Small Business? We're Big Fans.

FROM A DIME TO A DIAMOND.

2021 marks our 75^th year in business, aka our diamond anniversary. We’re intensely proud of this fact, especially due to our humble beginnings. It all goes back to Minnie Wilson, Mom to Ernest and Charles. She raised her boys as a single mom during the Great Depression and truly instilled a sense of humility and charity into her two boys. As she put it, “You should always give a dime to someone in need, because there’s always someone worse off than you are.” With this spirit in mind, Ernest founded the company back in 1946. Total employees: two (see above). And ever since that day, we’ve been helping the small businesses we serve grow right along with us.

START-UP COMPANY, OLD-SCHOOL STYLE.

Yes, we have a soft-spot in our heart for companies who are starting from the ground up. Because we began on a shoestring budget, too. No forklifts and warehouses. No fleet of trucks or teams of salespeople. It all started in an LA garage with the two brothers running Ernest Paper Company. Through hard work, perseverance and a good amount of luck along the way, we’ve grown to 500+ people with 13 locations nationwide. And now that we have the means of helping smaller sized companies expand and grow, we couldn’t be happier. As our Chairman and CEO Charles Wilson says, “When you can help someone, that’s the best thing in the world.” We’ve included just two clients success stories here, but rest assured. If you’re a small business that has a huge challenge on your hands, we’re up to the task.

THE MUG RUNNETH OVER.

Pizza Port is a super popular brewery and restaurant chain in the San Diego area. Back in 2014, they were still a relatively small business, with just three, 30-barrel brew tanks. Basically, enough to satisfy thirsty customers while they were eating a slice and maybe to take home a growler or two. But when they landed a deal with a massive discount wholesaler, the whole game changed. They couldn’t keep up. That’s when they called Ernest. We did what’s called a pack-out, meaning we brought the cans of beer to our warehouse and packaged it all on site. Then, with just-in-time shipping, we were able deliver the 12- or 18-packs of craft brew directly to the big box store. We love partnering with this laid-back but always-bustling company. And no, that’s not the beer talking. Check out our Pizza Port Ernest to the Rescue video, here.

SIT BACK, RELAX AND LET ERNEST DO THE PACKING.

GT Ventures is a bean bag based out of Henderson, NV. Although they started off small, their business recently started growing in a major way. The problem was the poly bags that the beans bags were packaged in simply weren’t up to par. Just like the company itself, their packaging was literally bursting at the seams. It’s a tricky product to package, for sure. But it’s exactly the type of problem we like to solve at Ernest. By vacuum packing the bean bags (i.e. sucking out all the air) and providing the thinnest, strongest materials for the job, we were able to fit a 12-foot bean bag into a four-foot box. Which drastically cut down on shipping costs and accounted for little to no damage in transit. To see how we helped this once up-and-coming comfort seating company become the country’s largest bean bag supplier, check out our video, here.

BIG OR SMALL, WE’LL ANSWER TO THE CALL.

To all the little guys doing big things in your industry, we wish you a happy National Small Business Day. We understand the rigors of keeping up with the behemoths and we’re here to help you continue to grow in any and all ways possible. Whether it’s custom packaging, solutions to use less materials and save on shipping, or even Jan-San assistance to ensure a safe and healthy workplace, we’re more than in. We’re on it. Check out what we’re doing to help small businesses in our Ernest Edge video, here. Simply contact us at ernestpackaging.com/contact to speak with an Ernest Packaging representative and for a free consultation. Until then, keep thinking big.