11440 Hillguard Road, Dallas, TX, USA 75243
www.abbottlabel.com

The name Abbott has been synonymous with labels for nearly 50 years, and the future is equally as bright at this Dallas, TX-based converter. John Abbott, a label industry fixture, established Abbott Label in 2000 – more than 20 years after his father, Jerry, founded Metro Label. With label printing in his blood and an emphasis on culture and service, John has grown the Abbott Label business to nearly $100 million, with more growth on the horizon.

John has very much followed in his father’s footsteps. From 1978 to 1998, Metro Label established label manufacturing plants in Dallas, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Chicago, and New Jersey. Jerry went on to sell Metro Label in 1998, paving the way for John to open Abbott Label two years later. Jerry, who passed away in 2017, was a strong presence at Abbott Label as the company grew throughout the years.

Today, Abbott Label boasts four manufacturing plants in Dallas, Atlanta, Chicago, and Los Angeles.

Plus, the company is set to open a fifth plant in Shelbyville, TN, just outside of Nashville. With more than 250 employees and 200,000 square feet of manufacturing space spread across its locations, Abbott Label has been steadfast in what has been a successful business model. The company is a 100% trade-only converter, with zero direct label sales. There has been an evolution too, as Abbott Label has shifted from a blank, stock label company to a full service, multi-color provider with a plethora of printing capabilities. The converter has more than 30 presses in its arsenal, spanning flexographic to inkjet and toner-based technologies.

John Abbott’s business acumen and emphasis on relationships has helped establish Abbott Label as one of the industry’s top converters.

“Over the years, the thing I reflect on is my people,” explains John. “More than anything, we focus on hiring good people, because you’re only as good as your people. I’m truly blessed as far as that goes. Not only have we been fortunate to have good people work for us, but we have also been very blessed to have great customers who constantly refer other companies to us because of who we are, what we are, and what we do.”

John has surrounded himself with a strong leadership team, which includes Ken Young, operations manager, Clayton Stormer, national sales manager, Jason Mathews, controller, Brant Mauthe, head of IT, Thomas Brown, plant manager, Texas, and Hayden Wier, head of marketing.

By following the mantra, “The Abbott Way,” this team of more than 250 people has committed to culture and service – as well as consistency throughout the company’s soon-to-be five manufacturing plants.

“We feel throughout the years that our loyal distributor partner base has continued to grow by us staying true to being a 100% trade-only label converter and not dealing direct,” states Stormer. “A large portion of our business is now made up of other converters. A lot of times, our customers trust us with their outsourced work because they don’t have the same capabilities, nationwide footprint, or the ability to turn the product as quickly as we can.”

“John fosters an environment of empowering his people,” adds Stormer. “When we talk about culture, one of my key takeaways – having worked at Abbott Label, as well as a few other converters – is that you can learn anything you want to learn here and grow within the company. John really does empower our people and promotes an environment of continuous growth and improvement.”

With numerous technologies in-house, Abbott Label has the ability and agility to quickly service a wide range of customer needs. The company also prides itself on accepting the tough, complex jobs that many converters lack the capability to produce. This all ties in to an exceptional customer service program.

Thomas Brown, plant manager at Abbott Label’s Texas facility, points out the benefits of adding JetFX digital embellishment capabilities.

“It’s really all about service,” says John. “It drives me crazy when I call and get a recording. When you call Abbott Label, in every location, you have a person who answers the phone and guides you in the right direction. I think that’s the biggest part of customer service right there. There’s no runaround. You get a person and an answer right away. We do customer service training every Thursday for 30 minutes, too. We have all 22 customer service people on a phone call, and we train them, going over different MRAs and situations they’ll encounter, trying to make them better and help them better respond to our customers.”

“When it comes to our service there are flexo houses and there are digital houses, and we like to think of ourselves as a one-stop shop where we’re good at everything and we can take care of anybody’s needs,” adds Wier. “A lot of customers are packaging companies and labels are just one segment that they sell. Being able to have as many capabilities to take on as many opportunities that they get out in the marketplace allows us to position ourselves very successfully.

“It’s something we’ve crowned the Abbott Way, which goes back to our urgency and responsiveness,” continues Wier. “It goes back to connecting to a human instantly. We want to create that personal connection as quickly as possible so that way we can foster that relationship. We’re developing such intricate and complex labels these days, with internal face cuts, specific facestocks and adhesive combinations, I really think there is so much more value in having that connection and communication with a customer.”

Ultimate flexibility

Part of Abbott Label’s commitment to its customers is the ability to remain flexible. Strong industry partnerships and the willingness to invest – and reinvest – have proven fruitful for the converter.

In addition to its more than 30 printing presses, Abbott Label boasts a stable of reputable partnerships with some of the industry’s leading suppliers. Jerry initially built Metro Label as a Mark Andy flexo house, and John has continued that relationship. Not only is Abbott Label primarily outfitted with Mark Andy for its flexographic work, but the company has also turned to both Domino and HP for its digital printing capabilities.

“Digital printing has certainly helped us with speed-to-market for our distributor partners, and it’s made us incredibly competitive on short to medium runs,” says Stormer. “At the same time, it’s given our partners the capability to go after markets that they might not have sold to in the past, like wine and spirits or nutraceuticals. Everything we sell is service, service, service.”

In its Dallas-based headquarters, Abbott Label houses an HP Indigo 6K digital press and a Domino N610i digital inkjet press. Additionally, the next digital printing investment from Domino is headed to the company’s California plant.

Abbott Label’s headquarters is located in Dallas, TX.

