Packaging Designer
The shelf strategist
Design Careers · CAREERS
Packaging designers work in three dimensions: structure, material, print finishes, and the graphics that must sell a product in the two seconds a shopper's eye spends on the shelf. It is design you can hold, constrained by dielines, regulations, and the physics of cardboard.
The career suits designers who love the intersection of the tactile and the commercial — where a folding carton, a label, and a typeface have to work together from arm's length and from across the aisle.
Where they work
- Packaging agencies
- Consumer goods brands
- Branding studios
- Freelance
Skills
- Dielines and structural design
- Materials, substrates, and print finishes
- Shelf impact and retail visibility
- Regulatory and legal label requirements
- Mockups, renders, and prototyping
- Sustainable packaging thinking
Tools
- Adobe Illustrator
- ArtiosCAD or dieline tools
- 3D mockup tools
- Photoshop
Typical projects
- Product ranges
- Labels and dielines
- Limited editions
- Sustainable redesigns
Career path
- Junior Designer
- Packaging Designer
- Senior Designer
- Design Director
Portfolio expectations
- Physical prototypes or photos
- Range and system thinking
- Dielines and production files
- Shelf-context mockups