Sleeve Label Market - Forecasts from 2022 to 2027

The sleeve label market is projected to witness a CAGR of 5.98% during the forecast period to reach a market size of US$18.300 billion by 2027, increasing from US$12.183 billion in 2020. The two most common types of sleeves available are shrinking sleeves and stretch sleeves. Sleeve labels can be found on virtually all fast-moving consumer goods. The increasing amount of choices available to customers for choosing products makes it difficult for manufacturers to differentiate their products from those of their competition. Therefore, sleeve labels are very important to ensure product visibility with regard to packaging. Additionally, they aid in improving the product's aesthetics. Plastic and polymer shrink labels provide partial coverage while the other hand, full-body labels provide 360-degree coverage. Food & beverage and pharmaceutical packaging products are the best suited for shrink sleeves labels, which are very durable. A shrink label is considered among the best and is gaining tremendous traction due to offering numerous opportunities to improve the packaging of a product. Additionally, sleeve labels can be printed with flexography or gravure technology and are becoming the standard of choice. For instance, in March 2021, Overnight Labels. Inc., a major label manufacturer, introduced a portfolio of craft beer labels that come in shrink sleeves with enhanced substrates, varnishes, and graphics.

Drivers

• The demand for increased shelf life

Sleeve labels are projected to grow in popularity due to the rising demand for long-term shelf life for products. Labels for sleeve packaging usually have advanced security features like UV protection, which can extend shelf life. Further, in some cases, these labels also contain tracking systems such as RFID chips and QR codes. Thus, an increasing requirement to extend the shelf-life of the product will encourage the growth of the market. To remain competitive, players keep launching new products. Flint Group Narrow Web, for example, introduced two UV-flexo coating products in September 2021 to increase the recyclability of shrink sleeves and pressure-sensitive labels. These coatings are currently available in North America and are soon to be available throughout the region of Europe and other areas. Additionally, numerous market players are launching several sustainable sleeves labels as well. For instance, the Association of Plastics Recyclers approved the Smart Recycle Portfolio in April 2019 for recycling-optimized shrink-film-labelled PET packaging. Eastman launched two shrink-sleeve label resins that were approved by the APR in April 2019. The Critical Guidance recognition of APR was awarded to both Embrace Encore, as well as Embrace Float. These labels are both easily recyclable.

Restraints

• Stringent environmental rules and cost

As environmental regulations become more stringent, the growth of the sleeve label market is projected to slow down. Sleeve labels are commonly manufactured from materials such as HDPE (High Density Polyethylene) and PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride), both of which pose various environmental hazards, and for this reason, the EU regulations and FDA regulations are restricting the use of harmful chemicals like such. It is predicted that this factor will restrain the market growth of sleeve labels over the forecast period. Additionally, shrinking labels are likely to hinder the market growth of sleeve labels due to their high costs over the analysed period. In addition, stretch labels are not able to provide evidence of tampering over the cap, thereby limiting their use. Thus, both types of sleeves labels have certain limitations, which are projected to hamper the market growth.

Key Developments

• September 2021: Huhtamaki Oyj acquired Elif Holding A.ª, which supplies sustainable, flexible packaging to global FMCG brand owners. This helped Huhtamaki to strengthen its hold in emerging markets as a leading flexible packaging company and also strengthened its existing flexible packaging business dealing in attractive consumer product categories.
• January 2021: Huhtamaki acquired the assets and operations of MMPPL (Mohan Mutha Polytech Private Limited). The debt-free purchase price was estimated at USD 10 million. The company went forward with this acquisition to expand its flexible packaging business.
• December 2020: Fuji Seal International initiated the set-up of a new plant in North Carolina to increase its business opportunities. The company went on with this expansion to increase its production capacity. The new plant is situated in an area of 23.66 acres and produces shrink labels.
• July 2020: CCL Industries Inc. successfully acquired InTouch Label and Packaging Co. Inc. This acquisition was performed to make InTouch Label and Packaging Co., Inc. a part of the Avery Business segment of the former.
• March 2020: Fuji Seal International acquired Fuji Ace (Thailand). The acquisition was performed to conduct integrated and efficient operations with its bases in the region of Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, and India
• July 2019: Berry Global Group successfully acquired RPC Group. This acquisition helped the company to create a leading global supplier of value-added protective solutions and also made it one of the world's largest plastic packaging companies.

COVID-19 Insight:

In the packaging and labeling industry, the outbreak of COVID-19 disrupted the supply chain, which resulted in an impact on the demand and supply in the market. However, owing to a growing demand for food-related businesses, many countries across the world have deemed shrink and stretch sleeve labels as vital. This is hence expected to keep market demand steady during the forecast period and drive growth.

Segmentation:

• By Product Type

Shrink Sleeve

Stretch Sleeve

• By Printing Technologies

Digital

Flexography

Gravure

• By Material Type

Polylactic Acid Films

Polyethylene Films

Expanded Polystyrene Films

Polypropylene Terephthalate Glycol Films

Others

• By Application

Food and beverage

Healthcare

Personal care

Others

• By Geography

North America

• USA
• Canada
• Mexico

South America

• Brazil
• Others

Europe

• United Kingdom
• Germany
• France
• Others

Middle East and Africa

• Turkey
• Egypt
• South Africa
• Others

Asia Pacific

• China
• Japan
• India
• Australia
• Others