Alpha Packaging Inc.

The next time you see one of those ready-to-sell displays with product and graphics all in place at Wal-Mart, you may be admiring Alpha Packaging Inc.’s handiwork.

The Greenwood company counts Wal-Mart vendors among its customers, and those vendors often count on Alpha to design and build point-of-sale packaging, fill it with merchandise and ship it ready to sell to the retailer.

The company is growing along with its clients, having tripled its manufacturing facilities in the last two years. The company’s anchor plant makes corrugated boxes, point-of-purchase displays and other specialty products. Alpha also manufactures foam packaging and inner-packing at its new Fort Chaffee location and maintains a design and graphic center and contract packaging facility in Springdale. Both of the new locations also have order fulfillment operations as well.

Individual customer attention and design separates his company from competitors, President Mike Stec said.

“All [competitors] have to offer – is corrugated,” Stec said. “We have a design staff with expertise in heavy duty packaging,” foam, shrink wrap, tape and other package materials. Alpha aims to be “a one-stop shop concept” for the packaging industry, he said. “We’ll design a package from the ground up.”

Such service has made the company some important friends, Stec said, including Wal-Mart buyers.

“When your reputation grows, they start recommending you to vendors,” he said. “Vendors all over the country are calling us now. We offer friendly, informed customer service.”

Alpha Packaging started in 1987, when Stec “was bitten by the entrepreneurial bug.”

Originally located in Fort Smith, the company moved to Greenwood in 1992.