talk to a candidate, ask them about their last three packaging projects. Listen for whether they discuss the production process—not just "it went to print" but specific talk about how they managed technical constraints, what they'd do differently given budget limits, or how they worked with a printer to solve a problem. A designer who's genuinely done this work will have war stories. They'll mention things like overprint, bleed, substrate finish options, and the reason certain colour choices need rethinking on specific materials.

Ask directly: have they been on a production run or visited a printer? Have they seen packaging fail in the factory and learned from it? Their answer tells you whether they design in a vacuum or in reality. The best ones will show you packaging they've designed that actually exists—not just mockups, but products you could theoretically buy. They can tell you what they'd change if they did it again, which signals hard-won experience.

Beyond aesthetics: the commercial angle

Packaging isn't art. It's a machine for selling your product, protecting it, communicating your brand, and doing all of that within real constraints: shelf space, production cost, regulatory baggage, and how consumers actually behave when they pick it up. A designer who gets this sees packaging as a system, not a poster.

They'll ask you questions you might not have thought to answer: Who's your customer and what catches their eye in a crowded aisle? Is this a premium positioning or value-driven? Do you need the packaging to work online too, or is it shelf-only? What's your production volume—does that affect your material choices or complexity? Are there any compliance or labelling requirements for your category?

These questions aren't filler. They're proof that the designer is thinking like a partner, not just an order-taker. Someone who understands packaging will also push back respectfully when they need to. If you ask for something technically wasteful or commercially risky, they'll tell you why and offer alternatives. They're not there to rubber-stamp your first idea; they're there to make sure the final product works.

When you're evaluating portfolios, look for range and context. Has the designer worked across different categories—food, beauty, homewares, beverages? Have they tackled different complexity levels and budgets? A designer who's only ever worked on premium, bespoke packaging might struggle with high-volume, cost-sensitive runs, and vice versa. Ask what their typical budget range is and whether they're comfortable with yours.

During your initial conversation, notice whether they ask about your production volume, target retail environment, shelf position, and competitor set. Do they want to understand your supply chain and stock rotation? Do they ask about your brand voice and positioning, not just "what colours do you like?" These are the markers of someone who sees packaging as a business problem with a design solution, not the other way around.

When you're ready to narrow down your shortlist, you're looking for someone who treats packaging as a specialism—someone whose experience includes factory floors, not just design software. On Strove, you can filter by portfolio and ask for references from recent clients. Reach out and ask those previous customers whether the designer understood their production and commercial constraints, and whether the final packaging actually performed as hoped on shelf.