www.repacorp.com
www.repacorp.com

Repacorp has grown from a small two-man operation to a multi-million dollar organization, one that has emphasized acquisitions and the newest technologies to continue its upward trajectory.

The company, which was established in 1974, originated as a firm representing printing corporations, or Rep-a-corp. Jim Adams, founder, worked for Avery Tape & Label, and he was allowed to take the business Avery could not handle. That is when Jim and Patty Adams started Repacorp.

Today, the Heinl family presides over Repacorp. Rick Heinl, CEO, was hired as a salesman in 1978. At that time, the company generated sales of approximately $180,000. Heinl played a significant role in Repacorp’s growth, as the company now boasts 225 employees across four manufacturing facilities in Ohio, Wisconsion and Arizona.

“In 1988, I became 50% owner and hired my brother, Tony Heinl, after he graduated from Ohio State University,” says Rick. “I made Tony an account representative over the Columbus, OH territory. In 1990, I bought Jim and Patty Adams out, becoming sole owner. As Repacorp grew, I asked Tony to move to Tipp City to be my sales manager, and then my vice president in 1992.”

It was not long after that Repacorp shifted from distributor to manufacturer. Rick grew increasingly dissatisfied with long supplier lead times and poor quality. “In 1993, I decided I could do the jobs better myself and purchased a Markem LP8400, with no one to run it and nowhere to put it. That’s when Repacorp became a manufacturer. In 1994, I purchased a 10,000 square-foot building and added two Allied presses. I kept adding presses and soon ran out of room, so I started construction of a new building. In 1997, Repacorp moved into its new facility and current headquarters in Tipp City, OH.”

Repacorp’s history with expansion and acquisitions began in 1999. Repacorp purchased the OEI plant in Milwaukee, WI, which added additional presses and distribution. In 2000, Repacorp subsequently moved the Wisconsin facility into its current location in Franklin, WI, cutting taxes from $42,000 per year to $13,000 per year. In 2002, Repacorp purchased Sierra Screen Printing in Phoenix, AZ, bringing a West Coast presence to its distributors. In 2003, the company moved Sierra into a larger 30,000 square-foot location. Repacorp also purchased a smaller label company in Wisconsin and moved it into its Wisconsin and Arizona facilities.

In 2010, Repacorp purchased Aladdin Label in Wisconsin and added an addition onto its Ohio facility, bringing it to 56,000 square feet. Most recently, Repacorp acquired T&T Graphics, which will continue to service its customers as T& T Graphics, Inc., a Repacorp Company. The ownership of T&T Graphics selected Repacorp due to both companies having similar cultures and philosophies needed to integrate customers and employees. Repacorp’s strength in digital and flexographic printing is a natural expansion of what can be provided to T&T Graphics’ existing customers.

“When considering acquisitions, Repacorp’s philosophy is to see if the acquisition would advance our capabilities, expand capacity, adopt new technologies, or help us be more efficient,” explains Rick. “The industry is continuing to consolidate. Larger companies are eating up all the smaller companies. I consider Repacorp a mid-sized company now. If we don’t consider acquisitions and invest in new technologies and markets, we won’t continue to grow and we will fall behind.”

In addition to Rick and Tony, Repacorp has a dedicated management team that has been an integral part of the company’s ascension. Rochelle Heinl, Rick’s daughter, serves as vice president, while Andy Heinl, Rick’s son, functions as vice president of digital printing. Meanwhile, Rick’s son, Nick Heinl, serves as vice president of shrink sleeve labeling. Aaron Dumke is the vice president of flexible packaging, while Monica Davis is also  vice president, overseeing customer service.

This team has worked diligently to help Repacorp become one of the most technology-rich converters around. Technology has always been a big part of the company’s endeavors, having built its first RFID press in 2005. Then in 2006, Repacorp started manufacturing RFID labels and tags in its old Ohio facility at 247 North Fourth Street.

In addition to RFID labeling, Repacorp was an early adopter of digital printing. In 2008, the company installed its first digital Jetrion 4000 press and a laser cutting system in Ohio. In 2009, Repacorp doubled down by installing a second digital press and a newer laser cutter. The company’s growth necessitated several other moves, too.

