Fifty Years in Flexibles

Founded in 1965 with only three employees — Edwin and Ruth Jablonka and their son Roy -— Glenroy, Inc. came from humble beginnings. From its inception, Glenroy had a mission of providing high-quality flexible packaging and exceptional service. Despite weathering various hardships during the early years, including a fire in 1973 that completely destroyed the company’s original facility, Glenroy has experienced steady growth. Fifty years later, the company has grown to include more than 200 employees and has become an established name in the world of flexible packaging.

Now in the company’s third generation of family ownership, under the aegis of president and CEO Rich Buss, Glenroy keeps moving forward. In January 2015, Glenroy acquired PF Flexibles, a stand-up pouch converter. This acquisition enabled Glenroy to provide customers with extensive pouch converting capabilities in-house. Later in 2015, the company purchased two additional facilities to accommodate further expansion. And in September, Glenroy unveiled a new four-million dollar investment — a Nordmeccanica adhesive laminator that has expanded the company’s range of packaging film laminations even further.

“These new capabilities support our mission of providing the highest level of service to our customers,” Buss says.

Innovation in all Things Flexible

Glenroy has forged several flexible packaging innovations during the past half-century. Two decades ago, the company pioneered the first line of surface printable packaging films for narrow web printers. Now known as ExpressWeb, it paved the way for narrow web printers to enter the flexible packaging marketplace.

In recent years, Glenroy has continued making waves in the industry. In 2013, the company produced the first oil pouch in the U.S. power sports industry, solidifying a position as one of the industry’s go-to experts in pouches for liquids. In 2014, Glenroy teamed up with one of the largest paper manufacturers in the world, BillerudKorsnäs, to supply the U.S. market with FibreForm, a new packaging material made from all-natural FSC-certified renewable paper. The extremely high stretch characteristics of FibreForm allow for deep embossing and sculpted effects previously unattainable with paper packaging.

David Sikorski, extrusion laminating and coating operator, working at Glenroy’s Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, location. Photo by Mark Hines.

Award-Winning Printing

Glenroy has won more than 90 printing awards and utilizes wide web 10-color central impression flexographic sleeved presses from Paper Converting Machine Co. The sleeved technology aids in quick changeovers, and the presses are retrofitted with Advanced Vision Technology (AVT) Argus Turbo 100 percent print defect detection systems. This defect detection system aids operators in in-line defect detection and accurate bar code monitoring. Glenroy also recently upgraded to X-Rite’s eXact spectrodensitometer equipment for better off-line color control to ensure color accuracy for branding.

In 2014, Glenroy became a Graphics Measures International (GMI) Certified Print Facility. GMI certifies, monitors and measures the performance of designated packaging suppliers, a process that ensures brand integrity by holding printers accountable to established brand owner standards.

Glenroy also makes a point of providing environmentally conscious printing. In addition to offering water-based inks, the company recycles solvents and printing plates used in the printing process. According to the company, Glenroy captures and destroys over 98 percent of volatile organic compounds using catalytic and regenerative thermal oxidizers.

Collaboration and Cooperation

Glenroy’s approach is very much a collaborative and cooperative one with its customers, which spans brand owners, CPGs, narrow web printers and contract packagers.

“Some customers may have very diverse knowledge bases and know exactly what they need,” Director of Sales Barb Woodruff explains. “But most of our customers come to us looking for help and guidance in developing a solution. We work to understand their goals and help them through the process.”

The Glenroy team addresses customer needs consultatively, seeking out any pain points or concerns with current packaging and learning about customers’ goals and objectives.

“We want to know the metrics — how is the customer going to measure success?” asks Woodruff. “We need to understand that from the get-go so we can develop the best possible solution.”

Understanding the consumer perspective is also essential in developing packaging, Evan Arnold, product development manager, explains.

“It’s important to understand how the end consumer will use a product,” Arnold says.

For instance, how the product is dispensed, how it is stored and where it is stored all influence package design.

“Does the package need to be reclosed multiple times? Does it need a certain type of handle or spout? These and other factors are all parts of the process,” Arnold says. “Our goal is to make a package better, improving the consumer experience.”

Thinking Outside the Bottle

Many products that were previously found in rigid packaging are making the transition to flexible packaging.

