GB2419130A

GB2419130A - Cartons having hooks for displaying articles

Info

Publication number: GB2419130A
Application number: GB0520910A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Michael Parkes
Original assignee: CLIFFORD PACKAGING Ltd
Current assignee: CLIFFORD PACKAGING Ltd
Priority date: 2004-10-15
Filing date: 2005-10-14
Publication date: 2006-04-19
Anticipated expiration: 2025-10-14
Also published as: GB2419130B; GB0520910D0

Abstract

A carton 2 for displaying articles at the point of sale has a hook 32 on a rear wall of the carton 2 for supporting articles within the carton 2. The hook 32 may be separate from the carton 2 or it may be an integral part of the carton 2.

Description

IMPROVEMENTS IN OR RELATING TO CARTONS

The present invention is concerned with improvements in or relating to cartons and in particular, but not exclusively to cartons for transporting and displaying articles at the point of sale. The invention is also concerned with blanks for manufacturing such cartons.

Cartons that can be erected from a flat, pre-formed blank at the time of use are widely employed in the packaging industry for transporting articles in bulk to the retailer for display at the point of sale.

Traditionally, the articles are removed from the carton for display at the point of sale and the carton collapsed for re-cycling.

Many articles are pre-packed for purchase by the customer, for example in plastic bags or shrink wrapped to a support card or in any other suitable manner, and a carton may contain a large number of pre-packed articles for delivery to the retailer.

Often such pre-packed articles are not suitable for stacking loosely on a shelf and a common method of displaying such articles at the point of sale is to suspend the articles from a hook inserted through a hole of standard size, often referred to as a "euro-hole", in the packaging. Several articles may be suspended from one hook allowing the customer to slide the first article from the hook leaving the remaining articles on the hook for other customers.

Removing the articles from the carton and placing them on hooks for display at the point of sale is a time consuming operation. Moreover, articles and/or the packaging may be damaged while transferring the articles from the carton to the hook.

Recently, there has been a trend to display the articles in the original carton which is designed to allow access to the articles when the carton is placed on a shelf or other convenient location for customers to remove the articles - such cartons are commonly referred to as " shelf-on trays " . This avoids the retailer unpacking the articles for display but presentation of the articles can be untidy, especially when some articles have been purchased, the remaining articles may fall over so that the contents are concealed.

The present invention has been made from a consideration of the foregoing problems and seeks to provide an improved carton for transporting and displaying pre-packed articles at the point of sale.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a carton provided with at least one hook from which articles contained in the carton can be suspended for display.

Preferably, the articles are suspended from the hook when packing the cartons so that the articles are arranged in an orderly manner within the carton for transportation to the retailer and for display to the customer at the point of sale. In this way, the carton can be placed on a shelf or other point of display without removing the articles. Furthermore, when articles are removed for purchase by the customer, the remaining articles are supported on the hook and do not fall over thereby maintaining a good appearance and presentation of the remaining articles to the customer so that the contents are not concealed.

Advantageously, the carton can be erected from a pre-formed blank that can be stored in a flat condition and assembled at the time of use when required. Preferably, the carton blank forms a floor and wall of the erected carton, and the hook is arranged to extend above the floor generally normal to the wall.

Advantageously, the hook can be erected from a pre-formed blank that can be stored in a flat condition and assembled at the time of use when required, The hook blank may be separate from the carton blank or it may be part of the carton blank. Using the same blank to form both the carton and the hook simplifies manufacture and assembly of the carton and hook.

In one embodiment, the hook is formed separately from the carton and the hook and carton are provided with co-operating formations to mount the hook in the carton in the erected condition. For example, the hook may have a base for location in a slot and an arm extending from the base on which articles can be suspended within the carton. The slot may be formed in the wall of the carton, preferably the rear wall so that the arm extends towards the front of the carton. Alternatively, the hook may be mounted on an insert located in the erected carton. For example, the insert may comprise a panel that fits within the carton and is provided with the slot to mount the hook. In this way the hook may be used if the carton wall does not have a slot to mount the hook.

