Speaking at pre-Drupa press event in Belgium, Pantone business development director Carola Seybold said Pantone’s most-asked question was about colour trends, something colleagues at the Pantone Colour Institute searched the world for on a regular basis.

The new colours are influenced by design trends across industry and can also signal new cultural and social influences.

During product development, Pantone, which is owned by X-Rite, surveyed hundreds of designers across graphics, packaging, print and web design.

The most recent finding was that Pantone was missing blushes and blues and neutrals, Seybold said.

Blues are often representative of a clear, clean design aesthetic while oranges and browns have a different effect, according to Pantone.

“Oranges and browns are popular because people want to move back to earth, it links to the organic lifestyle,” Seybold added.

Pantone also believes that people are feeling less inhibited about colour choices and more likely to choose bright and bold shades than in the past.

There are now 1,867 Pantone colours in total.