Easypack was established in 1992 with the aim of offering a range of sustainable packaging solutions for all industry sectors. In 2016, Easypack was acquired by Pregis LLC, a leading US provider of innovative protective packaging materials and systems for consumer and industrial markets.
Operations Director, Easypack Ltd
Easypack remains firmly established as the UK’s leading manufacturer of environmentally friendly packaging systems, with the UK headquarters being complemented by their subsidiaries in France and Germany.
3 times winner of the prestigious Queen’s Award for Enterprise, the company now plans to further its growth across the UK, the rest of Europe and the USA. Jason Cox, Operations Director at Easypack, spoke to Warehouse & Logistics News.
WLN – What are your best-known products and services?
Easypack is best known for its highly reliable packaging solutions that enable customers to pack their goods with 100% recycled, biodegradable and recyclable paper.
Offering outstanding reliability and versatility, our packmaster™ pro and packmate® pro systems are widely used across multiple industries due to the economical yet robust in-the-box cushion packaging. These systems, which superceded the original packmaster™ and packmate® systems, are among the most efficient on the market today.
Our superb range of void-fill systems can be found in packing operations across a wide range of industries. Our spiral pro® and freestyle™ systems remain our most popular due to the rising demand within the online retail and fast-moving e-commerce sectors. Their high speed, reliability and flexible, sustainable packaging makes it a favourite when it comes to online packing.
This year will also see the launch of the Quantum™ XT, a super-versatile void fill system that is set to become another bestseller.
Beyond our packing systems, our ergonomically designed packstation™ has also become a central and much-valued addition to many packing operations due to its high functionality and ability to integrate our systems.
From a service perspective our customers benefit hugely from dealing with us directly because we hold large stocks of our 100% recycled paper, enabling us to deliver the next day. In addition, customers benefit from ongoing training, preventative maintenance and product consultancy.
WLN – Which market sectors and countries are your customers in? Which ones are growing fastest?
E-commerce is undoubtedly the fastest growth area for Easypack over recent years and 2017 was no exception. We have seen continued demand from right across Europe, however over the last 18 months, following our partnership with Pregis LLC, our US sales have increased significantly and are set to continue.
Our customers range from online retailers through to component part manufacturers for specialist areas such as aerospace and automotive. The drive for businesses to become more sustainable was always foreseen by Easypack, which has led to us being the ‘go to’ supplier when it comes to environmentally friendly packaging.
WLN – Who are your major customers and what do you do for them?
Our customer list is naturally very diverse and as a company which has been trading for 25 years our customers fall in to just about every sector. Our customers include a cross section of well-known brands in the automotive, industrial, e-commerce, publishing, homewares and healthcare sectors.
WLN – How do your products benefit your customers’ businesses?
Reliability has to come out top of the list because our customers depend on our solutions in order to get their goods out of the door all day, every day without fail. Quality engineering ensures that our systems require minimum maintenance, which is much valued by our customers.
Our 100% recycled paper has many benefits; it’s sustainable, which is increasingly important to businesses; it’s strong, therefore it can protect heavy engineered parts (as well as fragile goods); it‘s versatile, so it can be used for most goods, and it’s cost effective – there is little waste and usage is highly controlled which reduces in-the-box costs.
WLN – Why should customers choose you as their main supplier in your area?
There is a real benefit from customers being able to deal direct with us. Our customers can trial any of our products at any time and we can design bespoke or integrated systems to complement their existing ones.
Aside from our quality solutions, customers benefit from being seen to use 100% recycled, recyclable and biodegradable paper packaging. More businesses are moving towards environmentally friendly packaging and Easypack offers the best of both worlds – reliability and sustainability, helping to enhance our green credentials.
WLN – What’s business been like in the past year? How have conditions changed over this period and how have you reacted?
Business has remained strong over the last 12 months, despite some uncertainties in the market place surrounding Brexit. UK and European sales have been consistently strong due to an increasing e-commerce market and the addition of a new Italian distributor. More notably, our US sales have increased exponentially, meaning that our manufacturing operations have expanded to meet with demands.
WLN – What were the business highlights for you in the last 12 months?
2017 was our 25th anniversary year so it was particularly special for all of us. We also rolled out 4 new products during the year, giving our customers an even greater choice. These include the new ‘Pro’ range, our new Quantum™ XT void fill solution, plus a new ‘green’ air cushion solution. We have also exceeded sales targets for a second year across Europe and the business as a whole, which is set to continue year on year.
WLN – What’s been your most outstanding recent project?
Our greatest achievement has been to meet the demand from both our European customers alongside the significant number of orders received from the US. The entire team here pulled together to deliver orders on time which has been challenging at times as we have had to scale up operations in a very short timeframe. We’re all very proud of the tireless efforts put in by our staff across the business.
WLN – How have you fine-tuned your offering in the last 12 months and why?
Working with Pregis LLC has allowed us to offer our customers an even wider range of environmentally friendly solutions, further developing our brand in the market place. This benefits both Easypack and our customers in the long term.
WLN – What recent enhancements have you made in customer service?
2017 saw the launch of our new website both here in the UK and in France and Germany. Our new sites now enable customers to see full details about our environmental credentials, useful environmental information, packaging data, packaging techniques as well as a full suite of product resources and tools.
Customers can also access our online stock ordering service which continues to improve customer experience of the brand. Alternatively, customers can scan their own personal QR code when they near the end of their stock. This automatically places an order to replenish stock with minimum hassle.
Our customers also receive a tree certificate at the end of every year telling them how many new trees they help to save through the use of our 100% recycled paper. These are always well received by our customers with many of them sharing the news on social media.
Finally, we have once again been accredited with ISO 14001 following our renewal audit which we are incredibly proud of. All of these combine to ensure that we deliver an outstanding customer experience.
WLN – What new products have you brought out?
2017 saw the launch of our new Packmaster™ Pro and Packmate® Pro systems which are among the most efficient and reliable on the market today. We also launched our first ‘green’ air cushion system, which offers customers an environmentally friendly alternative to standard air bags. Finally, the new Quantum™ XT is arriving ready for the start of 2018 and is set to become our best-selling void-fill solution yet due to its patented design features and high speeds.
WLN – What factors do you see affecting your business in the coming year? How will you turn these into opportunities?
The growth of e-commerce, alongside a growing need for businesses to become more sustainable, will continue to drive sales and we are fully prepared for this. As a company that always looks to the future and the needs of our customers, we are have already planned ahead, ready for the next stage of our business growth.
WLN – Are you planning to branch into any new areas, target new customers and take on more people?
Yes, we have a range of exciting new products coming in 2018 which will take us in to new markets. We have already taken on new staff throughout the last two years and we will continue to recruit in line with our plans.
WLN – Are you investing in new premises and extra staff? What about staff development and training?
We have an ongoing training and development scheme in-house that allows all staff the opportunity to develop their skills or move in to new roles. As we expand, we will scale up our operations accordingly.
WLN – Are you involved in any major trade shows or other industry events over the next year?
Yes, Easypack will be attending a number of major shows next year including Packaging Innovations and Fachpack. More details of events can be found on our website throughout the year.
WLN – What big news from Easypack can our readers look forward to seeing in Warehouse & Logistics News in 2018?
Easypack will be making a number of exciting new announcements in 2018 which we look forward to sharing with our friends at Warehouse and Logistic news as soon as we can.
WLN – And finally, if you had to sum up your company in a tweet what would it be?
No other #packaging manufacturer can offer a greater combined package of #knowledge, #reliability, first class customer #service and the best #environmentally friendly packaging solutions on the market.
EASYPACK LTD
01438 740649
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