In another embodiment, the hook is formed as an integral part of the carton. For example, the hook may have an arm connected to the carton on which articles can be suspended within the carton. Using the same blank to form both the carton and the hook simplifies manufacture and assembly of the carton and hook. )

The carton may have a lid or cover that protects the articles for transportation to the retailer and is removed to display the articles at the point of sale. The lid or cover may be assembled from a separate blank and fitted to the carton after packing or it may be part of the carton blank and separable from the carton along lines of weakness or other suitable means for separating the lid from the carton. Alternatively, the packed carton may be wrapped, for example shrink wrapped with plastic film, to protect the articles for transportation and the wrapping removed at the point of display.

Preferably, the hook is located on a rear wall of the carton and the carton has an opening in a front wall opposite the rear wall with the arm of the hook extending towards the opening to allow articles suspended on the arm to be slid off the hook and removed from the carton. The opening may be formed when the carton is erected or it may be formed at the point of sale by a detachable panel separable from the carton by lines of weakness or other suitable means for separating the panel from the carton.

Advantageously, the arm is connected to the base or carton by a hinge portion and the base or carton has an abutment that provides a support for the arm when hinged to an operative position in which the arm extends substantially normal to the wall of the carton. Preferably, the hook is positioned so that, when articles are suspended from the arm in the operative position, the articles rest on the floor of the carton. In this way, the arm does not have to support the full weight of the articles and acts mainly to keep the articles in an upright orientation for display to the customer.

The arm may be provided with a flap or similar formation at the free end that helps to retain the articles on the arm but allows the articles to be slid off for purchase by the customer. The hinge portion allows the arm to be raised from the operative position allowing the arm to adopt a position that may assist when removing an article from the arm by aligning the arm with the direction in which the customer removes the article.

The carton may be provided with more than one hook and these may be mounted on the wall of the carton with the arms at the same or different heights above the floor of the carton according to the size of the articles to be supported.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a carton blank and a hook blank for assembly of the carton and hook according to the first aspect of the invention.

The hook blank may be separate from the carton blank or it may be a part of the carton blank.

The carton blank and hook blank are preferably made of materials that can be cut to the required shape with crease lines for folding the blanks to erect the carton and hook. For example the blanks may be made of cardboard of suitable thickness and strength for the intended application although any other suitable materials may be employed such as paper fibreboard, plastic sheet such as polypropylene and plastic corrugated such as available under the name Correx (if.

Preferably, the carton and/or hook are constructed to retain the erected condition without the use of adhesive, staples or other securing means.

This simplifies assembly and allows the carton and hook to be broken down for disposal after use. This is particularly beneficial where the blanks are made of materials that can be re-cycled. This is not essential, however, and it may be desirable to secure the carton and/or hook in a partially or fully erected condition with glue or other suitable means. For example, we may glue the carton and/or hook for supply pre-assembled.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a hook comprising a base for mounting the hook on a panel and an arm for supporting an article to be displayed, the arm being connected to the base by a hinge portion and the base being arranged to provide support for the arm in an operative position.

Preferably the hook is constructed from a blank of cardboard or other suitable materials as mentioned above that can be cut to the required shape with crease lines for folding to erect the hook. Preferably, the base is adapted to be received in a slot in the panel so as to engage front and rear faces of panel, for example the erected hook may have a slot in the base to receive a portion of the panel. In a preferred arrangement, the base has a rear wall that lies flat against the rear face of the panel and a front wall that extends substantially normal to the rear wall and front face of the panel with the front wall providing support for the arm in the operative position.

Advantageously, the arm is of triangular shape in transverse section with a flat upper wall and angled lower walls. This shape increases the strength of the arm for a given material and also facilitates use of the hook with pre-packed articles having a "euro-hole" for suspending the articles from the arm.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a carton and at least one hook comprising an arm extending from a wall of the carton for supporting an article to be displayed, the arm being connected to the wall by a hinge portion and the carton being arranged to provide support for the arm in an operative position.

