Kleenex Seeks Artists to Design Hispanic-themed Packaging

Kleenex wants to get some Latin flavor onto its packaging to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month this September. To do that, the brand is running a contest to find up to three artists who may provide Hispanic-themed motifs for Kleenex boxes.

Titled “Con Kleenex, Expresa tu Hispanidad” (“With Kleenex, Express Your Hispanic Culture”), the competition, activated by Kimberly-Clark’s multicultural agency MASS Hispanic, is looking for package designs and artwork that will seem culturally relevant to the Hispanic audience.

Entrants can submit in a number of different media both digital and actual, including paintings, photographs, weaving, metal crafting and sculpture, at www.conkleenexexpresatuhispanidad.com.

Contestants will also submit a short essay explaining how their creation relates to Hispanic heritage, along with a personal photo. The competition is open only to non-professional artists 18 and older who are legal residents of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia. A maximum of three items of artwork can be entered or submitted by Jan. 31.

A panel of judges selected by Kleenex parent Kimberly-Clark Global Sales will choose 12 finalists based on authenticity, creativity, workmanship, Hispanic relevance and alignment with Kleenex brand values.

Those dozen submissions will be posted to the contest Web site around Feb. 22 and put to a public vote through March 22.

Three grand-prize winners will each receive a $5,000 cash prize and may get to see their artwork translated to a 3-D Kleenex package, specifically the small one known as the “upright.” Those packages would then hit store shelves by Sept. 1, the start of Hispanic Heritage Month, and remain available through October 2009.

The remaining nine first-prize winners will each receive $500 cash awards.

Using its retail packaging to express a link to Hispanic culture is a powerful recognition of “the growth and importance of Hispanics in America, as well as a unique opportunity for budding artists in our community to exhibit their work on a truly national scale,” says Hispanic radio psychologist and Kimberley-Clark spokesperson Dr. Isabel Gomez-Bassols.

Kimberly-Clark has worked with MASS Hispanic on past ethnic campaigns for its paper products brands. In fact, the agency won a 2008 Pro Award from Promo for its work in designing and executing a campaign for K-C’s Scott Tissue brand that celebrated Hispanic folk sayings.

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