Even companies that sell NFTs – exclusive pieces of digital art and other content – realize that sometimes people yearn to hold something in their hands when they buy something.
Which is why 2 NFT projects collaborated with NVRLand Labs to create a limited-edition series of physical die-cast toy cars, each connected to its own unique NFT digital art work.
And of course when you’re charging from $129 to $2,000 per collectible, you’re going to go the extra mile with the packaging, which they most certainly did.
Designed by NVRLand Labs and produced by our friends at Fastkit Luxury Packaging [projects/ website], each collector’s box is as brash, polished, and obsessed with the tiniest details as the NFTs themselves.
Determined to create an unforgettable unboxing experience, the designers began with an overall look for the packaging of the entire line of 2,800 limited-edition collectibles.
This consists of offset-printed Black boxes on C1S paperboard that follow the same design theme, and cleverly utilize the same variety of print and finishing techniques to their best effect.
Let’s start with the large hot foil stamped icon on the top of the telescoping box lid, which indicates which NFT project a particular collectible is affiliated with, such as a Silver foil ape’s head for “Degenerate Ape Academy,” or White foil Panda head for “Degenerate Trash Pandas.” (Oh my, these names!)
Soft-Touch lamination adds an extra tactile appeal to all the packaging and contrasts nicely with the slight raised Spot Gloss UV logos that cover the rest of the lid top.
The sides– and yes, we are still talking about the lid – feature artwork related to each brand. Take the “Ape” box, in which the brand house and “Degen APE” logos are enhanced with a Spot Gloss UV.
A quick lifting of the lid and…voila! There’s so much to see at once, it’s easy to miss the 1/64 scale vehicle tucked inside.
There are NFT characters printed on the side of the box that positively leap off the surface thanks to the contrast of the matte Soft-Touch laminate and Spot Gloss UV. A tiny “Cupcake” icon also reminds us that there is an exclusive digital NFT item lurking somewhere within…we’ll get to that in a moment.
A themed insert tray – again offset printed and augmented with an additional Soft-Touch lamination and Spot Gloss UV – includes a rectangular die-cut in which the vehicle display box itself fits snuggly, keeping it safe during shipping. Removing this box reveals that this is not your typical clear-window box at all, but rather is made of a die-cut sleeve slipped over a transparent acrylic box.
Not only does the outside of the sleeve boast the name of the NFT character featured, but themed imagery appears again as a backdrop on the inside of the sleeve. And naturally the sleeve’s accent colors match those of the car inside.
As for that mysterious NFT item that comes with the vehicle, the bottom of the insert explains that tapping a sticker on the acrylic box with your NFC-enabled phone will reveal this limited-edition, one-of-a-kind digital artwork.
While I must admit I’m still a little hazy about some aspects of the NFT world, there’s no mistaking how effective this combination of print techniques and branding can be. Quite simply it achieves a uniform look while still allowing us to tell our “Apes” from our “Trash Pandas” 😉
