What Color Ink does

Color Ink is a family-owned commercial printing and packaging manufacturer headquartered in Sussex, Wisconsin, founded in 1984 by Jim Meissner. The company operates a 105,000 sq. ft. two-building facility on the original Meissner family dairy farm, equipped with hybrid digital and offset production capabilities including a UV/LED 40" Komori lithographic press, Highcon Euclid laser die cutting, MGI JetVarnish with iFoil digital embellishment, and Esko ArtiosCAD 3D rendering for prototype visualization. Full in-house pre-press, press, bindery, mailing/fulfillment, and warehousing operations allow turn-key execution from concept through nationwide distribution.

The product portfolio spans folding carton packaging, point-of-purchase displays, retail signage, branded merchandise, influencer marketing kits, and direct mail campaigns, serving verticals including consumer packaged goods, food and beverage, health and beauty, luxury goods, household products, and CBD/cannabis (with child-resistant designs). Notable customers include Disney Pixar, Roush, Versace, and MadaLuxe Group. Pricing is quote-based and project-driven, with revenue generated from one-time custom print production contracts and adjacent fulfillment services.

The go-to-market is sales-led through website quote requests and dedicated representatives, supported by content marketing on industry trends including AI/automation, sustainability, and folding carton design. The firm holds EcoVadis environmental certification, SQF food safety certification, and ASI industry membership, and completed a tuck-in acquisition of JR Dimensional on 2022-12-13 to extend dimensional display capabilities.

Name

Color Ink

Legal name

Color Ink

Website

https://colorink.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Color Ink is a family-owned commercial printer and packaging manufacturer in Sussex, WI, producing folding cartons, POP displays, retail signage, branded merchandise, and influencer kits for consumer brands across multiple verticals from a 105,000 sq. ft. in-house facility.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Commercial Printing and Packaging Manufacturing

NAICS

Commercial Printing (except Screen and Books) (323111), Printing (32311), Converted Paper Product Manufacturing (3222), Printing and Related Support Activities (3231)

SIC

Commercial Printing (2750), Converted Paper & Paperboard Prods (No Contaners/Boxes) (2670)

akta.pro primary industry

Folding Carton & Paperboard Packaging Printing (IMALAKAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Large-Format & Specialty Printing (Signage, Posters, Displays) (MPAJALAD), Digital & Specialty Inks (Inkjet, UV, Conductive) (IMAEAHAI), Sustainable Labels, Adhesives & Inks (Wash-Off Labels, De-inkable Inks, Low-VOC) (IMALAMAJ), Custom Printing & Decoration Services (Screen Print, Embroidery, Laser) (BPAFAMAL)

Keywords

• Commercial printing services
• Folding carton packaging
• Point-of-purchase displays
• Retail signage printing
• Branded merchandise

Headquarters

HQ city

Sussex

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Print Production Services: Custom print production including packaging, POP displays, retail signage, and branded merchandise. Project-based pricing with quote requests. Turn-key services from design through assembly and shipping.
2. Fulfillment Services: Mailing and fulfillment operations with warehousing space for nationwide distribution and long-term storage of finished goods.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Color Ink is an experiential communications company that designs and manufactures custom commercial print products including folding carton packaging, point-of-purchase displays, retail signage, branded merchandise, influencer kits, and direct mail pieces. All production is performed in-house across pre-press, digital and offset printing, laser cutting, digital embellishment, bindery, mailing, fulfillment, and warehousing. Customers are primarily consumer brands, retailers, and product marketers seeking turn-key printing solutions from concept through nationwide distribution.

