August 29, 2025
Company: Volk Packaging Corp.
Established: 1967
Joined AICC: 1977
Phone: 800-341-0208
Website: www.volkboxes.com
Headquarters: Biddeford, Maine
President and CEO: Derek Volk
In the heart of Biddeford, Maine, where industry and community intertwine, Volk Packaging Corporation (VPC) is a testament to enduring values and unwavering dedication.
More than just a manufacturer of corrugated boxes, VPC has guided the company’s every decision, investment, and interaction to ensure service, quality, and reliability. This spirit, which has been the cultural cornerstone of VPC for over five decades, is best expressed in the motto of its founder, Benjamin Volk: “Our customers are our bread and butter.”
VPC began in 1967 when Benjamin and his son, Kenneth, launched their corrugated box plant as the first tenant in the new Biddeford Industrial Park. Their choice of Maine, driven by the thriving textile industry of the era with its large mills, underscored a strategic vision for entrepreneurial growth. Box production commenced in 1968 with five employees, two of whom would remain with the company for three decades.
The family commitment deepened in 1974 when Douglas Volk, Kenneth’s brother, moved from Massachusetts to Maine. A couple of years later, the box plant nearly doubled in size from 20,000 to 33,000 square feet and its workforce to approximately 25 individuals.
A pivotal transition at VPC occurred in 1986 when Benjamin retired, entrusting the presidency to Kenneth, with Douglas assuming the role of vice president. This leadership change was accompanied by another expansion, as production square footage grew to 65,000 square feet.
As the corrugated industry evolved, presenting increasing competition from integrated companies, VPC made a bold and strategic move in 1991. With Abbott-Action, Romanow Container (now SupplyOne), R&R Corrugated Packaging Group, and Valley Container, VPC helped launch Newcorr Packaging, a sheet feeder in Northborough, Massachusetts. As one of the few sheet feeders on the East Coast boasting two corrugators, Newcorr secured VPC’s access to high-quality board to ensure consistent product quality and service. In addition, Newcorr has provided VPC an advantage over competitors, which can be constrained by single-machine bottlenecks and delays.
In 1992, Derek Volk, Kenneth’s son, entered into the family business full time. He became vice president of sales five years later, injecting new energy and perspectives into the company.
A significant physical expansion occurred in 1997 when VPC acquired property across the street in the Biddeford Industrial Park, paving the way for the current 141,000 square feet of state-of-the-art corrugated packaging production. The facility reflects VPC’s commitment to upgrading machinery and technology and its early dedication to sustainability and environmental stewardship. Investments included a Hycorr rotary die cutter, scrap recycling system, heat recapture technology, and the installation of 80,000 square feet of rooftop solar panels. It was only a couple of years later in 1999 when VPC installed a Serenco jumbo flexo with a die cut station.
Leadership transitions continued into the new millennium. Kenneth retired in 2007 but maintains connections with many longstanding customers. Douglas, who became CEO in 2007, retired in 2019 and has since become a successful author.
Derek is also a writer. He coauthored a book with his son, Dylan, titled Chasing the Rabbit: A Dad’s Life Raising a Son on the Spectrum, about their challenges and triumphs with autism. Derek’s second book, titled Go for Third: Leadership Lessons From the Softball Field to the Workplace, explores the leadership principles he gained on the field that can apply to business and beyond. (For more information, visit www.goforthird.com.)
Today, Derek, as president and CEO, is a hands-on owner-operator, steering this respected third-generation family business. Under his leadership, VPC now employs nearly 120 individuals, many of whom have dedicated decades of their professional lives to the company.
“An amazing 10% of our workforce have spent at least half of their life working at the company, with our senior employee, Michelle Morin, marking 44 years of service in 2025,” Derek says. “She is our sixth employee who has spent at least 40 years with us and will break our record for longevity in August.”
Despite the profound challenges posed by the Great Recession and the COVID-19 pandemic, 2020 marked Volk Packaging’s 12th consecutive year of growth, a streak that continued to 15 years before a slight dip in 2023, a testament to its resilience, adaptability, and the enduring demand for its products.
The human element is a cornerstone of VPC’s success. Its family-owned and family-operated structure fosters an environment of loyalty and dedication. With over 120 employees, including 14 sales representatives boasting a combined 200-plus years of experience, four designers, and six customer service representatives, the depth of expertise is immense. VPC takes pride in the longevity of its workforce, a loyalty they believe directly translates into superior quality for its customers. As of June 2025, VPC associates collectively boast over 1,000 years of service, with 21% of employees having worked at VPC for over 20 years, 48% for more than 10 years, and 60% for over five years.
“My father always told me to never forget that the employees work with you, not for you, and that we all work for the customer,” Derek says.
VPC serves a diverse base of over 1,000 manufacturers, distributors, and producers throughout New England. This broad customer base is a strategic benefit because no single customer accounts for more than 6.5% of their business. In addition, this diversification ensures that no single large order can monopolize VPC’s machinery, guaranteeing consistent and timely service for all clients.