Preferably the carton and hook are constructed from a blank of cardboard or other suitable materials as mentioned above that can be cut to the required shape with crease lines for folding to erect the carton and hook.

In a preferred arrangement, the arm is connected to a wall of the carton by a hinge portion and cartoon wall is arranged to provide support for the arm in an operative position in which the arm extends substantially normal to the carton wall. For example, the carton wall may be provided with flaps that can be folded to locate under the arm adjacent to the hinge portion.

These and other features, benefits and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description of exemplary embodiments wherein: Figure 1 shows a blank for erecting a carton with a slot in a wall of the carton according to a first embodiment of the invention; Figure 2 shows a blank for erecting a hook for use with the carton erected from the blank of Figure 1; Figure 3 is a perspective view of the blank of Figure 2 partially folded to from the arm of the hook; Figure 4 is a perspective view of the blank of Figure 2 folded to form the arm and base of the hook with the arm in an inoperative position; Figure 5 is a perspective view of the erected hook with the arm in an operative position; Figure 6 is a perspective view showing the erected hook of Figure 5 for assembly with the erected cartoon of Figure 1; Figure 7 is a perspective view of the assembled carton and hook; Figure 8 shows a blank for erecting an a modified hook for use with the carton erected from the blank of Figure 1; Figure 9 is a perspective view from above of the erected hook with the arm in an operative position; Figure 10 is a perspective view from below of the erected hook with the arm in an operative position; Figure 11 shows a blank for erecting a carton and hook according to a second embodiment of the invention; Figure 12 is a perspective view from above of the partially erected carton and hook with parts removed for clarity and showing the arm in an operative position; Figure 13 is a perspective view from behind of the partially erected carton and hook shown in Figure 2; Figure 14 is a perspective view of a detail of the partially erected cartoon and hook with parts removed for clarity and showing the support of the arm in the operative position; and Figure 15 is a perspective view from above of the erected carton and hook.

Referring first to Figures 1 to 7 of the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 depicts a flat cardboard blank l for erecting a carton 2 (see Figures 6 and 7). The blank 1 is divided into six panels 3,4,5,6,7,8 by crease lines 9,10,11 for folding the panels 3,4,5,6,7,8 to erect the carton 2.

Panel 3 forms a base wall of the carton 2, side walls of the carton 2 are formed by folding panels 4,5 along crease lines 9,10 and a rear wall of the carton 2 is formed by folding panel 6 along crease line 11.

Panels 7,8 are joined to panels 4,5 along the crease line 11 and are separated from panel 6 by cut lines 12,13. The panels 7,8 fold along crease line 11 to extend behind the rear wall of the carton 2.

A respective locking flap 14,15 is formed in each panel 7,8 by cut lines 16,17 and is joined to the panel along crease lines 18,19. The flaps 14, 15 fold inwardly to engage a rectangular window 20 cut out of the panel 6 to retain the carton 2 in the erected condition without the use of adhesive or staples.

A slot 21 is also cut out of the panel 6 to extend vertically from the upper edge of the rear wall of the erected carton 2 for a purpose described in more detail below. The slot 21 is positioned centrally between the side walls of the erected carton 2 and has a lead-in portion 21 a and a tail portion 21b that is narrower than the lead-in portion.

Figures 2 to 5 depict a flat cardboard blank 30 for erecting a hook 31 for mounting on the rear wall of the carton 2 (see Figures 6 and 7). The hook 31 has an arm 32 formed by folding four panels 33,34,35,36 joined by crease lines 37,38,39 to overlap the outer panels 33,36 to provide the arm 32 with a flat upper surface and a V-shaped lower surface (see Figure 3).

The hook 31 also has a base 40 formed by two wings 41,42 joined to the outer panels 33,36 by crease lines 43,44 that form a hinge connecting the arm 32 to the base 40. Each wing 41,42 is similar and comprises three panels 45,46,47 joined by crease lines 48,49. The inner panels 45 of the wings 41,42 overlap when the panels 33,34,35,36 are folded to form the arm 32 (see Figure 3).