“Standup pouches are currently one of the fastest growing packaging formats,” Amanda Dahlby, marketing manager, explains. “As flexible packaging materials, fitments and filling equipment have become more advanced, an influx of products has been moving from rigid packaging to stand-up pouches. Products that were once limited to rigid packaging are now excellent candidates for stand-up pouches.”

Still, there is a misconception among some brand owners and consumers that flexible packaging lacks the durability and functionality of rigid containers.

“I think the biggest struggle for pouches is overcoming the misconception that they can’t perform the same functions as a bottle,” Arnold says.

Kevin Riggs, pouching operations manager, says that in many cases, a pouch can function better than a bottle.

“In my opinion, pouches can perform as well as, and in some cases better than, bottles,” he says. “We’ve developed spouted pouches that hold 32 ounces of liquid and pass 12-foot drop testing.”

Interestingly, at the consumer level, perceptions about flexible packaging may be generational.

“There is a generation of flexible packaging natives that grew up drinking juice and eating yogurt from flexible pouches, and they readily accept flexible packaging,” Dahlby says. “The advantages of flexible packaging are becoming part of the collective conscience in the U.S., and we are beginning to see the same chain reaction of products moving from rigid to flexible packaging domestically that has already reverberated throughout Europe. Any remaining misconceptions amongst some consumers about the durability of pouches will likely subside as more brands migrate to flexibles and using pouches becomes second nature.”

Winning at the Shelf

Another concern that can plague brand owners is fear of deviating from the status quo. Yet, innovative brands are seeing the various ways that flexible packaging can improve a package’s functionality, solve a problem, add value for the consumer and improve the consumer experience.

“We’ve helped leading brands make the transition from rigid packaging to flexible packaging, and these innovative brands ultimately end up winning at the shelf,” Buss says.

The extra “real estate” on stand-up pouches is a boon to brand owners seeking eye-popping shelf appeal for their packaging. Stand-up pouches have provided a new method for differentiation on retail shelves.

A prime example is the Arctic Cat oil pouch. According to Glenroy’s website, the lightweight pouch provides several benefits, including fast and easy pouring of oil into the snowmobile’s compact oil reservoir. But one benefit not to be overlooked is the increased printable surface area. Compared to an industry standard 32 ounce F-style bottle, which provides a total label area of approximately 29 square inches, Arctic Cat’s stand-up pouch provides almost 200 square inches of visible surface area for graphics. This additional space acts as a billboard for the product’s benefits and attention-grabbing graphics.

Looking Forward to the Next 50

As Buss and his team look to the future, they see flexible packaging continuing to evolve at a fast pace.

“We need to keep developing innovative new flexible packaging solutions at the pace required to stay relevant and competitive,” he says. “We’ve recently substantially expanded our capabilities, and our capabilities easily rival and even surpass those of our competitors, but continuing to develop innovative solutions will be paramount to our company’s continued success. We have some exciting new products in the pipeline for 2016.”

Also key to the company’s success over the next 50 years will be sustaining Glenroy’s positive culture.

Glenroy produces and prints a variety of flexible packaging. Photo by Scott Ritenour

“A key reason for our growth has been our passionate focus on making our customers successful,” Buss explains. “We believe that the primary way to ensure the success of our customers is through our dedicated employees. In a competitive industry, our employees are one of our biggest competitive advantages. We empower them, provide a positive working environment for them and recognize their valuable contributions. They become truly invested in the company’s success, and our customers reap the benefits. This focus on our customers and our employees has been a key ingredient in our recipe for the past 50 years.”

For Glenroy, this philosophy has yielded a loyal customer base and many customer referrals, which allows Glenroy to go head-to-head with several competitors that dwarf Glenroy in size.

“Our biggest differentiator is our service,” Buss says. “Everyone claims they have great service, but we don’t overpromise and underdeliver. When a new customer switches to Glenroy, and they experience what it’s like to work with us, we often hear that our service is a refreshing change from what they are used to. This is a primary reason why we receive so many customer referrals and positive word of mouth.”

Although Glenroy has been expanding rapidly, and the flexible packaging industry has evolved dramatically, the company’s mission hasn’t changed much over the past 50 years.

“The world is a very different place than it was the summer of 1965 when Dad, Mom and I opened the doors of our first facility,” co-founder Roy Jablonka said. “What hasn’t changed is the drive to always make a difference for our customers.”