Bwana Business Incorporated attended the recent Trade and Investment Conference in Trinidad with one goal; to meet, discuss and negotiate with a Flexible Packaging Provider. Owners Kerwin Craigwell and Tamika Taylor had identified already that their company mission is to share the wholesome, healthy and sustainable food items native to the Caribbean, with the world. They relayed their thoughts on looking in the typical local grocery’s frozen foods section and seeing their competitor; not as other local brands, but global brands like McCain and Cavendish. Through research and observation, they knew the next step was to adopt globally acceptable packaging for their line of locally made frozen foods. Browsing TIC 2019, both owners remembered specifically the enthusiasm from The Pouch Company and their eagerness to work with the brand to meet their needs. Meeting the very next week, Craigwell and Taylor left impressed with the customized offering and fueled to move forward.

Bwana Business Inc. shared, “TPC was totally hands on and we felt like their integrated into our company, like it was a merge. They were extremely communicative and the process was seamless. One major concern of ours was to not have too much air/space in our packaging and TPC created a customized size that ensured our packaging felt full to the brim; communicating value to our customers.”

“TPC was totally hands on and we felt like their integrated into our company, like it was a merge. They were extremely communicative and the process was seamless.

– Tamika Taylor, Director, Bwana Business Incorporated

TPC: What type of packaging were you coming from and what was the shift like for you?

BBI: We had a vacuum-sealed bag with a sticker label before and even attempted a similar customized printed pouch but the integrity of the packaging just didn’t hold up in handing and also in the environment that it was displayed. Since the shift to a TPC pouch package, without a doubt we’ve seen an enhanced respect for our brand and product and being able to get to that in just over a month was incredible.

TPC: Have you felt any other impact from your new packaging?

BBI: Yes of course, we were also able to expand our SKU offering with this larger 900g size bag. Catering to larger families looking to adopt healthy, local alternatives. Just having TPC invested into our company and its growth and development also reflects positively on our company’s integrity. Additionally, we’ve found retailers are not negotiating on the price point, as the packaging has increased the products’ value, durability and overall design impact. We’ve also expanded our customers to include Gourmet Market vendors. And I know it already sounds like a lot but we’ve also begun exporting showing the packaging’s acceptance in the global market all in a span of a couple of months. It’s been crazy, it’s a huge success for us.

TPC: Wow yea, that’s AMAZING. And the pouch itself, how do you feel about your finished product?

BBI: Well, we were blown away by the design support. Working with TPC also allowed us an opportunity to work with one of their partners Market Movers Design. They specialize in flexible packaging design and they were able to take our little sticker and convert it into this beautiful fully printed pouch. The colors were important for us and they listened to us every step of the way. You see we always intended for our colors to represent the Caribbean culture. There’s a Caribbean map incorporated as well that speaks to our vision to distribute healthy, correctly prepared food products to the Caribbean and the world, in essence… spreading our culture. They also made sure our packaging was accurate to the global standards of retail packaging which ended up being informative for us as well.

TPC: Sounds like a great team. Any parting words to people thinking of pouch packaging?

BBI: UP YOUR GAME with your packaging. If you are a local producer TPC is the best option. They match they standards of packaging in an easy and convenient process and for us they definitely surpassed our expection by helping us achieve such HUGE jumps in such a short space of time. Packaging in our opinion determines whether or not your consumer picks up your packaging. You must take it seriously to set yourself apart.

Learn more about The Pouch Company or contact them for details on how they can help you bring your brand into the future of flexible packaging.