Learn from the Past
The year of America’s Bicentennial, the average cost of gas was $.59/gallon and Dan Irmen worked for a local poly bag manufacturer. In 1976, Dan lived on a farm when he started his own business, Rapid Packaging, selling poly bags and buying stock bags that he stored in his barn.
Through the years, Dan continually expanded his product lines and bought up the Connor Company in 1981, whose owner had recently passed away, in order to grow his company more quickly. By 1988, Rapid Packaging annual sales grew to $2 million. That same year, Dan was looking to sell the Connor Company and reached out to current Creative Carton owner, Mike Sime, as a good fit to buy Rapid Packaging. November 1, 1988, the acquisition was finalized. Dan stayed with Rapid Packaging for a little over a year then retired to Las Vegas.
Rapid Packaging and Creative Carton operated in two separate buildings under two different ownership structures. The strategy was Creative Carton was a small quantity, quick-delivery corrugated box manufacturer and the Rapid Packaging product line would complement their offerings with the added sales force to help grow each company.
By 1997, Mike Sime had bought out all of the partners and owned 100% of Rapid Packaging and 90% of Creative Carton, but the companies never merged. In 2008, Mike sold Creative Carton and worked exclusively for Rapid Packaging. Phil Milne bought into Rapid Packaging and became co-owner June 30, 2010.
Live in the Present
Over the years, Rapid Packaging has grown our product offerings to include a comprehensive line of packaging supplies and materials, end-of-line automated packaging equipment, and a team of equipment specialists to provide turnkey integrated system solutions and service. In recent years, the implementation of a strategic planning processes has skyrocketed Rapid’s success and has doubled their annual sales over the past four years.
September 4, 2013, Rapid Packaging acquired Berg Bag Company to further expand our offerings as one of the country’s leading importers and suppliers of FIBC/Bulk Bags and Polypropylene (PP) Woven Bags. While Rapid Packaging was importing approximately 15% of our product line, Berg Bag was importing around 85% so getting the critical mass of turning containers helped us to become better importers, build supplier relationships, and, in turn, become more cost-effective and efficient for our customers.
Rapid packaging warehouse copy2016 marks the 40th anniversary for Rapid Packaging and vying for the 100 Best Companies to work for in Minnesota. Today, Rapid Packaging is the Midwest’s preferred resource for packaging materials and end-of-line equipment automation designed to increase throughput and maximize profitability. We partner with the world’s premier manufacturers to be the leading low-cost supplier while delivering the highest level of service. Our packaging specialists are dedicated to improving your process inefficiencies so you can gain maximum return on your investment and be well-informed and educated throughout the process.
