Packaging that doesn’t work

3 February 2011

I am generally the first one to defend packaging as being vital for protection and safety of products, but when a copy of this letter of complaint to fridge manufacturer Smeg dropped out of the blue into my inbox, I had to share it with you. I think it speaks for itself!

“I am not a happy bunny nor am I a habitual complainer but Smeg has really incensed me.

“I bought a brand new Smeg double oven a fortnight before Xmas and we wanted a couple of extra chromium plated oven grills for increased flexibility and so ordered them.

“They both have turned up after three weeks but one product is secured by the most ridiculous packaging that I have ever come across. It is in the form of a Smeg-branded cardboard backed heavy gauge shrink wrap that I haven’t come across before and is so solid and heavy gauged that it is impossible to remove from each and every surface of the grill. You just haven’t considered the end user (although clearly it works for Smeg’s warehouse storage and distribution).

I have clearly come across card backed shrink wrap before but most shrink wrap, once a small piece is cut or broken, comes off in one piece because it covers the complete product, this stuff doesn’t do that but sticks voraciously to every part of the surface of the product - great when you have a wire grill then!

“I am a fairly practical person, but I have so far spent 30 minutes with a sharp knife trying to remove this plastic from each and every grill bar on this relatively small grill (35cm x 24cm). There are 11 wire lengths on this grill (total length to remove packaging circa 4m) and I have achieved clearing ONE length of 35cm in 30 mins, so only another TEN to go, so that’ll take me another five hours which I am not prepared to do. I also know that I have to remove every piece of this crazy shrink wrap plastic otherwise if I use it in the oven as is, any remaining bits of plastic shrink wrap that I have missed will melt and drip onto my brand new £1,000 oven, again which I am not prepared to do.”

This is certainly a salutary warning that packaging should not only satisfy the packager, but should also please the customer. Comments from Smeg would be welcome!

Maureen Byrne,

Editor


Maureen Byrne



Privacy Policy
We have updated our privacy policy. In the latest update it explains what cookies are and how we use them on our site. To learn more about cookies and their benefits, please view our privacy policy. Please be aware that parts of this site will not function correctly if you disable cookies. By continuing to use this site, you consent to our use of cookies in accordance with our privacy policy unless you have disabled them.