Live ‘Big Easy’ project ran throughout event and showcased how connected workflows, agentic AI and packaging ecosystem collaboration can accelerate go-to-market from months to days…to hours
Esko has successfully demonstrated the power of its latest packaging innovations by redesigning a pouch, preparing production-ready artwork, printing and converting the finished packaging and delivering the final product to attendees at Esko World 2026 – all within just 48 hours.
The live demonstration, known as ‘The Big Easy’, was one of the standout highlights of this year’s Esko World event, held in New Orleans and providing nearly 500 packaging professionals from across the globe with a real-world example of how connected workflows, packaging intelligence and agentic AI can dramatically accelerate the journey from concept to finished pack.
“The challenge was intentionally straightforward and familiar to anyone who has ever worked in packaging,” said Jan De Roeck, Esko Director of Marketing. “An imaginary brand owner contacted the team with an urgent request, wanting to completely redesign an existing product line because the current packaging no longer appealed to its target audience.
“The brief, as explained to the Esko World audience, called for a comprehensive refresh, including changes to colors, graphics, text, structure elements and overall visual appeal,” said Jan. “The catch was that the new pouch needed to be designed, approved, produced and delivered to Esko World attendees within just 48 hours.”
What followed was a live demonstration of the latest Esko innovations working together as part of a fully connected packaging ecosystem. Beginning during the opening plenary session of Esko World, attendees were invited to actively participate in the redesign process. Using interactive audience engagement, the gathered packaging and labels converters, brand representatives and packaging experts contributed ideas, suggestions and feedback on how the fictional product should be transformed. Leveraging agentic AI capabilities within the Esko ecosystem, those suggestions were swiftly translated into design concepts and packaging options live on the big screen. Multiple creative directions were generated, refined and evaluated before attendees collectively selected the preferred final design.
“From the outset, we wanted this to be much more than a technology demonstration,” said Jan. “We wanted to recreate a challenge that packaging teams face every day and show how modern packaging workflows can respond with unprecedented speed, accuracy and confidence.
“The ultimate goal of our innovations, and the theme of Esko World 2026, is to accelerate go-to-market from months to days and beyond. The Big Easy challenge gave us the perfect opportunity to demonstrate exactly what that looks like in practice.”
Once the design direction had been agreed, the project moved into production. While attendees participated in conference sessions, workshops and technical presentations throughout the event, the packaging files continued their journey through the Esko ecosystem. Artwork was prepared, verified and refined using automated workflows designed to ensure both quality and compliance.
Throughout the process, packaging data, assets and approvals remained connected, enabling teams to move quickly while maintaining full visibility and control. AI-assisted technologies helped streamline key tasks, while integrated workflows reduced manual intervention and minimized the potential for errors.
“Speed is only valuable when it is combined with trust,” said Jan. “The ability to move quickly is important, but packaging organizations must also ensure quality, regulatory compliance and production readiness. What we demonstrated this week is that those objectives are no longer mutually exclusive.”
Once approved, the final production artwork was transferred directly to ePac Flexible Packaging, which partnered with Esko to print and convert the redesigned pouch at its production facility in Austin, Texas. From there, the finished pouches were transported to New Orleans in time for the closing day of Esko World. The culmination of the project came during the event’s final session on Friday morning, when attendees were presented with the finished packaging that they had helped create less than two days earlier.
The demonstration represented a practical illustration of the Esko ‘Spec to Pack’ vision, connecting specifications, assets, workflows and production processes in a single digital environment, and the reveal generated enthusiastic reactions from the audience.
“The Big Easy showcased what becomes possible when creativity, packaging intelligence, automation and production are connected,” said Jan. “By leveraging the latest advances in agentic AI, maintaining quality and compliance throughout the workflow and collaborating with trusted partners, we have demonstrated how creating packaging variants can be simple yet safe, fast and maintain right-first-time quality.
“Most importantly, we have shown that the future of packaging is not about isolated technologies. It is about taking down silos and connecting ecosystems that enable brands and their packaging suppliers to work together more effectively, respond faster to market demands and bring products to market with greater confidence than ever before.”
The successful completion of the Big Easy project marked a fitting conclusion to Esko World 2026, reinforcing the event’s central theme of accelerating packaging innovation and helping organizations transform packaging operations for a faster, more connected future.