The centre panels 46 of the wings 41,42 fold inwards along crease lines 48 bringing the outer panels 47 together and the outer panels 47 fold along crease lines 49 to extend normal to the panels 45 (see Figure 4).

The centre panels 46 are shorter than the other two panels 45,47 so that a slot 50 is formed between the panels 45 and the panels 47.

The panels 34,35 forming the arm 32 are provided with a cut-out 51 at the end adj acent the base 40 in which the panels 47 of the base 40 are received when the arm 32 hinges about the crease lines 48,49 (see Figure 5). In this way, the panels 47 provide an abutment to limit hinging movement of the arm 32 and support the arm 32 in an operative position.

The location of the panels 47 in the cut-out 51 also assists in maintaining the hook 31 in the erected condition without the use of adhesive or staples. In some cases, however, it may be desirable to secure the hook 31 in a partially or fully erected condition with glue or other suitable means. For example, we may glue the hooks for supply pre-assembled.

As shown in Figures 6 and 7, the hook 31 is mounted on the rear wall of the carton 2 by inserting the base 40 into the slot 21 to locate the centre panels 46 in the tail portion 21b and the adjacent end of the arm 32 in the lead-in portion 2 l a with the rear wall of the carton 2 received in the slot 50 in the base 40 between the panels 45 and 47 of the base.

In the assembled position, the panels 45 lie flat against the rear surface of the rear wall of the carton 2 and upper surface of the arm 32 received in the lead-in part 21a of the slot 21 is below the upper edge of the walls of the carton 2. The arm 32 extends substantially normal to the rear wall of the carton towards the front of the carton 2 which is open. In this way, the hook 31 does not project from the carton 2 to any significant extent and is largely contained within the space envelope of the carton 2.

In use, pre-packed articles can be suspended from the arm 32 within the carton 2 and the carton 2 can be provided with a lid or hood to protect the articles for transportation of the carton 2 containing the articles to the retailer. The articles can be displayed at the point of sale by removing the lid or hood to allow access to the articles within the carton 2 through the open front of the carton 2. For example, the carton may be placed on a shelf with the articles inside.

The height of the arm 32 above the base wall of the carton 2 may be chosen so that articles suspended from the arm 32 rest on the base wall.

In this way, the arm 32 does not have to support the full weight of the articles and only has to be strong enough to locate and retain the articles in an upright orientation for presentation to the customer.

In this embodiment, the arm 32 is provided with a flap 52 at the outer, free end to assist in retaining articles on the arm but which allows a customer to remove the articles by sliding the articles off the arm 32.

The hinging movement of the arm 32 may assist removal by allowing the arm to be lifted slightly to align with the direction in which the article is removed from the arm 32 and then return to is operative position when the article has been removed under the weight of the remaining articles. In a modification (not shown) the flap may be omitted.

In this embodiment, the slot 21 for the base 40 of the hook extend from the edge of the carton wall. In a modification (not shown) the slot may be provided at the marginal edge of an aperture (window) in the carton wall that is of a size and shape that permits the base to be located in position Referring now to Figures 8 to 10 of drawings, there is shown a modification to the hook above-described. For convenience, like reference numerals in the series lOO are used to indicate corresponding parts.

Figure 8 depicts a blank 130 and Figures 9 and 10 depict a hook 131 erected from the blank 130. The hook 131 has an arm 132 and a base 140 joined to the arm 132 by a crease line 160 that forms a hinge connecting the arm 132 to the base 140.

The base 140 is adapted to mount the hook 131 on a support such as the wall of a carton (not shown) with the arm 132 extending from the wall such that pre-packed articles can be suspended from the arm 132 for display.

The blank 130 is made of cardboard of suitable strength and thickness for the intended application although it will be understood that other materials may be employed such as paper fibreboard, plastic sheet such as polypropylene and plastic corrugated such as available under the name Correx Hi.

The arm 132 comprises two panels 161,162 joined by a crease line 163.