“We moved our RFID presses into the new addition and built a clean room for our digital presses,” comments Rick. “In 2011, we remodeled and expanded our Wisconsin facility, bringing it to 75,000 square feet. With the new addition, we were able to install a Jetrion 4900 digital press with inline laser cutting in Wisconsin. Then in 2012, we added 18,500 square feet to our Ohio facility, bringing it to a total of 75,000 square feet. I purchased another digital press, a Jetrion 4900 with inline laser cutting, for our Ohio facility and a digital Jetrion 4830 for our Arizona facility. I also bought a 20″ CTC turret, a 13″ flexo press, and a 20″, 10-color flexo press.”

With Repacorp growing, Rick named his brother, Tony, president in 2013. With the appointment, Rick moved into the CEO role. “At that time, we also upgraded our Ohio variable inline inkjet capabilities with a Domino K600i press and purchased an RFID press upgrade and 13″ turret. I purchased 7.39 acres of land for future expansion behind our headquarters in Tipp City, as well.”

Digital printing has played a significant role in Repacorp’s success. Repacorp parlayed its early success with the format into multiple new printing assets. In 2014, the company added a Screen Truepress to upgrade its wide-format printing in Arizona, as well as a second RFID press in Ohio. Rick returned to Domino for a K600i black variable press in Wisconsin. In 2015, Repacorp then installed its third RFID press in Ohio, and a 4-color process digital press for long label runs with multiple versions in Wisconsin. 
More recently, Repacorp turned to HP to boost its digital departments. In 2016, Repacorp purchased an HP Indigo 6800 for shrink wrap in the Ohio facility, followed in 2019 by an HP Indigo 20000 in Wisconsin for digital flexible packaging capabilities. Repacorp’s digital departments are quite versatile, too, as they also boast a Xeikon PX3000 digital press, which replaced an older digital Jetrion press. In 2020, the company added a pouching line to complement flexible packing in Wisconsin with quicker turnaround times.

“Every time we saw a growth opportunity, whether it was new technology, such as RFID or digital printing, or product, like shrink sleeves or zippered pouches, we bought equipment and started a new division to serve that market – usually without any business,” states Rick. “Through advertising and marketing, we ultimately grow that division or market for our ROI.”

Flexography has also contributed to Repacorp’s success in flexible packaging. In 2018, the company installed a 22″ Mark Andy Performance Series P7, 10-color press, and a Rotoflex VLI 600 slitter rewinder in its Wisconsin facility. Jetrion, Domino, Mark Andy, Nilpeter, Rawson Print Co., Rotopress, RotoMetrics, HP, and Wilson Manufacturing have all been key equipment partners for Repacorp. On the material side, Repacorp has reaped the benefits of teaming with suppliers like Kanzaki, Avery Dennison, Mactac, and UPM Raflatac.

“Repacorp sells to all markets,” says Rick. “Our distributors are in all markets like healthcare, retail, warehousing and so on. We provide the capabilities and services to make them successful in serving their markets and customers.

“A lot of companies do not offer all of the product solutions Repacorp does,” adds Rick. “It is very expensive to get into all of these areas, and we have been very fortunate to have been able to expand to serve our distributors and grow the company. I think our suite of solutions provides the distributor with a ‘one-stop shop’ for all of their labeling and packaging needs.”

The same commitment and dedication that has led to exponential growth for Repacorp also elevated the company during the challenges of the past 18 months. “I am very proud of my company,” says Rick. “Our employees came to work during the pandemic and worked overtime. As an essential company that produces healthcare, pharma, and shipping labels, we stayed open. Like anyone else, our employees were scared to come to work, but they worked through it. Our culture is our employees. Our employees cared about our customers, cared about their work, and cared that end users needed our product.”

Repacorp’s storied history is matched by equal excitement for the future. “Repacorp will continue to grow and invest so that resellers can sell more products and expand into new markets,” notes Rick. “We pride ourselves in knowledgeable customer service, and we have collected so much knowledge and experience over the years. We are more than happy to share that experience to help our resellers. We answer the phone, and you speak with a real person instead of an automated recording.”