On Sept. 10, 2001, I returned to Rodman Publishing after a four-year absence to become editor of Cosmetic Packaging & Design. My first day back was like a homecoming, catching up with old friends and trying to learn new names. I was happy to be back and excited to be starting a new chapter in my career.

Then Sept. 11 happened, and while many things have returned to normal, we are all, at least at times, sadder, more anxious and more careful than we were. What I have been comforted by is the resilience of Americans to come back from sorrow and fear and return to a semblance of everyday life. Most of us have done that by concentrating on our jobs and day-to-day living—a double victory because, not only does that allow us to function, but it confounds the terrorists who set out to destroy and disrupt the American way of life.

Against the odds of a shaky economy, it’s been a very good year for Cosmetic Packaging & Design. With the support of the industry,
we have successfully expanded from a quarterly publication to by-monthly frequency.

For the first time, Cosmetic Packaging & Design and its sister publication Happi are sponsoring the International Package Design Awards (IPDA), which will be presented during HBA Global Expo 2002. The experience of working with the various package finalists has been fun, interesting and confirmation that there’s a lot of innovative package design going on in industry today. Check out the 24 IPDA finalists beginning on page 42 and see which HBA events and seminars to attend starting on page 56.

We cover a lot of ground in this issue: from the new Francesca Guerrera cosmetics line (page 22) and the new Aura Science retail specialty stores (page 24), to how a marketer firm can attain zero defects when sourcing packaging components (page 26) and a State of the Industry Report (page 30). Don’t miss how the look of luxury is being redefined today (page 34), what the latest trends are in secondary packaging (page 60) and how suppliers are exceeding expectations in packaging for color cosmetics (page 70).

In other Cosmetic Packaging & Design news, our magazine applied for BPA International membership in June 2002. BPA International was chosen to conduct the audit of our circulation because of its industry leadership and expertise with business publications. Its stringent qualification requirements will provide clear, accurate and objective circulation statistics.

We intend to continue to improve and expand our coverage and, as always, would appreciate suggestions on how we can serve you better.

Visit our website, www.CosmeticPackagingandDesign.com, and register to receive news updates by e-mail. And come see us at our HBA Global Expo—booth #1701.

Janet Herlihy
Editor
[email protected]