Bang for Your Big-Box Bucks

Package printing is all about high-quality printing and eye-catching graphic presentation. This has been especially evident in recent years as technology advancements have broadened the ability to achieve high-quality graphics, coupled with the growing sophistication of marketers and brand owners to have the package and its graphics help sell the product on the store shelf.

One segment that is getting more and more attention is the corrugated packaging market. In addition to the widespread use of point-of-purchase (POP) displays for merchandising, the growth of warehouse club stores is raising the stakes for secondary packaging, as it is playing a much larger role in the product sale.

Accurate Box Company (Paterson, N.J., www.accuratebox.com) is one package-printing company that got into this game early. The company was founded by Henry Hirsh in 1944 as a folding carton company. In the 1960s, Henry passed the reigns of the business to his son, Charles, who serves as chairman today.

According to Larry Shapiro, vice president and CFO, it was Charles' vision that brought together the company's focus on graphics and litho-laminated corrugated packaging. In the early 1980s, he acquired Berles Carton Company and relocated the business from Newark, N.J. to the acquired Paterson location. It was during this time that Accurate Box began its transition from a folding carton printer to a high graphics corrugated company, relates Shapiro.

Today, the company operates from a 9-acre location with about 175 employees. It serves a diverse range of markets. "We design and produce high graphics corrugated packaging for the consumer markets, primarily the food and beverage industries," notes Shapiro. "Other market segments include micro-breweries, auto aftermarket, and warehouse club store trays. We also produce point-of-purchase [POP] displays and standees."

Lisa Hirsh, president and CEO, and the daughter of Charles Hirsh, has been leading the company since the mid 1990s. In 1997, the company became certified as a women-owned business (WBE, Women Business Enterprise).