JTI - Vårgårda
Snus collection 2025 - Display box
INTO THE WILD
The Vårgårda project is unique. Not just for what it contains, but for how it came to be.
Inspired by the wild Swedish landscape and deeply rooted in the story of the place of the same name - where agricultural tradition and local craftsmanship intertwine - it was more a journey than a project. It was a journey into the wilderness.
We designed the entire packaging from scratch without templates. Just us and the brand. Three cans, three stories. Hidden in a construction that at first glance reveals nothing. Like layers upon layers of camouflage in nature itself. Only when you open it does its inner world reveal itself: three precisely fitted boxes, each with its own wooden interior. Thought out to the last detail. Entirely handmade.
| Material |
Lined fibreboard |
| Printing technology |
Colour printing, Foiling/embossing |
| Category | |
| Business area | Tobacco & Alcohol |
Being involved in a project from the very beginning and working directly with the client is a rare opportunity. But it also holds the greatest potential to create something truly unique. And it gives the result real power. That was the case here, working directly with Japan Tobacco International, one of the world's largest tobacco companies.
It concerned their subsidiary Nordic Snus and the product Vårgårda - an artisanal version of snus produced in the Swedish city of the same name in Västra Götaland. This vast region is home to both industrial hubs like Gothenburg and almost untouched nature. With the Vårgårda project, we really went into the wild - the client wanted 7,000 collector's boxes, each containing three tins of snus. The aim was to create an unforgettable unboxing experience, while reinforcing the brand's philosophy through materials, finishes and graphic details.
We designed a box with a combination of cladding and wooden interior. Under the lid, one finds vertically arranged four-part panels, which open up to reveal three smaller boxes stacked on top of each other. These boxes rotate on their axis to reveal three round snuff boxes, precisely fitted into milled wooden spaces. Everything is mobile - but firmly attached to the supporting structure.
The design, materials and graphic details developed by our colleagues Pelle and Robert created a perfect harmony. The result is a box that is not flashy, but true to the brand - raw, natural and genuine. The production needed to show its very best, without resorting to superficial effects. This is also the approach that our colleague Pelle generally advocates. He is a project manager with business acumen and enormous experience, who can lead both the team and the client through a demanding process, while maintaining his typical, honest "no bullshit" style. Pelle is also at home in the wilderness. When production stops, he hops on his Harley-Davidson and drives to, for example, a hard rock festival, which happens to be almost around the corner from our workshop in the Czech Republic
We mentioned earlier the clad construction -- for the Vårgårda box we chose the discreet green paper Lessebo Moss Green. On the inside of the lid we printed a topographical pattern of the Swedish landscape. Other graphic elements were solved with screen printing and subtle foiling with Foilco foil. The visual highlight of the design, however, is the three deep blind embossments on three sides of the lid. Despite their large size, they are razor sharp - a challenge brilliantly met by our colleague Jaromír. He was responsible for the project from start to finish, including the technically advanced elements. It was far from easy. Just gluing the boxes to the panels without deforming, so that they could bear the weight of the wood and the product and that the moving parts worked in all 7,000 pieces - it was a wild mission indeed. Thanks to Jaromír, it worked!
The wooden interior was a chapter in itself. The base was made of beech veneer, milled to fit the moulds on the boxes - but that was the easy part. The real challenge was the finish. There are of course many options - varnishes, stains, paints, oils - but nothing felt quite right. The real challenge was the finish. There are of course many options - varnishes, stains, paints, oils - but nothing felt quite right. But at Hässlers, we pay a lot of attention to the choice of materials, as it has a huge impact on the end result. It took some time, but in the end we found the right one - Odie's Oil from Tallahassee, Florida. A natural oil, applied in an ultra-thin layer by hand, it beautifully accentuated the grain of the wood. It also left a pleasant scent that lingered for weeks after production. Incidentally, Odie's Oil is a subject in itself - a meeting of true American craftsmanship and love of the forest, as the carpenters themselves say. For this project, it was an ideal solution.
The Vårgårda project confirmed to us once again that there are no shortcuts. Just like in the untamed wilderness, where one wrong step can mean the end of an adventure and the beginning of a nightmare. Everything in this project was extremely demanding. Seven thousand copies. Design and construction with full attention to detail from first to last box. With a time frame stretched like a bowstring. We went to the limit of our capacity. But that's exactly how it should be.
Because you can't go round the wilderness - you have to go straight through it.
