The inaugural Packaging Services Expo 2005 (PSE), the one show for contract and packaging solutions, took place last week in Chicago with an attendance of over 1400 visitors, including leading brand owners, including Johnson & Johnson, Procter & Gamble, Pepsico’s Quaker Division, Danon Waters of North America and Bacardi retailers, packagers, product manufacturers and industry suppliers. This first-of-its-kind services-only exposition and conference was successful in addressing the many issues that packagers and retailers experience looking for packaging services partners. Packaging Services Expo 2005 was sponsored by the Contract Packaging Association (CPA) and the International Safe Transit Association. Over 100 of the industry’s leaders in co-packing and packaging services exhibited at PSE, including: 3M, Access Business Group, Cloud Packaging Solutions, Lansmont Corporation, Olmarc Packaging, Peacock Engineering, Premier Packaging, Smurfit-Stone Container Enterprises, Smyth, and Studio One Eleven – a division of Berlin Packaging, WS Packaging and WilPak.
Alongside the exhibition, a conference was held addressing the many issues that brand owners, manufacturers, packagers and retailers experience when selecting packaging services partners. The Contract Packaging Association also held a VIP Roundtable Panel Discussion, ‘entitles Optimising Contract Packaging’s Value, with key brand owners intended to improve the quality of education and communications among consumer packaged goods companies, co-packers and other critical players in a product’s value chain.
Attendees from the leading consumer packaged goods companies expressed enthusiasm about having their own marketplace to shop service providers. “I personally thought this was a great show,” said Tom Youkilis, group purchasing manager, Procter & Gamble. “As we continue to use third party manufacturing [and packaging] more and more, we will want to see a healthy industry able to meet our needs. I am already looking forward to next year. As I meet with my suppliers and potential suppliers, I will be directing them to consider next year’s event.”
Don Browne, Show Manager, PSE, said, “We are very pleased with the success of our first Packaging Services Expo. 47 of this year’s exhibitors have already signed up to participate in next year’s show; occupying 85 booths, which is more than half of the first year’s exhibition space. The contract packaging industry is rapidly emerging and there is a huge demand for a focused marketplace for packaging services providers – and we have provided that, along with an educational aspect that proved to be highly popular. With the support of the key associations and business publications – and with such an impressive line-up of brand owners at the event – we are sure that Packaging Services Expo will continue to flourish.”
