Excellent post! I totally agree. 

I'm currently helping a client reshape a product brand and due to deadlines we need to hit, we have to begin the process with package design. As I'm designing the packaging I continue to think about what the brand is, what I want it to be going forward, what I want the user experience to be, and then how this foundation of design strategy must migrate to other materials. There's a lot going into this packaging design - much more than just the design itself.