One end of the panel 161 is connected to the base 140 by the crease line 160. The adjacent end of the other panel 162 is separated from the base 140 by a cut line 164 and is formed with a triangular cut-out 165. During assembly, the panel 162 can be folded under the panel 161 to form the arm 132 with the cut-out 165 on the underside of the arm 132 adjacent to the base 140.

As shown in Figures 8 and 9, the upper and lower surfaces of the arm 132 are substantially flat and the arm 132 is provided at the outer free end with an upturned flap 152 to assist in retaining articles on the arm 132.

The flap 152 is formed by end portions of the panels 161,162 folded about transverse crease lines 166,167 respectively. In a modification (not shown), the flap 152 may be omitted.

We have found when forming the arm 132 from two panels 161,162 folded over in this way, the arm 132 can support articles for display without collapsing by appropriate selection of the material used for the hook 131 and the dimensions of the arm 132 for the intended application.

The base 140 comprises a centre panel 168 joined to two side panels 169,170 by crease lines 171,172 respectively. The centre panel 168 is joined to the panel 161 by the crease line 160. The side panel 169,170 are of similar L-shape divided into two sections 169a,b and 170a,b by crease lines 173,174 respectively.

During assembly, the side panels 169,170 are folded towards each other about the crease lines 171,172 and further folded about the crease lines 173,174 so that the sectionsl69a, 170a joined to the centre panel 168 overlie the centre panel 168 and the sections 169b,170b extend at right angles to the centre panel 168 below the arm 132.

The upper edges of the sections 169b,170b are received in the cut out 165 when the arm 132 is hinged about the crease line 160 to its operative position substantially normal to the base 140. In this way, the upper edges of the panel sections 169b,170b provide an abutment to limit hinging movement of the arm 132 and support the arm 132 in the operative position. The location of the panel sections 169b,170b in the cut-out 165 also assists in maintaining the hook 131 in the erected condition without the use of adhesive or staples.

In some cases, however, it may be desirable to secure the hook 131 in a partially or fully erected condition with glue or other suitable means. For example, we may glue the hooks for supply pre-assembled. The crease lines 173,174 are arranged so that a slot 150 is formed between the panel 168 and the sections 169b,170b of the side panels 169,170.

The hook 131 can be used in similar manner to the hook 31 described previously. For example, the hook 131 can be mounted on a support such as a rear wall of a carton by locating a portion of the carton wall in the slot 150 in the base 140 so the arm 132 extends towards the front of the carton and pre-packed articles suspended from the arm 132 within the carton can be removed by customers as described previously.

As will be appreciated, the modified hook 131 above-described employs a blank 130 having fewer panels for assembly compared to the blank 30 while providing similar advantages. In particular, the hook 131 provides an effective, low cost method for displaying articles at the point of sale so that, as customers remove articles from the arm, the remaining articles continue to be displayed in a tidy manner.

Referring now to Figures 11 to 15 of the drawings a blank and a carton and hook formed from the blank according to a second embodiment of the invention are shown. For convenience like reference numerals in the series 200 are used to indicate parts corresponding to the previous embodiments.

Figure 11 depicts a flat blank 270 and Figures 12 to 15 depict a carton 202 and hook 231 erected from the blank 270. The blank 270 is made of cardboard of suitable strength and thickness for the intended application although it will be understood that other materials may be employed such as paper fibreboard, plastic sheet such as polypropylene and plastic corrugated such as available under the name Correx @.

As best shown in Figure 11, the blank 270 has six panels 203,204,205,206, 207,208 from which the carton 202 and the hook 231 are formed. Panel 203 forms a base wall of the carton 202, side walls of the carton 202 are formed by folding panels 204,205 along crease lines 209,210 and a rear wall of the carton 202 is formed by folding panel 206 along crease line 211.

Panels 207,208 are joined to panels 204,205 along the crease line 211 and are separated from panel 206 by cut lines 212,213. The panels 207,208 fold along crease line 211 to extend behind the rear wall of the carton 202 (see Figures 13 and 15).