Product overview

Color Ink is an experiential communications company offering a comprehensive suite of printing and manufacturing services. The core offerings include Packaging Services (folding carton packaging with structural design and embellishments), P.O.P. Displays (3D point-of-purchase displays), Retail Signage (in-store graphics), Branded Merchandise (promotional products), Influencer Kits (turn-key marketing kits), Direct Mail (personalized campaigns), and Folding Carton Manufacturing (end-to-end production). These services are unified by the company's state-of-the-art facility featuring full pre-press, sheet-fed and wide-format digital presses, complete bindery, mailing and fulfillment operations, and warehousing capabilities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Packaging Services Folding carton packaging design and production with specialty coatings, textured varnishes, metallic foil finishes, and unique structural shapes for beverage, food, candy, luxury brands, cosmetics, household goods, nutraceuticals, and CBD/cannabis markets.
• Point-of-Purchase (P.O.P.) Displays Custom 3D POP displays built from eco-friendly corrugated materials, with designs engineered to ship within UPS and FedEx regulations and assemble easily into finished dimensional products for retail environments.
• Retail Signage In-store retail graphics and signage including shelf talkers, shelf disruptors, wall and window graphics, floor graphics, window clings, counter mats, posters, banners, blockout and backlit signs, and pallet wraps for nationwide retail campaigns.
• Branded Merchandise Custom-branded promotional products across categories including apparel, bags and totes, drinkware, eco-friendly products, event and tradeshow items, food and beverage gifts, health and wellness items, outdoor and sports, tech items, and writing instruments.
• Influencer Kits Turn-key influencer marketing kits covering design, printing, packaging, custom structural design, and fulfillment, delivered as branded product sample sets for influencers and brand ambassadors.
• Direct Mail Direct mail campaigns supported by USPS postage incentives, digital embellishments, personalization, and variable data printing for targeted marketing with mailing and fulfillment integration.
• Folding Carton Manufacturing End-to-end folding carton production including paperboard sourcing, structural design, printing, embellishment (foil, tactile UV, embossing), die-cutting, and conversion into finished packages in TTAB, RTE, and STE styles.

Named customers4 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature8 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Lithographics Inc. Custom packaging and commercial printing company offering folding cartons, displays, and marketing collateral. Direct competitor in the CPG and retail packaging space with a similar mid-market profile.
• Meyers Printing Companies: Mid-market commercial printer offering packaging, marketing collateral, signage, and fulfillment services. Directly comparable in size, service mix, and target customer profile to Color Ink's experiential communications offering.
• Lahlouh Inc. Commercial printing, packaging, and fulfillment provider serving enterprise and mid-market clients in the Western U.S. Closely comparable in turn-key print + fulfillment model, though operating from a different region.
• The Henson Company: Mid-market commercial printer specializing in direct mail, packaging, and brand marketing collateral. Comparable in service breadth, customer type, and reliance on digital + offset hybrid production.
• HALO (HALO Branded Solutions): Large promotional products and branded merchandise distributor. Comparable to Color Ink's branded merchandise and influencer kit lines, though HALO operates a distribution/aggregator model rather than in-house production.

Broad incumbents

• Packaging Corporation of America: Large publicly traded folding carton and corrugated packaging manufacturer. Competes with Color Ink in paperboard packaging but at industrial scale, serving national CPG accounts with a much broader footprint.
• Graphic Packaging Holding Company: Major global folding carton producer serving consumer goods and food/beverage brands. Overlaps directly with Color Ink's folding-carton packaging business but operates at substantially greater scale and via standardized high-volume runs.
• WestRock Company: Diversified paper and packaging giant producing folding cartons, corrugated, and POP displays. Comparable in product scope to Color Ink's packaging and POP offerings, with broader geographic reach and integrated pulp/paper supply.

Regional players

• Fey Printing: Upper Midwest commercial printer with packaging, labels, and direct mail capabilities. Comparable product mix to Color Ink but smaller scale and regionally focused, overlapping in the Wisconsin/Minnesota corridor.

Emerging players

• 4over Inc. Online commercial print marketplace offering trade printing across commercial, packaging, and signage categories. Not a direct competitor for high-touch embellishment work, but a threat for the more commoditized print jobs in Color Ink's mix.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Color Ink