This is hardly the list to end all lists. That wasn’t our intention. Our goal for this, the first “brandinnovators” special issue, was to recognize the people behind the innovations we report on each month and to celebrate their triumphs in connecting packaging back to the larger dialogue about a brand. In this list of 10, there are a few entrepreneurs, some CPG veterans and one or two who defy categorization. What do they all have in common? They are advocates of innovation, proponents of design, and they’re pushing packaging forward in the marketing of consumer brands.

Their success is proof that packaging is no longer just a sliver of the marketing pie; the discipline is gaining its due respect. Never mind that some of the newfound favor is a by-product of a cluttered media environment (traditional marketing just doesn’t have the same luster). It’s all good. The attention is only increasing the opportunities for all of you to prove yourselves and shine.

We hope you take our brandinnovators ‘06 as inspiration. These are some of the individuals whose visions are particularly bright. Not only are they mastering the challenges of the store aisle, they are extending beyond it to focus on the in-use experience and what many are considering the ultimate opportunity to infuse consumers with the essence of their brands.

We’ll also be honoring our brandinnovators in a more formal setting, at a cocktail party during our Packaging that Sells IV conference on November 1, 2006, in Chicago (www.packagingthatsells.com for more on that).

Finally, we also want to extend a big thanks to readers who passionately submitted their colleagues and mentors for consideration. Take note, deliberations for brandinnovators ‘07 begin today, so be sure to vote early…and often!

Editor’s Note: BRANDPACKAGING would like to thank the following for their nominations and cooperation in producing this issue: Go Fast Sports & Beverage, Philippe Becker Design, General Mills, Johnson & Johnson, Procter & Gamble, Innocent Drinks, Method, Jones Soda, GlaxoSmithKline, Nestlé, Safeway, Cargo Cosmetics.