March 12, 2026
Why vetting suppliers before signing on the dotted line is vital
Suppliers not offering speedy and reliable customer service—it’s a problem that has existed for centuries, and, yes, it can be a problem in boxmaking. On both the manufacturing and supply side, partnerships are sometimes not as strong as they could be.
High Stakes
As usual, time and a lot of money are at stake when a supplier doesn’t live up to their full potential.
Anyone new to the paper-based packaging industry might think box executives are griping over nothing. After all, if you’re not getting good customer service, you find a new supplier.
But, of course, as anyone steeped in the industry knows, it’s not quite that easy. Jerry Frisch, CEO of Wasatch Container, had new equipment installed in 2024: a rotary die cutter, an air handling system, a full line conveyor system, and an ink kitchen.
If something goes wrong and his customer service is lacking, it isn’t like Frisch or any other boxmaker can simply trade in his investment for new equipment with a company that offers better customer service. Frisch spent millions of dollars on his equipment. It also took years of preparation before retrofitting his plant with new equipment.
It often takes years, but in Frisch’s case, he says that he ordered a lot of his equipment right before COVID-19 hit in 2020, and that really dragged things out. “The salespeople we worked with were good,” he says. “They were technical, understood their machines, and understood our workflow and objectives. We wanted to modernize and upgrade our graphics and boxmaking capabilities. They understood that. Orders were placed, down payments were accepted, and then COVID hit. Supply chain issues, parts shortages, electrical components delayed—all of the COVID-related disruptions.”
But even post-COVID, you can still expect the buying process to typically take at least a year, says Jeff Pallini, the CEO of Fosber America. “The sales cycle for buying a new complete corrugator generally starts with a client meeting followed by providing drawings and specifications. That can take two or three months,” he says. “Then if the customer chooses to move forward with the order, the machine is built, shipped, and installed, which takes another eight to nine months. Finally, you have to spend a couple months commissioning and training all of the crews until they’re comfortable running it.
“So it’s about a yearlong process from ‘Hey, can you come and see me, I think I need a new machine’ to ‘It’s running, and everybody’s happy.’”
So no executive wants to discover that after all of that, the customer service is subpar—or worse, the machine isn’t quite what you needed. “Therefore, the evaluation process is critical to selecting the best supplier and machine for their specific needs,” Pallini says.
Plus, time is money, and so owners like Frisch expect—and need—suppliers who can offer customer service as fast as humanly possible, if not faster. “When you’re responsible for multimillion-dollar investments, you need answers immediately,” Frisch says.
Pallini agrees. As he puts it, many manufacturers buy a machine that will be in production for 15 to 20 years. He says he encourages manufacturers to really do their homework and ask not only about a machine’s capability and price but also service, parts, training, obsolescence plans, and all things that factor into the cost of ownership. But do more than ask the supplier questions, he encourages. Ask your peers who and what they like working with, get referrals.
As Pallini says he would tell anyone, “You’re going to be stuck with us for a while. We have to like each other and work together for a long time. So let’s make sure we’re the right fit.”
That’s the case for whatever supplier you work with, of course, which is why Pallini says it’s so important to really do your research, especially if you run an independent company that simply can’t afford to make a multimillion-dollar mistake.
Why Some Suppliers Don’t Rise to the Occasion
First of all, obviously, there are plenty of suppliers around the globe with stellar reputations for impeccable service. But when suppliers often seem to stumble is when they are based halfway around the world, in another time zone from their North American company clients, says Martin Suhr, operations manager at Wasatch Container.
“When a guy like me is responsible for Jerry Frisch’s multimillion-dollar investment and getting it going, I need an answer right now,” Suhr says. “We have to be nimble, or we’ll get gobbled up.”
So if Suhr reaches out to a supplier whose main contact is several time zones away and is currently deep in REM sleep, that can become an issue.
Pallini says he understands why boxmakers often use suppliers not based in North America. “Some of the foreign-based companies have some really good technology,” he says.
But Pallini adds that some of those foreign-owned companies lack the infrastructure in North America to support their customers.
There are other issues, however. It isn’t only a matter of international companies needing to improve their North American footprint. Some suppliers have become too complacent, whether due to age or simply not innovating, according to Greg Tucker, chairman and CEO of Bay Cities. “I would say many of the people in this business, especially now as the old guard is aging out, don’t have a clue as to what winning is, in our industry,” he says.
He says that most of his suppliers do give quality service, but typically, they are “not willing to go above and beyond—that is, unless you pay them tons of money.”
In other words, Tucker feels that most suppliers offer good service, but not exceptional service.
Frisch adds that the complacency problem is a challenge for boxmakers as well. “We all got fat, dumb, and happy during COVID,” he says.
Getting Better Customer Service
It’s a word you hear a lot in business circles, maybe to the point of ad nauseum, but it’s important: relationships.
Suhr says his best suppliers are ones he has relationships with and considers friends, or at least “almost at a friend-level relationship.” It’s then when you can usually expect a return call to be answered quickly, he adds.
While boxmaking may seem as if it’s all about the machines, Frisch says that really, “It’s a people business. It’s a people business, and we need our suppliers’ support.”
Tucker echoes that, saying that if he were advising suppliers, he would tell them to get their representatives “who are changing out the old guys to study and understand our business and their own. Then work on building relationships that are credible and long-lasting.”
Pallini agrees. But he also says that if you are considering a new supplier, you should start with your existing relationships. He suggests leaning on relationships with other manufacturers and soliciting their opinions on companies you plan to purchase equipment from, before you start working with a new, untested (for you) piece of machinery.
“Just to put in a little plug for AICC, the way the organization is set up, you have access to a variety of ways to get help where you need it,” Pallini says. “AICC offers their own training. They have CEO roundtables, conferences with vendors present. Whatever you’re buying, most likely somebody you know already has it and is running it.”
So Pallini suggests picking up the phone and asking your peers what they think of a machine that you’re looking at—and possibly even jump on a plane and go out and look at it. “Once you’ve developed a network you can trust, you should use it. Nobody’s going to give you bad advice if they want to remain your friend,” Pallini says. “So my advice is, take two or three months and really vet what you’re considering and dig in deep.”
After all, the last thing you want to do is purchase and use equipment you don’t understand—with a supplier that can’t help you.
Geoff Williams is a journalist and writer based in Loveland, Ohio.
