Wrap rage is a new term that has been coined to describe that feeling you get when you spend 10 minutes wrestling with an item's packaging. One survey found that many people feel that in the past decade packaging has gotten increasingly harder to open. While we don't keep statistics on the number of people who get hurt opening packaging, Great Britain does and they found that in just one year, 67,000 people were injured opening packaging — with injuries ranging from cut fingers to sprained wrists. Keeping consumers happy is one of the main goals of any business, which is why it’s important that businesses ensure that their packaging isn’t causing consumers to have wrap rage. In 2006, Consumer Reports decided it was time to do something about impenetrable packaging and handed out Oyster Awards to the worst examples of product wrapping. The envelope please: and the winner is........the Uniden Digital Cordless Phone set. This came in a nearly indestructible hard plastic clam-shell pack that took 9 minutes and 22 seconds to open. Box cutters and razor blades were needed to release the phone from its plastic prison. The American Idol Barbie took even longer — 15 minutes and 10 seconds — to pry her away from her incarceration on a cardboard backing. She was shackled by 15 wires around her arms, legs, and torso. One person suggested not untying her, but simply re-branding the toy "Bondage Barbie."
