What CARTOFLEX does

CARTOFLEX is a family-owned German packaging manufacturer, founded circa 1979 by Karl-Heinz Hebrok and headquartered in Lüneburg, Lower Saxony. Operating through five wholly-owned entities — Cartoflex GmbH (corrugated processing), Edmund G. Friedrich & Co. GmbH (heavy/export/dangerous goods packaging and automotive system partnership, Hamburg), Bunkus GmbH Verpackungswerk (Bad Oldesloe), Packando GmbH (online packaging shop), and Lünewell GmbH (in-house corrugated board production) — the group employs over 200 people and serves 1,200+ industrial and commercial customers across Northern Germany. Its core products are transport packaging (dangerous goods, pallet systems, 1- to 3-ply folding boxes), e-commerce/shipping packaging (book wraps, micro-corrugated bags, automatic-bottom boxes), and point-of-sale displays, manufactured on Flexo/Offset presses across micro-wave to triple-wall board grades.

The technology stack is built around vertically integrated corrugated board production at Lünewell GmbH, which produces F-, E-, D-, B- and C-wave board in all combinations from 200 m² batch sizes. The proprietary GreenCor® line — registered as a trademark — substitutes 30% of fiber input with regional Schleswig-Holstein grass, combined with 70% recycled material, providing a sustainability-priced SKU adopted by named customers REYHER and dodenhof. Compliance credentials include ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 (valid July 2026), FEFCO-GMP (valid September 2026), FSC Chain of Custody (valid December 2029), and BAM recognition for hazardous goods packaging (valid February 2027).

The business model is B2B manufacturing with quote-based pricing and no public list rates; revenue streams cover one-time packaging sales, custom development/professional services, and managed warehousing/logistics (stock control, production planning, and scheduled delivery). Go-to-market is predominantly direct field sales via on-site packaging consultants targeting industrial (Industrie) and commercial (Handel) customers, supplemented by the Packando e-commerce storefront (48-hour delivery to business and private buyers). The group has remained family-controlled since founding, with no institutional funding or M&A activity disclosed.

Name

CARTOFLEX

Legal name

Cartoflex GmbH

Website

https://cartoflex.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1979

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

CARTOFLEX is a family-owned Northern German manufacturer of corrugated cardboard packaging, operating five entities across Lüneburg, Hamburg, and Bad Oldesloe. It produces transport packaging, e-commerce packaging, and displays for 1,200+ industrial and commercial customers, anchored by its proprietary GreenCor® grass-fiber sustainable line and in-house board production at Lünewell GmbH.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Corrugated Packaging Manufacturing

NAICS

Corrugated and Solid Fiber Box Manufacturing (322211)

SIC

Paperboard Containers & Boxes (2650)

akta.pro primary industry

Corrugated Packaging & Boxes (RSC, die-cut, bulk bins) (IMAMAHAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Folding Carton & Paperboard Packaging Printing (IMALAKAH), Folding Cartons & Paperboard Packaging Converting (IMAMAHAB)

Keywords

• Corrugated cardboard packaging
• Transport packaging solutions
• E-commerce shipping packaging
• Point-of-sale displays
• Sustainable grass paper packaging

Headquarters

HQ city

Lüneburg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Corrugated Packaging Manufacturing and Sales: Production and sale of corrugated cardboard packaging including transport packaging, sales packaging, displays, and cartonages. The company operates as a manufacturer with its own raw material supply from Lünewell GmbH.
2. Custom Packaging Development Services: Custom packaging solutions developed by in-house packaging developers, presenting innovative solutions quickly to prevent transport damage, increase point-of-sale success, reduce storage costs, and enable more efficient work at packing stations.
3. Warehousing and Logistics Services: Complete inventory management and delivery of packaging for customers, including stock management, production planning and provision according to customer specifications.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Cartoflex manufactures and processes corrugated cardboard packaging, producing transport packaging, sales packaging, and displays in small to large runs. The Cartoflex Group operates five companies handling corrugated board production, processing, e-commerce/shipping packaging, and dangerous goods packaging, with its own raw material supply via Lünewell GmbH and full-service capabilities from on-site consulting and development through warehousing and delivery.