A respective locking flap 214,215 is formed in each panel 207,208 by cut lines 216,217 and is joined to the panel along crease lines 218,219. The flaps 214,215 fold inwardly through an opening 220 in the rear wall of the carton 202 to retain the carton 202 in the erected condition without the use of adhesive or staples (see Figure 15).

The hook 231 has an arm 232 formed out of the panels 202,206 by a cut line 271 and is joined to the panel 206 at one end by a crease line 272 that forms a hinge. The arm 232 is folded about the crease line 272 prior to folding the panel 206 along crease line 211 so that the arm 232 extends substantially normal to the rear wall of the carton 202 and is spaced above the base wall of the carton 202 in an operative position (see Figures 12 and 15).

A respective tab 273,274 is joined to each panel 207,208 by crease lines 275,276. The tabs 273,274 fold inwardly through an opening 277 of reduced width in the rear wall of the carton 202 and extend below the arm 232 to support and maintain the arm 232 in the operative position (see Figure 15).

As described in our co-pending applications pre-packed articles can be suspended from the arm 232 for display by passing the free end of the arm 232 through a hole in the packaging to place the article on the arm 232.

As shown, the arm 232 has a cranked or offset portion at the free end that extends to one side of the arm 232 and forms a flap or tongue 252 that assists in maintaining the articles on the arm 232 but allows the articles to be removed by a customer.

In this way, the displayed articles are prevented from sliding off the arm until removed by the customer and the articles remaining on the arm 232 continue to be displayed in a tidy manner.

In this embodiment, the arm 232 has a thickness corresponding to the thickness of the cardboard blank 270 from which it formed. It will be understood, however, that we may form the arm 232 in such a way that parts of the blank can be folded over to increase the thickness and thus strength (rigidity) of the arm 232. This may be desirable to prevent the arm 232 bending under the weight of the articles suspended from the arm 232.

As will be appreciated from the foregoing, the carton and hook in Figures 11 to 15 are formed from the same blank. In this way, manufacture and assembly of the carton and hook is simplified with potential cost savings compared to the use of separate blanks for the carton and hook. As a result, the benefits and advantages of the invention in providing an effective, low cost method for displaying articles at the point of sale are further enhanced.

It will be understood that the use of the same blank to form both the carton and hook may be applied to cartons of different size and shape and that the carton may be provided with more than one hook for suspending the same or different articles. For example, where more than one hook is provided the hooks may be of the same or different shape and may extend from the same or different walls of the carton at the same or different heights above the base wall of the carton.

The second embodiment may include features of the first embodiment such as the provision of a removable lid or cover for the carton that protects the articles during transportation and can be removed at the point of sale to allow customers access to the articles for purchase.

As will now be appreciated, the present invention provides an effective, low cost method for displaying articles at the point of sale in a carton so that, as articles are removed by customers, the remaining articles do not fall over and continue to be displayed in a tidy manner.

It will be understood that the invention is not limited to the embodiments above-described. For example, the carton may be of any suitable construction for the articles to be displayed and may be provided with more than one hook according to the size and shape of the articles and/or the carton. Although the invention has particular benefits when used to support

articles within a carton, it will be understood that the invention may be employed to support articles in other applications. For example, the invention could be applied to a display panel provided with at least one hook to support articles. The hook could be separate and mounted on the display panel, for example the display panel may provided with a slot to receive the base. Alternatively, the hook could be an integral part of the display panel.

Other modifications and improvements will be apparent to those skilled in the art and are deemed within the scope of the invention.

Claims

1. A carton provided with at least one hook from which articles contained in the carton can be suspended for display.

2. A carton according to claim l wherein, the carton has a floor and a wall upstanding from the floor, and the hook is arranged to extend above the floor generally normal to the wall.

3. A carton according to claim 1 or claim 2 wherein, the hook is formed separately from the carton.

4. A carton according to claim 3 wherein, carton is adapted to mount the hook in the carton in the erected condition.

5. A carton according to claim 4 wherein, the hook has a base for location in a slot and an arm extending from the base on which articles can be suspended within the carton.

6. A carton according to claim 5 wherein, the slot is formed in the wall of the carton.

7. A carton according to any one of claims 3 to 5 wherein, the hook is mounted on an insert located in the erected carton.

