Nichols Paper Products Company

What Nichols Paper Products Company does

Nichols Paper Products Company is a privately held, family-owned contract manufacturer based in Nichols, Wisconsin that provides flexographic printing, adhesive lamination, waxing, creping, slitting, rewinding, sheeting, coating, and roll restoration services on paper, film, and nonwoven substrates. Founded in 1951 as a paper converting plant and acquired by Bernie Dahlin in December 1982 for $250,000, the company has grown from 25,000 to over 100,000 square feet of manufacturing space and currently operates with a crew of approximately 40 employees, including the founder and his two sons in the CFO and VP of Sales roles. Its service portfolio spans core flexographic printing (1-4 colors up to 72 inches and 1-2 colors up to 100 inches) plus value-added converting such as wet and dry wax, wax lamination, crepe paper processing, multi-ply lamination, and contour fiberboard forms, with flexographic printing representing 60-70% of revenue.

The business model is built on custom project quoting rather than standard pricing, with sales executed through a combination of dedicated direct account executives and a packaging distributor network across the United States and Canada. Customers include CNC machine shops, roller manufacturers, metal fabricators, eCommerce retailers seeking branded tissue and Kraft paper for unboxing experiences, furniture and display manufacturers, floral packaging buyers, and end markets ranging from healthcare to automobile to mortuary. The company emphasizes a consultative approach that guides customers from initial concept and trial runs through short and long production runs, treating each project as a customized solution rather than a catalog SKU.

Geographically, Nichols Paper serves buyers in all 50 US states, Canada, Mexico, Europe, and the Middle East. The company is privately held with no external investors, no subsidiaries, and no disclosed revenue, and operates as an independent specialty converter differentiated by experienced operators, willingness to handle challenging substrates, and integrated printing-plus-converting capabilities under one roof.

Name

Nichols Paper Products Company

Legal name

Nichols Paper Products Company, Inc.

Website

https://nicholspaper.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1982

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Nichols Paper Products Company is a privately held Wisconsin-based contract manufacturer offering flexographic printing, lamination, waxing, creping, slitting, and sheeting services on paper, film, and nonwoven substrates for industrial manufacturers, eCommerce retailers, and packaging distributors across North America, Europe, and the Middle East.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Contract Manufacturing - Flexographic Printing and Paper Converting

NAICS

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

SIC

Commercial Printing (2750)

akta.pro primary industry

Flexible Packaging Printing (Film/Poly/Paper Print) (IMALAKAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Folding Carton & Paperboard Packaging Printing (IMALAKAH)

Keywords

• Flexographic printing services
• Custom packaging converting
• Adhesive lamination solutions
• Industrial packaging materials
• Paper converting services

Headquarters

HQ city

Nichols

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Custom Printing Services: Flexographic printing services on paper, film, and nonwoven substrates. Projects are custom quoted based on specifications, substrates, colors, and run length. Printing currently makes up 60-70% of their business.
2. Lamination Services: Adhesive laminating solutions bonding substrates together for strength and protective qualities. Custom quoted based on substrate types, lamination width, and number of plies.
3. Waxing Services: Wet wax, dry wax, and wax lamination services for moisture resistance. Custom quoted based on paper type, basis weight, and wax coverage.
4. Crepe Paper Products: Scratch resistant creped Kraft paper in 30lb, 40lb, and 60lb weights. Available in custom sizes with optional dry wax finish.
5. Converting Services: Slitting, rewinding, roll restoration, and sheeting services. Custom quoted based on specifications, dimensions, and turnaround requirements.
6. Custom Printed Tissue and Kraft Paper: Custom printed packaging papers for eCommerce unboxing experiences. Tissue paper in 15# and 18# weights; Kraft paper in 30lb, 40lb, 50lb, and 60lb weights. Lead time of 3 weeks from proof approval.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Nichols Paper Products Company is a contract manufacturer providing flexographic printing, adhesive lamination, waxing, creping, slitting, rewinding, sheeting, and converting services on paper, film, and nonwoven substrates. The company produces custom printed tissue paper, Kraft paper, moisture-resistant wax papers, scratch-resistant crepe papers, roll wrap packaging, and contour fiberboard forms for industrial and eCommerce customers. Printing operations represent 60-70% of business, with all projects custom quoted based on specifications and delivered through direct sales and distributor channels.

