CTLpack: A New Beginning

CTLpack, the Spanish tube manufacturer, has been offering its brand-new “Infinia” tube since April: In a world where beauty must balance creative expression with a commitment to sustainability, CTLpack is breaking new ground with INFINIA—a unique decoration technology that gives brands complete visual freedom on eco-friendly tubes. The Infinia line is available in sizes ranging from 15 to 250 ml and offers three major benefits: unlimited creativity with 360° graphics, including the Digital Product Passport (QR code); an eco-design solution for lighter-weight tubes, incorporating recycled material and improving recyclability; and protection of the formula through the inclusion of an EVOH barrier. This development comes as the company prepares to invest 15 million euros by 2029 in its two plants in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain, and Vichy, France. This amount is in addition to the 15 million already invested over the past six years. In 2025, CTLpack—which had just emerged from a period of major restructuring and reorganization—reported revenue of 70 million euros with a total workforce of 500 employees (311 in Spain and 189 in France). We spoke with Cristobal Alvarez, General Manager of Business Development, who joined the company in 2020 when the new shareholder came on board.

The tube remains one of the most iconic packaging formats in the world and is undoubtedly the most widely used in the beauty and personal care sector. Thanks to its characteristics, it is perfectly suited to the often very demanding standards of the cosmetics industry, protecting the formula from any direct contact with the outside environment.

The current CTLpack Group was founded in 1964 and acquired in 2020 by the KCE family office, an industry-focused investor dedicated to long-term projects. Sixty-two years later, the Spanish company produces 300 million tubes per year at two plants—one in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain, and the other in Vichy, France—and ranks among the top five European tube manufacturers. The two plants collectively operate 16 extrusion lines for tube production (accounting for 80% of revenue). The Vitoria plant, particularly impressive for its size (30,000 m² of covered area) and its state-of-the-art layout, also features three production lines for injection-molded tubes (10% of revenue), four production lines for laminated tubes (10% of revenue), and about twenty injection molding machines for manufacturing caps and closures.

“We have modernized our main extrusion machines,” explains Cristóbal Alvarez, “to increase speed and enhance the decoration processes. Similarly, we are currently adapting our machines and tooling to work with reduced wall thicknesses, post-consumer recycled content (PCR) percentages that meet market requirements, and to expand our catalog of recyclable solutions. With this in mind, we have adapted our processes and production capabilities to work with various types of post-consumer recycled (PCR) materials, reduced wall thicknesses, and single-material solutions, in order to adapt to the new market reality.”

Reorganizing and Adapting

France, as the leading customer, accounts for 40% of CTLpack’s market. Hence the importance of having the Vichy plant. Spain is “only” the second-largest market, followed by other European countries. The Spanish firm’s main strengths are its flexibility and responsiveness. It accepts orders starting at 5,000 units and has a portfolio of 600 active customers.

“We’re emerging from a very significant period of restructuring and reorganization,” explains Cristobal Alvarez. “It was absolutely essential to restructure the company. We closed our two sites—one in Barcelona, Spain, where we manufactured extruded tubes, and one in Charlotte, U.S., where we manufactured injection-molded tubes—and relocated part of production to Vitoria-Gasteiz.”
Eighty percent of the material processed is polyethylene, and polypropylene is primarily used for manufacturing caps.
“Raw material prices have risen sharply since January 2026,” says Cristobal Alvarez, “between 60% and 70%! Indirectly, the U.S. and Chinese markets are very important for many of our customers, but we’re clearly seeing a slowdown in both of these markets. In the United States, tariff policies are causing a clear distortion, and the Chinese market has changed its behavior since 2021, following the COVID-19 pandemic.”

Environment: Solutions Focused on the 3Rs

“European regulations impose high standards,” explains Cristobal Alvarez, “which we are, of course, required to comply with. But we view this not only as an obligation, but also as an opportunity to provide added value to our customers.
Of course, new regulations such as the new PPWR Directive, requirements for post-consumer recycled content (PCR), and the need to reduce packaging weight are forcing us to make significant investments to adapt to the market.”
The Spanish company’s “products” catalog offers solutions focused on the 3Rs: material reduction, use of recycled materials, and recyclability. “To that end,” explains Cristobal Alvarez, “we offer lightweight tubes, 75% post-consumer recycled (PCR) content in the composition, and single-material tubes. All the new products we develop are in line with the 3R policy.”

Infinia, Dositube, Shoulderless

In terms of new products, the company has just launched its new “Infinia” line and is also introducing new solutions such as the 100% plastic “Dositube”—a tube with an airless pump made from a single material, offering a 100% recyclable packaging solution.

The new 100% plastic Dositube meets growing consumer demand for packaging that is both sustainable and high-end. This new product strengthens the line of airless pump tubes, offering several advantages: portable, cost-effective packaging with precise dispensing and a high yield rate, thereby increasing the perceived value for the consumer.

CTLpack also plans to launch a “Shoulderless” format—a tube with an integrated cap—to complement its line of lightweight tubes. The launch is scheduled for the first half of 2027.