PACKAGING
Charting its
own Path
Upstart label maker Altro Labels is
making a name for itself on the craft
brewing scene
By Jim Timlick
Altro Labels has been in business for just under two
years, but the upstart Vancouver-based printing com-pany
has already made quite a name for itself on the craft
brewing scene.
To date, it has done work on behalf of more than 25 craft
brewing companies including Red Racer, BREWHALL, Bomber
Brewing, Luppolo Brewing Co., Vice and Virtue Brewing Co., Bad
Tattoo Brewing and Neighbourhood Brewing in B.C. It has also
worked with a number of brewers in Alberta, Manitoba, and
Ontario, and has a handful of clients it does work for in the U.S.,
including Ever Grain Brewing in Camp Hill, Pa.
The company’s meticulous work and bold attitude has gen-erated
considerable buzz among many in the craft brew sector.
Considering that four of its brewing partners (Dageraad Brewing,
House of Funk Brewing Co., BREWHALL and Red Racer) picked
up prizes at the 2020 Canadian Brewing Awards and Altro clients
took home over 20 trophies at the 2019 British Columbia Beer
Awards, it’s no wonder an ever-growing number of brewers want
to work with the company.
Dan Sabatino, the company’s director of marketing and
communications, says a big part of what has set Altro apart from
other label makers is the fact the company and its ownership
take pride in being “a purpose-driven start-up” and doing things
a little bit differently.
That’s evident in the fledgling company’s name. Altro is
Italian for “other,” a fact reflected in Altro’s attitude to choose its
own path including adoption of the very latest innovations in
printing technology. The versatility and sophisticated design of
its new 13-colour hybrid inkjet press, which combines traditional
flexo and digital printing processes, can produce any kind of
label, from hot foil and embossed labels to matte and glow-in-
the-dark finishes. It’s also been designed to reduce waste
and slash print times, an important consideration for many
smaller craft brewers who often have to change plans on the fly,
according to Sabatino.
“We can do turn-around times of one to four days for a lot of
craft brewers,” he said. “That’s important because in craft beer
the brewers, marketing managers and designers we work with
need the flexibility and assurance to know they have time to
experiment with more cutting-edge recipes and label designs. If
at 3 a.m. there needs to be a change, it can happen.”
Packaging has become a critical component in the craft
beer industry as it often takes consumers only a few seconds to
choose which product to purchase from an ever-growing number
of options.
Sabatino says that is why his company is so passionate about
creating labels that can instantly grab a customer’s attention.
Altro has produced everything from gloss and matte finishes on
shrink sleeves for every sized can to BOPP (biaxially-oriented
polypropylene) labels that feature metallized, holographic,
peel-off stickers and even glow-in-the-dark designs such as the
one they produced this past Halloween for Ever Grain Brewing.
One of Altro’s more innovative designs is a matte-style shrink
sleeve featuring a perforated label that can be easily removed
PHOTO: © STUDIO RANSOM 2020
WINTER 2021 § POURED CANADA § 31