Product overview

Nichols Paper Products Company is a contract manufacturer offering a comprehensive portfolio of flexographic printing and paper converting services. The core offering centers on flexographic printing (1-4 colors) and lamination as primary services, supplemented by specialty converting operations including waxing, creping, sheeting, and slitting/rewinding. The company produces custom printed tissue paper and Kraft paper for e-commerce brand packaging, moisture-resistant wax papers and scratch-resistant crepe papers for industrial packaging, contour fiberboard forms for manufacturing, and roll wrap packaging for metal fabricators. Value-added converting services include coating (aqueous, anti-microbial, varnish, flame retardant), roll restoration, and custom sheeting. These products function as an integrated manufacturing service where printing, laminating, coating, and converting operations can be combined in-line for production efficiency.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Flexographic Printing Custom flexographic printing service supporting 1-4 colors up to 72" width and 1-2 colors up to 100" width, using water-soluble inks on paper, film, and nonwoven substrates. Designed for industrial manufacturers and eCommerce brands needing trial, test, short, and long run production with custom logos and designs.
• Adhesive Lamination Custom adhesive laminating service offering flood coat, spot, strip, and wax lamination options, bonding paper-to-paper, paper-to-film, and nonwoven-to-film substrates with a 72" maximum laminating width and 1-4 plies. Designed for projects requiring enhanced strength, barrier properties, or multi-ply construction.
• Wax Paper (Moisture Resistant Packaging) Moisture resistant waxed papers available in wet wax, dry wax, and wax lamination options for protection against moisture, grease, and oil, with 60" maximum width capability. Designed for industrial packaging applications including moisture barrier interleave, pallet liners, and overwrap for bearings and machined parts.
• Crepe Paper (Scratch Resistant Packaging) Creped Kraft paper with scratch-resistant properties made from 30lb, 40lb, and 60lb basis weights, featuring flexibility, cushion feel, and absorbency for wrapping irregular shaped parts and metal sheets. Max 60" width, 65" max unwind diameter, 55" max rewind diameter. Available with optional dry wax finish.
• Custom Printed Tissue Paper Custom printed tissue paper in 15# and 18# weights, available in sheets and rolls with 1-2 color printing and Pantone color matching for brand packaging, unboxing experiences, void fill, and interleaving. 3-week lead time from proof approval. Designed for online retailers and DTC brands seeking branded packaging.
• Custom Printed Kraft Paper Custom printed Kraft paper in 30lb, 40lb, 50lb, and 60lb weights, available in bleach or natural options for packing, wrapping, void fill, and interleaving applications. Designed for eCommerce retailers and industrial users seeking branded or plain kraft paper solutions.
• Roll Wrap Packaging Custom printed roll wrap packaging using bleach or natural Kraft paper with optional clear or black polyethylene lamination for protecting machined parts, rollers, and weldments during shipping and storage. Designed for CNC machine shops, roller manufacturers, and metal fabricators.
• Contour Fiberboard Forms Convolute wound fiberboard forms in standard lengths of 56" and 62" with calipers of .360", .420", and .480". Serving as cost-effective alternatives to wood for furniture, speaker, display, and POP manufacturers. Custom calipers available upon request.
• Slitting, Rewinding & Roll Restoration Converting services including in-line slitting (1"-100" web range), rewinding for tissue and bath tissue overwraps, towel bands, and split rolls, plus industry-leading roll restoration since 1982 for damaged, telescoping, or out-of-round rolls. Rush orders available.
• Sheeting Sheeting service supporting substrates including Kraft, bond, synthetic, tissue, chipboard, and films with a 65" maximum roll width and 50" maximum unwind diameter. Supports tabbing, custom packaging, and bar code labeling with 12"–205" sheet length capabilities.
• Coating Services Aqueous, anti-microbial, varnish, and flame retardant coating options applied to substrates for enhanced protective and functional properties. Designed for industrial and commercial customers needing specialized coatings on paper, film, and nonwoven substrates.

Quantifiable outcome

• Printing makes up 60-70% of business revenue
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature8 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Packaging Personified: Specialty packaging converter offering custom printing, laminating, and converting of paper and film products. Comparable niche converter profile and customer base.
• Great Lakes Tissue Company: Tissue paper converter offering custom converting, printing, and rewinding services. Similar Wisconsin footprint and overlapping service portfolio in tissue and converted paper products.
• Hood Container Corporation: Mid-sized paper converter and packaging manufacturer producing custom converted paper products, kraft paper, and specialty packaging. Comparable in scale and the vertical integration of paper converting operations.
• Converters, Inc. Paper and film converter providing custom slitting, rewinding, sheeting, and printing services. Direct overlap in slitting/rewinding and sheeting capabilities for paper and film substrates.

Broad incumbents

• Sonoco Products Company: Diversified global packaging manufacturer with paper, flexible packaging, and converting operations. Significantly larger incumbent with overlapping capabilities in converted paper and packaging.
• Sealed Air Corporation: Global protective packaging manufacturer with overlapping protective and barrier packaging capabilities (wax, lamination, barrier paper). Much larger incumbent serving similar industrial protective packaging end uses.
• ProAmpac: Flexible packaging and specialty papers converter producing printed paper, film, and laminate products. Overlaps in flexographic printing on paper and film substrates serving similar end markets.
• Packaging Corporation of America: Large US producer of containerboard and corrugated packaging with converting capabilities. Much larger scale but operates in adjacent paper-based packaging markets serving similar industrial end users.
• Veritiv Corporation: North American distributor and converter of printing, packaging, and facility solutions products. Provides overlap in print/packaging distribution channels and converting services.
• Cascades Inc. Canadian-based manufacturer of tissue, packaging, and specialty paper products. Much larger incumbent with overlapping tissue, kraft, and converted paper products.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Nichols Paper Products Company