Held in Downtown Boston at the Hynes Convention, this year’s conference explored the evolution and future of brand experience. The world of packaging is one that is constantly changing, and yet, everything and anything is possible, particularly when packaging is no longer just about standing out on the shelf.

In the US alone, packaging is a 143 billion dollar market, and on any given day, a typical consumer will touch at least 50 different types of packaging.

Monday evening’s Dieline Awards were hosted by jones knowles ritchie’s (JKR) Global Executive Creative Director Tosh Hall and Director of Brand Grace Dawson. This year’s overall Best in Show winner went to Auge Design for Mutti’s special-edition Eataly World packaging. The Best of Show prize is awarded to the highest rated project among all 1400 entries in the competition, and Mutti’s vintage and elegant design for their line of canned tomato products boldly stood out amongst all the other entries.

There was no shortage of surprises and giveaways from the 4-day event. In addition to hosting the awards, Tosh Hall (with an assist from JKR client Dunkin’ Donuts because YAY DONUTS) also gave a talk on the value of craft and how the fundamentals of great design can inform brands. Not to be outdone, Global Design Manager for Hershey, Fernanda Amarante, hid candy through the conference hall while she spoke about quite literally being the kid in the candy store and creating magic while building a design-driven brand.

Paul Foulkes-Arellano of A Plastic Planet and Grow’s Creative Director and Partner Isabelle Dahlborg Lidström both spoke at the conference about issues concerning plastic waste and sustainability in the packaging sphere. This was an incredibly relevant and timely topic given that half of the plastic waste generated across the globe comes from the world of packaging. Worst of all, 91% of the world’s plastic never sees the inside of a recycling bin.

Many speakers traveled from far and wide to speak at the conference, including Vietnamese design and branding studio Rice Creative’s Joshua Breidenbach and Chi-An De Leo who spoke about seeking the unexpected and finding a unique story in their branding work. Marie-Therese Cassidy from FutureBrand’s UK office spoke about the evolution of brand experience while Cato Hunt from Space Doctors, also from the UK, spoke about building synaesthetic brands and sensory semiotics.

With an eye towards 2019 for the conference held in Chicago, The Dieline looks forward to once again recapping the year’s best design and branding, with a focus on what’s just around the corner.

 With any luck, there might even be some more free donuts.