Dear Clients, Dear Partners,
A Formes de Luxe Award, two complementary areas of expertise, and one question: what really makes the difference between a beautiful mock-up and an industrial mock-up ready to move into production?
Rabanne’s Million Gold For Her – Pure Diamonds, industrialised by Wauters, has just won the latest 2026 Formes de Luxe Award in the Folding Carton category. A creation to which MR contributed at a very early stage.
Since day one, we have consistently emphasised that MR produces industrial mock-ups. We therefore wanted to find out how our work is perceived by the industrial partners who take over the project at the next stage. We spoke with Frédéric Ansart, Sales Director at Wauters, about the tangible benefits of pre-industrial mock-up development.
To transform the iconic Million Gold For Her jewel into a genuine diamond-set piece, experimentation was the name of the game!
Following the overall repackaging work carried out with MR, the next stage of the project for Rabanne was to enhance the jewellery-inspired dimension of the ring by adding set stones, drawing inspiration from the craftsmanship of a diamond setter.
Silver and gold finishes, printed effects, faceted effects to recreate set gemstones, plays on raised and recessed details… Several creative directions were explored before finding the right combination: embossing and holographic foil stamping, recreating the precious sparkle of diamonds.
What makes the difference? At MR, this research goes far beyond simple simulations. With the exception of digital printing, which offers greater flexibility when exploring colour shades, we use the very same finishing technologies as the packaging industry.
Your designs are therefore produced using actual industrial processes, with their effects validated directly on the material. Films, tooling, machines: the entire range of finishing techniques already shares the same industrial DNA.
A mock-up that does more than simply inspire. It is already proving its worth.
“Mock-up specialists get involved at a very early stage. For us, this is a form of semi-industrial anticipation,” explains Frédéric Ansart.
“At Wauters, the challenge then lies in transferring the result achieved on the mock-up to large-scale production, using our own processes and equipment.
The research carried out on the prototype can directly feed into production preparation. Nevertheless, we inevitably have our own industrial adaptation work to carry out, with its specific requirements.
This means adapting tooling to imposition constraints, adjusting machines, matching colours through ink formulation for offset spot colours, and ensuring consistent results across thousands of folding cartons…
But when I recognise an MR label on a mock-up, I sometimes give them a call to find out more about the choices made with the client, and in particular which tooling supplier they worked with.”
When technical solutions have already been explored, the industrial partner is no longer starting from a purely visual objective. With Pure Diamonds, the tooling development and holographic foil solution provided a very clear technical framework for the project.
A pre-industrial mock-up makes it possible to validate a technically realistic result, anticipate potential challenges, minimise the need for revisions and secure folding carton pricing before moving into production.
Fewer unnecessary trials, fewer back-and-forth exchanges, better control over lead times and costs: the industrial partner can focus its efforts on mass production, while marketing and packaging development teams move forward with a reliable reference.
MR mock-ups are also always delivered in multiple copies, allowing projects to be rolled out quickly across both sales teams and packaging development teams.
MR‘s goal has always been to give our clients, partners and industry peers a head start. To build lasting, seamless professional collaborations.
And when the result wins a Formes de Luxe Award alongside Wauters, we are reminded that all those little details really do make a difference — and with quite a sparkle! ✨
A huge thank you to Frédéric Ansart and the Wauters team for sharing their expert insights with us.
Do you also have a brilliant idea waiting to be brought to life? Entrust us with your most precious packaging challenges. We love helping turn your ideas from mock-up to sparkling reality!
The MR Team