VPC’s design department works with customers, creating custom packaging solutions that prioritize product protection while remaining sustainable, affordable, and aesthetically appealing. For businesses requiring standard solutions, VPC also offers a comprehensive packaging supply program with over 20,000 products.
VPC’s commitment extends beyond its operational walls to giving back to its employees and the wider community. This dedication manifests through significant charitable donations, team-building activities for employees (including their biannual Corrugated Olympics) and their families, and active volunteering in community programs. Its values are clearly represented in VPC’s acronym CARE: customer-centric, accountability, respect, and excellence.
VPC supports veterans and active-duty service members through several Maine-based veteran organizations. Among them are:
- Maine Veterans Project, which is dedicated to reducing veteran suicide.
- Travis Mills Project, which provides a fully accessible retreat for combat-wounded, disabled veterans, and their families, having served 1,945 families from 46 states.
- House in the Woods, founded by Gold Star parents, which uses the Maine outdoors to help military families process shared experiences of service and sacrifice.
Notably, VPC donates printed custom boxes to every veterans home in New England so the families have respectful moving boxes when a vet passes. Additionally, VPC has donated almost $50,000 to its local Veterans of Foreign Wars through the Volk Packaging Heroes Wall. (For more information on how to honor a hero, visit www.volkboxes.com/heroes-wall.) Although these are not the only organizations VPC and its employees contribute to, they represent the largest and most direct support.
Sustainability has also been integral to VPC’s operations for its 58 years. It has been recapturing and recycling corrugated materials as well as recycling water and plastic products used in manufacturing and exclusively using nonchemical water-based inks for printing. In 2024 alone, Volk Packaging’s recycling efforts saved over 15,000 trees by diverting more than 600 tons of corrugated waste. It also has earned the Sustainable Forestry Initiative and the Forest Stewardship Council certifications and offers Supershield, an environmentally responsible, 100% Food and Drug Administration- and Canadian Food Inspection Agency-approved alternative to wax-coated corrugated.
In 2021, Derek expanded VPC’s entrepreneurial footprint by founding Volk Paxit, a spin-off born from VPC’s role in repackaging medical supplies during the COVID-19 pandemic. Recognizing a broader market need, Volk Paxit now offers repackaging, prepackaging, kitting, and fulfillment services, assisting businesses grappling with labor and logistics challenges. A year later, Volk Paxit relocated to a spacious, newly renovated warehouse in Sanford, Maine, providing ample room for inventory management, processing, and shipping.
Volk Paxit has invested in technologies for e-commerce integration and maintains a staff of around 20 full-time workers. This expansion into Sanford is projected to create up to 20 additional hires, with much of the 95,000-square-foot facility serving as a warehouse for VPC, and potential for manufacturing overflow.
“We have been thrilled by the growth of Volk Paxit and the ability to provide our customers with even better service through what we can do at Paxit,” Derek says.
VPC’s commitment to growth and efficiency is exemplified by its significant investments in cutting-edge machinery. Most recently, an additional $8 million investment has further enhanced its capacity and capabilities. This includes the acquisition of a large 4-color flexo folder-gluer and a new rotary die cutter with 5-color printing, including inside print functions; both machines come from Haire Group’s APSTAR HG2 line. They are designed to expedite customer service and meet the soaring demand across New England, upstate New York, and eastern Canada. The flexo folder-gluer touts advanced features such as a die cut station, scrap management, and a dual servo-slotter. Both of the new machines were installed in 2024.
VPC is also installing a high-speed, efficient production line featuring equipment from WSA, Ducker-Ringwood, A.G. Stacker, and Inspire Automation, incorporating conveyors, transfer carts, robotics, bundlers, double bundlers, unitizers, a bundle breaker, and a stretch wrapper. VPC’s journey is a testament to steady, consistent growth.
Beyond the impressive business metrics, VPC stands out for its strong faith-based approach, reflected in a mission statement that reads more like a community than a corporate directive: “Led by God, managed by a family that cares for our customers, co-workers, and community. Making boxes while making a difference.” This unwavering commitment to its values has seen them through challenging times, including the period of severe economic downturn after 9/11 that nearly forced a merger. VPC’s decision to remain independent, guided by faith, has since led to remarkable growth and job creation. This integrity is recognized externally; in 2021, VPC was named one of the “Best Places to Work in Maine” for the second time. This is one of many business and community awards VPC and the Volk family have received.
In essence, VPC is more than just a box manufacturer; it’s a living embodiment of its founder’s motto. As Derek likes to say, “If I die and my obituary says, ‘He sold a lot of boxes,’ I’ll be disappointed.”
It’s built on the enduring principles of customer-centricity, technological innovation, community support, and a commitment to its employees. As it looks to the future, VPC is poised for continued success, driven by its rich history, its cutting-edge machinery, its deep community ties, and an unwavering dedication to its “bread and butter”—its valued customers.
Therese Umerlik is managing editor of BoxScore.