8. A carton according to claim 7 as dependent on claim 5 wherein, the insert comprises a panel that fits within the carton and is provided with the slot to mount the hook.

9. A carton according to claim 1 or claim 2 wherein, the hook is formed as an integral part of the carton.

10. A carton according to claim 9 wherein, the hook has an arm connected to the carton on which articles can be suspended within the carton.

11 A carton according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the carton has a lid or cover.

12. A carton according to claim 11 wherein the lid or cover is removable.

13. A carton according to claim 5 or claim 10 wherein, the hook is located on a rear wall of the carton with the arm of the hook extending away from the rear towards an opening in the carton.

14. A carton according to claim 5 or claim 10 wherein the arm is connected to the base or carton by a hinge portion and the base or carton has an abutment that provides a support for the arm when hinged to an operative position in which the arm extends substantially normal to the wall of the carton.

15. A carton according to claim 14 wherein, the hook is positioned so that, when articles are suspended from the arm in the operative position, the articles rest on the floor of the carton.

16. A carton according to claim 15 wherein the arm is provided with a flap or similar formation at the free end that helps to retain articles on the arm but allows the articles to be slid off the arm.

17. A carton according to any one of the preceding claims wherein. the carton is provided with more than one hook.

18. A carton according to claim 17 as dependent on claim 2 wherein, the hooks are mounted on the wall of the carton with the arms at the same or different heights above the floor of the carton according to the size of the articles to be supported.

19. A carton according to claim 1 wherein, the carton is erected from a pre-formed blank that can be stored in a flat condition and assembled at the time of use when required.

20. A carton according to claim 19 wherein the hook is erected from a preformed blank that can be stored in a flat condition and assembled at the time of use when required.

21. A carton according to claim 20 wherein the hook blank is separate from the carton blank.

22. A carton according to claim 20 wherein the hook blank is part of the carton blank.

23. A carton according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the carton is made of cardboard.

24. A carton according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the hook is made of cardboard.

25. A carton substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Figures 1 to 7 of the accompanying drawings.

26. A carton substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Figures 1 to 7 of the accompanying drawings as modified by Figures 8 to of the accompanying drawings.

27. A carton substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Figures 11 to 15 of the accompanying drawings

28. A blank for assembly of a carton according to claim 1.

29. A blank for assembly of a hook for the carton according to claim 1.

30. A blank for assembly of the carton and hook according to claim 1.

31. A hook comprising a base for mounting the hook on a panel and an arm for supporting an article to be displayed, the arm being connected to the base by a hinge portion and the base being arranged to provide support for the arm in an operative position.

32. A hook according to claim 31 wherein, the hook is constructed from cardboard.

33. A hook according to claim 3] or claim 32 wherein, the base is adapted to be received in a slot in the panel so as to engage front and rear faces of panel.

34. A hook according to claim 33 wherein the hook has a slot in the base to receive a portion of the panel.

35. A hook according to claim 34 wherein, the base has a rear wall that lies flat against the rear face of the panel and a front wall that extends substantially normal to the rear wall and front face of the panel with the front wall providing support for the arm in the operative position.

36. A hook according to any one of claims 31 to 35 wherein, the arm is of triangular shape in transverse section with a flat upper wall and angled lower walls.

37. A carton having at least one hook comprising an arm extending from a wall of the carton for supporting an article to be displayed, the arm being connected to the wall by a hinge portion and the carton being arranged to provide support for the arm in an operative position.

38. A carton according to claim 37 wherein the carton and hook are constructed from cardboard.

39. A carton according to claim 37 or claim 38 wherein, the arm is connected to a wall of the carton by a hinge portion and cartoon wall is arranged to provide support for the arm in an operative position in which the arm extends substantially normal to the carton wall.

40. A carton according to claim 39 wherein, the carton wall is provided with at least one flap that can be folded to locate under the arm adjacent to the hinge portion.

41. A blank for assembly of the carton according to any one of claims 37 to 40.