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Branding guide · Packaging failures

Packaging redesign failures: what went wrong with Tropicana, Coke and SunChips?

Tropicana changed how shoppers found their juice. Coca-Cola changed the color used to recognize its regular drink. SunChips changed how a bag sounded in the hand. The problem in each case becomes clearer when you compare what customers had to recognize or do.

Find the cue. Identify the color, form, image, name, and hierarchy buyers use to find the product.
Test the handoff. Test shelf, cart, delivery, opening, use, disposal, and repeat purchase.
Read the evidence. Use documented reversals and direct customer response without treating design as the only cause.
Brand Recognition Use when the memory cue itself is unclear. Should You Update Your Packaging? Use for the decision gate before a package change. Private brand work Use when the decision is live, expensive, or hard to reverse.
Two shoppers comparing conflicting fictional orange juice packages on a crowded grocery shelf.

Packaging Redesign Failures

shelf · variant · expectation · use

Illustrative shelf scene using fictional juice packs. The historical cases below are supported by the linked research and reporting.
Researchers and shoppers testing fictional product variants at a real retail shelf.
Illustrative shelf test. Look for wrong brand or variant choices before asking which design a shopper prefers.
01

What changed in these three packages?

Tropicana, 2009: the identifying picture disappeared. A glass of juice replaced the orange-and-straw image. The research also records orange lids across the range, weakening the earlier variant color system.
Coca-Cola Arctic Home, 2011: regular Coke turned white. The conservation campaign changed the red can background to white from November 1. Contemporary reporting described confusion with Diet Coke and a return to red cans in December.
SunChips, 2010: a material change became a noise problem. Frito-Lay launched a compostable bag that drew complaints when handled. By early 2011 its packaging team had developed a quieter version.
02

Before, change and response.

These comparisons concern specific packages and periods. They do not rank the companies or prove that one design decision caused every business result.

Tropicana: before

Orange, straw and variant cues

The familiar fruit image identified the juice; lid colors helped separate product lines.

Tropicana: change

A glass of juice and orange lids

Brand recognition and product selection changed together. The old design returned by late February 2009.

Coca-Cola: before

Red meant regular Coke

A large color field helped distinguish the drink before someone read the full label.

Coca-Cola: change

A white polar-bear can

The company announced a temporary conservation campaign. ABC News reported customer confusion and the announced return of red cans. Coca-Cola said it would finish shipping the white cans.

SunChips: before

A familiar flexible bag

Consumers expected the package to open, protect the chips and work during ordinary snacking.

SunChips: change

Compostable material, louder handling

WHYY interviewed PepsiCo packaging manager Brad Rodgers about the work to make the bag quieter. The adjustment concerned the material construction, not a new logo.

03

What does the evidence actually show?

Separate a documented change from a sales claim or a design interpretation.

Case
Evidence
Limit
Test to reuse
Tropicana
Lee, Gao and Brown studied U.S. grocery sales, price and promotions during the 2009 package change.
Sales had already been declining before the redesign. The model's estimate depends on its assumptions.
Time a shopper finding the brand and choosing the exact variant.
Coca-Cola Arctic Home
The official release describes the white can; December reporting records complaints and the return of red.
Coca-Cola said white-can stock would continue to ship. The reporting does not establish that confusion caused the timing or quantify a sales loss.
Test regular and diet packs side by side under shelf lighting.
SunChips
The company announced the compostable launch; a packaging-manager interview explains the quieter material construction.
Noise complaints do not establish that compostable packaging always fails or explain every sales change.
Observe opening, handling and sharing in a quiet setting, then test disposal instructions.
04

Packaging approval check.

Launch when
  • Loyal buyers can still find the product.
  • Variants separate at a glance.
  • The product expectation stays accurate.
  • Opening and use support the promise.
  • Old and new inventory can coexist clearly.
Hold when
  • Research shows the pack alone on white.
  • The redesign removes every familiar cue.
  • Variant color is doing too many jobs.
  • Sustainability worsens the use experience.
  • Production cannot hold the visual standard.
05

Use this for your brand.

Private brand work

Pressure-test the decision before buyers do.

If a name, color, mark, message, voice, or page is starting to affect sales or trust, get the public-facing decision checked before rollout makes it harder to change.

Private work Request private brand work Use this when a live brand decision needs outside pressure before launch, redesign, or sales review.
06

Useful sources and next pages.

Original research Tropicana package changes: Lee, Gao and Brown 2010 demand study with the before/after package description and model limitations. Company release Coca-Cola announces the white Arctic Home can October 25, 2011 launch record, original campaign photograph and planned run. Company response and reporting ABC News: Coke and Diet Coke can confusion December 1, 2011 customer reports and Coca-Cola's explanation of the next red-can edition. Company release SunChips introduces its compostable bag March 31, 2010 launch announcement and the material's stated purpose. Packaging-manager interview WHYY: a quieter SunChips bag March 1, 2011 interview with PepsiCo's Brad Rodgers about noise and the revised construction. Related guide Should You Update Your Packaging? Decide which actual packaging problem needs a change. Product comparison New Coke Brand Message Lesson A formula replacement is a different decision from a packaging redesign.