Europe Shrink and Stretch Sleeve Label Market Size

Europe Shrink and Stretch Sleeve Label Market Analysis

The Europe Shrink and Stretch Sleeve Label Market size is estimated at USD 1.58 billion in 2024, and is expected to reach USD 1.92 billion by 2029, growing at a CAGR of 4% during the forecast period (2024-2029).

The COVID-19 pandemic and the consequent lockdowns have affected industrial activities across the region. However, the disruptions caused in the first four months of 2020 were expected to result in order delays and increased lead times across the sleeve label supply chain until the second quarter of 2021.

The pandemic has also created a short-term supply pressure on sleeve label players, as raw material suppliers have been functioning at lowered efficiencies. Most packaging companies in Europe were not able to manage full production capacities due to lockdowns in many countries.

• The shelf appeal of a product plays a crucial role in driving its sales, especially in retail stores, and supermarkets. Moreover, with the advent of the 3D modeling technology for packaging, the streamlining of the pre-press process becomes simpler and allows the converter to simulate the appearance of the finished product packaging to brands before they hit the press.
• Further, shrink sleeve labels offer added security and safety for product companies as they cover the container from top to bottom, and incorporate an easy open or guarantee seal on the same label, thereby protecting the contents from being tampered with.
• For example, Brown-Forman Beverages used the Eastman Embrace LV copolyester for shrink film labels, covering the entire 70 cl bottle of Southern Comfort liquor for a limited edition package, which was launched in the United Kingdom. The shrink label includes the neck and cap, acting as a tamper-evident seal and giving the impression of a wrapped gift.
• Shrink-sleeve labels that are either PVC-based or PETG-based have a density higher than water. Hence, they contaminate the recycled PET stream and deteriorate the quality of recycled PET (rPET) products. This has led to increased efforts for developing new polyolefin film structures that float during washing to enable the separation of the label and bottle materials.
• The European Union banned single-use plastic items in 2021. The member states need to achieve a 77% collection target for plastic bottles by 2025 and 90% by 2029. Also, the law requires plastic bottles to contain at least 25% recycled content by 2025 and 30% recycled content by 2030. Such dynamic changes in regulatory standards, especially the ban on plastic, are expected to have an adverse effect on the shrink and stretch sleeve label market in the region.