Supported by a few China-based partner-manufacturers, Annette Der Minassian, Isaure de La Noue and Vahé Der Minassian founded Metapack in August 1998 as a company specialized in promotional items. “Initially, we mainly aimed to offer made-in-China, Zamak-based specialized promotional items, but we soon started to work for the perfume industry, with a first perfume cap made from Zamak for Rochas. Then, we made the brass strip of the Chance fragrance by Chanel, for whom we have become a referenced supplier”, says Isaure de La Noue.
The co-founder and Sales Director explains this fast move towards the luxury industry by the close, faithful relationship they built with their carefully selected Chinese partners.
A robust partnership base
“We wanted to work hand in hand with the plants in China. We formed a team there, composed of engineers, quality managers, and logisticians. We trained them to the processes our customers expected, and we helped them with capacity investments, whenever it was needed. We are not traders. We have always worked with a robust industrial base to be able to offer the best technical and economic solution, which should also be viable, production-wise”, she says.
Now, Metapack works with a network of four plants specialized in Zamak injection, polishing and plating, and regularly upgraded to comply with environmental standards.
But the company also adapts to the changing demand: new production avenues have been focused on Europe, with Zamak-specialized plants in Italy, especially for brands wishing to put forward a made-in-Europe claim.
A sustainable material
If Metapack developed various specialisms over the years, adding different metals like brass, steel, aluminium, and processes including leather casing, Zamak remains its flagship material. “Zamak has become very popular over the past 25 years. It provides a luxury touch with its weight and cold feel. It can also be moulded like plastic, and it creates complex shapes. It can be plated, lacquered... Also, it is a material that can definitely find its own place in a sustainable project”, says Isaure de La Noue.
The specialist actually promotes Zamak’s circularity, because it can be recycled, like aluminium – provided it is sorted out.
“It is our hobby horse, in a way. We worked with Veolia and Derichebourg to check its recyclability on site. And it is easy to sort out: we actually tracked our products and got a potential recycling rate of 90%. Plus, it is definitely adapted to refill and luxury projects. It helps create beautiful objects that can be kept for years, like the powder compact made forLa Bouche Rouge, or our latest Fara Homidi launch”, she adds.
Driven by its momentum, Metapack now aims to pursue its development in the perfume industry, which already accounts for 75% of its turnover, while exploring new territories, including home and spirits. The company made a set comprising a snuffer and a wick trimmer made from Zamak for Jo Malone, as well as candle-related accessories for Diptyque.
Lastly, to support its Parisian teams at the company’s headquarters and its Hong Kong collaborators, Metapack has been considering reopening the NYC offices that had been closed during the pandemic. This could be done in the months to come.