A Domino K600 has also enabled the production of variable data and consecutive numbering. The K600 is included inline on a Mark Andy 2200 flexo press, and another K600 is on order.

“The Domino just made sense for us speed-wise,” remarks John. “We bought that press and then we bought another, and we’ve had such great success. We have one press in Dallas, and then we put the other one in Los Angeles. The K600s are critical for variable imaging, and it’s worked so well that we just bought another.”

On the finishing and converting side, ABG, Rotoflex, Grafotronic, RotoMetrics/Maxcess, and Delta ModTech have also served as strong partners for Abbott Label. The company has the ability to print tactile varnish, which is driven through JetFX, too. 

From a material standpoint, Avery Dennison, Green Bay Packaging, and UPM Raflatac have long assisted Abbott. Plus, Abbott Label predominantly relies on Siegwerk for its inks.

As a privately-owned company, John has the freedom and willingness to make quick decisions that will best service his team and customers – especially with adding new equipment.

“We’re able to make quick decisions here,” says John. “I’m heavily involved in the day-to-day operations, and ultimately the buck stops here. We realized that we needed a 17″ press from Mark Andy, and Thomas said that we sure could use one. We had that conversation on Monday, and we bought the press Wednesday morning. We’re able to make quick decisions like that, and I don’t have to run that decision up to the Board of Directors. Then I call Steve Schulte at Mark Andy and get exactly what I need. And if we have a customer that’s looking for something specific, the answer is yes.

“I’ve been fortunate to have relationships with some of the best suppliers,” adds John. “I truly am a huge RotoMetrics fan and think they’re the best in the world. I’m a huge Mark Andy fan, and I think they’re the best in the world, and the same thing with Domino. Avery Dennison, Green Bay Packaging, and UPM Raflatac – I need them all. I’m nothing without my suppliers because they support me.”

John has always been quick to reinvest back into the company, too. “During the pandemic, we took our whole PPP loan and invested it back into the company, and we’ve reinvested again with new turrets and Evolution presses from Mark Andy, RFID equipment, new software and a platemaking system. We’ve invested so much into the company it’s unreal. We’ve spent a ton of money, and I think one of the biggest things you see from our competitors is that they’re not reinvesting in their companies because of how much money things cost these days. They don’t have the capacity and they haven’t done the investing like we have, so they’re coming to us to run jobs for them.”

“John has made a concerted effort to invest in our capabilities,” adds Stormer. “Over the last three years, he’s spent close to $8 million in the way of new equipment and technologies.”

Growing with RFID

Abbott Label has made another recent investment, this time into RFID. John has made the calculated decision to open a new plant in Shelbyville, TN, near Nashville, to initially focus solely on RFID label production. RFID labeling has emerged as one of the most prominent industry trends.

Courtesy of a new Mark Andy Evolution press and a partnership with ABG, the company will delve into smart label manufacturing. Mark Davenport, whose family owned Mid-South RFID, will head the operation.

John Abbott has built key partnerships with many material suppliers.

Mid-South initially served as one of the pioneers in the RFID labeling space. Davenport also comes with more than 25 years of industry knowledge and experience.

“We’re going to do whatever we need to do to be successful in this market,” comments John. “We’re fortunate with our Mark Andy presses and we have ABG for insertion. We’re stoked about this new plant that is opening up in August. We leased the space, and we’re just doing the sign-off on the new equipment. Soon we’ll be up and running.”

The decision for the new plant was based on industry trends and increasing customer demand for RFID labeling. The space, which will be operational in August, is 20,000 square feet.

“We also have a 20″ Rotoflex going into that plant, as well, where we’ll convert some blank labels and do some rewinding,” notes Stormer. “We have some incredibly talented people out there, too.”

Industry stewards

John and his dedicated team have emerged as leaders in the label converting industry. In addition to partnering with numerous other converters, John has been a fixture at TLMI – helping the industry grow well into the future.

“One of the most valuable things that John ever taught me was to partner with other converters,” says Stormer. “Let them know that if they need something we’re here for them. Even if it’s something as simple as a perf blade or some cores or boxes, we’re here to see them win, as well.”

Abbott Label has identified numerous industry trends and tailored its business to meet that demand. From digital printing to sustainability and workforce, the converter has positioned its business for continued success.

“Sustainability is a topic that comes up frequently, and as experts we explore how we can make the job more sustainable,” states Thomas Brown. “We work with our vendors to try to accomplish that. That helps our customers go into a warehouse and say, ‘We have some different options. I know you’ve been using this label for 20 years, but I have something comparable that will help you save on your carbon footprint’.”

From a workforce perspective, John has focused on training and retention.

“We’ll have what I call file cabinet meetings, where I’ll stand there at the file cabinet to hold a meeting to teach people. I went out back in production just the other day and shut down production on our first and second shift for 30 minutes, which I can promise you cost me a lot of money,” he explains. “But it was important to work with my team and go over processes and procedures. And I got compliments that it meant a lot to them because we’re trying new things to improve the business.

“It’s all about trying to teach people and teach the younger generation, serving as a role model and a mentor for them. That’s what drives our passion for this business,” John says.

“We just switched back to ADP for the benefits we have here,” he adds. “We match dollar for dollar up to 6% on their 401K, and we cover 95% of their health with Blue Cross. I take care of my people, and in return they take care of me. I never would’ve thought that we’d have 250 people knocking on $100 million. I never would’ve thought that, but here we are. We’re truly blessed.”

John has also prioritized his relationship building, which has fostered growth for both the Abbott Label team and his customers. “It’s those great relationships we forge, with not just vendors but all of our customers, and that’s what’s gotten the Abbott name where it is today,” concludes Wier.