Redefining possibilities of packaging with Nathan Ward collaboration crafting a stunning fusion of art and material innovation.

The ground breaking project resulted in the creation of a stunning 3D diorama made entirely with Moulded Fibre and paper. The collaboration was inspired by James Cropper’s 180-year legacy of craftsmanship and bespoke packaging innovations, highlighting its recent partnership with premium whisky distillery Bruichladdich on an award-winning Moulded Fibre wrap for its Luxury Re/defined range. As a result, the project celebrates the synergy between James Cropper and its customers by depicting Bruichladdich’s Isle of Islay-based distillery side-by-side with James Cropper’s historic Burneside mill.

“Our ethos is to ‘be like no other’,” said Jordan Scott, Marketing Communications Manager at James Cropper. “We’re continually challenging ourselves to hone our craft and explore new ways to tell stories for our customers – we’ll never wait for someone else to do it first.

“There’s a natural synergy between the James Cropper and Bruichladdich businesses, with both placing an emphasis on their rich heritage, sustainability, and innovation. And there’s a compelling parallel between whisky-making and paper production, as both processes delicately transform raw materials into something more elegant and refined. It’s what made this beautiful project possible, demonstrating the power of two businesses with similar values coming together. We flipped the use of paper and Moulded Fibre to recreate a Moulded Fibre product using paper hand sheets, but inside is this inspiring message delivered through Nathan’s artwork.”

“I was really excited by what James Cropper was doing with Moulded Fibre, which is unique to their brand,” said Nathan Ward, a multi-award winning artist specialising in papercraft. “It’s really inspiring to see how the team is pushing the possibilities of paper.

“The team made paper sheets from the same pulp that goes into Moulded Fibre, so the colours were beautifully matched. I used that to make the structures in the 3D art piece, adapting my paper-cutting techniques to work with James Cropper products such as Vanguard and the bespoke Moulded Fibre sheets that were made especially for me. ”

A natural synergy

Our partnership with Bruichladdich Distillery Company is the perfect example of what can be achieved by two progressive companies with shared values. Since its founding in 1881, Bruichladdich has built a reputation as an industry disruptor, making its name as an Islay-based single malt distillery that does not use the region’s traditional peat smoke in its production process, and continually pushing the envelope with a trademark sense of flair.

As part of its sustainable commitment, Bruichladdich is once again blazing a new trail by cutting down on packaging wherever possible, eliminating tin secondary packaging from its core single malt lines. It approached James Cropper to create a new packaging solution for its Luxury Re/defined range of whisky that was in line with its sustainability goals – and the rest is history.

The result of this collaboration was a headline-grabbing, award-winning bottle wrap made entirely from Moulded Fibre. While there were some technical challenges along the way – notably around colour control, owing to the careful balance that needs to be struck between dye and fibre to ensure each pack has a uniform hue – our understanding of chemistry and material science enabled us to overcome them, bringing the project to life with a single material and no glue.