Product overview

CARTOFLEX is a family-owned group of five companies operating in the corrugated cardboard packaging industry in Northern Germany. The group comprises Cartoflex GmbH (Lüneburg - main corrugated processing with Flexo/Offset printing), Edmund G. Friedrich & Co. GmbH (Hamburg - heavy/export/dangerous goods packaging, system partner of automotive industry), Bunkus GmbH (Bad Oldesloe - individual packaging production), Packando GmbH (Lüneburg - online packaging shop), and Lünewell GmbH (Lüneburg - corrugated board manufacturing). The product portfolio centers on transport packaging (dangerous goods, pallet systems, heavy goods, 1-3-ply folding boxes), post/e-commerce packaging (book packaging, micro-corrugated bags, automatic bottom boxes), and displays/sales packaging (floor displays, counter displays, pallet displays, gift packaging). The GreenCor® sustainable product line offers corrugated board made from 30% grass fiber and 70% recycled material. Full-service capabilities include consulting, development, production, and warehouse/inventory management.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• GreenCor®: Sustainable corrugated cardboard packaging made from grass paper. Products consist of 30% grass content and 70% recycled material. Used for eco-friendly shipping and packaging solutions, including pallet covers and shipping boxes.

Products and services

• GreenCor® Sustainable Corrugated Cardboard Sustainable corrugated cardboard product line made with 30% grass content from regional grass and compensation areas in Schleswig-Holstein combined with 70% recycled material, offered as an environmentally friendly alternative to conventional packaging for pallet covers, shipping cartons, and other applications.
• Transport Packaging Transport packaging range including dangerous goods packaging, pallet system packaging, heavy goods packaging, 1-/2-/3-ply folding boxes, folding boxes with automatic bottom, corrugated cardboard interlayers, and an immediate-delivery program for industrial customers.
• E-commerce and Post Packaging

Quantifiable outcome

• GreenCor® packaging saves resources compared to wood as grass is a fast-growing raw material

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• REYHERnotableStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 April 2021REYHER, a Hamburg-based trading company for connection elements and fastening technology, uses Cartoflex's GreenCor® corrugated cardboard made from grass paper for pallet coverings. Each year, several hundred thousand pallets leave REYHER's logistics center worldwide, with around 70,000 using Cartoflex pallet coverings. This partnership enables valuable resource savings.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• DS Smith: Major European corrugated packaging manufacturer with strong presence in sustainable packaging and e-commerce. Directly comparable in target end-markets and product mix, though with much broader geographic coverage.
• Mondi Group: Vertically integrated paper and packaging group with significant corrugated and containerboard operations across Europe. Comparable in offering corrugated packaging and folding cartons, with its own paper mills providing the same raw-material-backward-integration advantage Cartoflex pursues.
• Smurfit Kappa: One of the largest European corrugated packaging producers with a pan-European manufacturing footprint. Directly comparable product portfolio (corrugated boxes, displays, e-commerce packaging) but at vastly greater scale than Cartoflex.
• Stora Enso: European forest-products group with significant containerboard and packaging operations. Comparable as both a corrugated packaging producer and a paperboard supplier competing with Cartoflex's Lünewell operations.

Regional players

• Verpackungswerk Hans Lütgert: Regional German corrugated packaging converter serving Northern/Western German markets. Comparable mid-sized, regionally focused corrugated converter profile, though limited public information is available.
• Wellpappe Auerswalde: Mid-sized German corrugated packaging manufacturer producing transport and sales packaging. Comparable product focus on standard corrugated formats for industrial customers in Germany.

Direct peers

• THIMM Group: Family-run German packaging manufacturer offering corrugated, sales, and display packaging across multiple German sites. Comparable product portfolio and family-ownership structure with similar mid-market positioning.
• Palm Gruppe (Papierfabrik Palm): Family-owned German paper and corrugated packaging producer with own paperboard mills and corrugated converting operations. Closely comparable business model — vertical integration, German footprint, family control — making it one of the most direct structural peers.
• Klingele Papierwerke: Family-owned German paper and corrugated packaging group with own paper mill operations and multi-site converting facilities. Closely comparable vertically integrated, family-controlled business model targeting European industrial customers.
• Schumacher Packaging: Family-run German manufacturer of corrugated and solid board packaging with multiple production sites across Germany. Comparable product range (transport, sales, and e-commerce packaging), FSC certifications, and family-owned governance.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries5 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 CARTOFLEX