2 Broad Street, Unit A, Medford, NJ, USA 08055
www.harmonizedlabel.com

A quest for independence and a creative gamble have fueled one of the label industry’s most promising young converting businesses. Brian Boecklen and Dave Gotham sought the freedom and speed with which to make decisions, which are customarily prevalent with family-owned businesses. Frustrated by the trend of private equity-backed M&A takeovers, the duo established Harmonized Label Solutions and ran their first label in March 2023. Customers have taken note, too.

Boecklen and Gotham met while working at Label World, a converter with headquarters in Rochester, NY. Boecklen joined the company in 2008 and worked on the sales side of the business, while Gotham called the operations side home. The two enjoyed great success at Label World until the company was eventually acquired in 2013.

“We did a lot of good things,” says Boecklen. “Then we got acquired, and things didn’t go so smoothly anymore. I kept trying to offer solutions, but I couldn’t get anything out the door. So, it was time to do something else.”

While neither Boecklen nor Gotham actively sought business ownership, the path naturally found them. Label industry consolidation shifted the landscape of how they could best serve their customers – and this was an industry they both love. And, Boecklen boasted some experience with entrepreneurship.

“I had a landscaping business throughout high school and college, and I grew it significantly,” recalls Boecklen. “Ultimately, I didn’t know what I was going to do – I was just going to enjoy college. I had a cousin who was in the label business, and I would spend a lot of time with him at family parties. Then my dad lost his job, and I thought I had to go back to work for my family. So, I needed to get a job. My cousin said I could always call him, so I did.”

In the fall of 1995, Boecklen went to work at Graphic Communications for his cousin, Bob Lawler, and his sister, Loretta. There, Boecklen gained tremendous on-the-job training and functioned in numerous roles. Boecklen worked in shipping, purchasing, operating a press, estimating, then eventually sales. At Graphic Communications, he learned the math behind creating a label. Seeking a greater challenge after 12.5 years, Boecklen eventually decided to make the move to Label World in 2008.

“I grew the business, but what I found was I wasn’t living up to my potential at Graphic Communications,” he recalls. “I did well but I wasn’t challenged, and I didn’t realize that I needed that. I went to Label World and quickly what I realized is I love competition. I like being uncomfortable, doing hard stuff, and growing.”

However, the acquisition of Label World brought change. “I saw you could make a lot of money if you really hustle,” says Boecklen. “We got bought, and it was a different structure. They said I was going to be able to sell shrink sleeves, cartons, RFID, and all these other things. I started to do very well, but then they changed things again. It wasn’t a formula I wanted to subscribe to anymore.

“My logic was: If I went to a company that was smaller, they were eventually going to get bought up, too,” he adds. “I wasn’t going to escape this rat race. I really wanted to restore what everybody was missing, and that’s what we had at Graphic Communications and Label World before we were acquired. That was good relationships and a company that’s very customer focused and nimble.”

In passing, Boecklen and Gotham had previously discussed partnering if one of them made the move to establish the company. On April 1, 2022, Boecklen left his previous company. Gotham was the first call he made.

“Dave and I both had the same mentality when we started talking – we want to take care of people,” remarks Boecklen. “We don’t want a ton of customers, we want specific customers that fit our equipment, that fit our relationship. We don’t want someone who’s going to put us out to bid. We don’t do bids here. We’ll quote certain jobs, but if someone says they have an RFP, we say no thanks. That’s why we don’t deal with large companies. We want mutually beneficial relationships with people who need us as much as we need them. You can’t do it any other way, not long term.”

Starting the business posed another challenge, though. Boecklen received incredible support from his wife, Janet, and Gotham was an eager partner from the start. However, they needed the capital to get the business up and running. 

“We didn’t know where we were going to get the money,” comments Boecklen. “We met every Wednesday at 5 p.m. and talked about this business plan, where we held each other accountable and kept moving this project along. That’s what we did for about a year. I didn’t want to go forward with backers or PE, and I didn’t have a lot of money. That was a little bit of a problem.”

Boecklen received assistance through a friend. Boecklen’s financial advisor let him know of all the pitfalls in accessing his retirement funds, but a friend had a connection at a bank. Boecklen soon learned that he qualified as a candidate for the ROBS program. The ROBS (Rollover Business Start-up) 401K program lets entrepreneurs use their existing retirement savings to fund a new business, forming a special 401K plan for a new C-Corporation. 

“You’re allowed to take money out of your 401K and not be taxed or penalized on it,” explains Boecklen. “You then convert that into stock in your new company. Then you use that stock to fund operations with the help of an SBA loan for the balance of the money you need to get started. Nobody knows about it, but the program has been around since 1978.

“My connection at the bank told me it’s going to be hard and you’re going to get put through the ringer, but it can be done,” adds Boecklen. “And it was literally the only option we had. That allowed us to get this business started without the assistance of anyone else. We could do it the way we wanted to do it. If we fail, it’s our fault. If we’re successful, it’s everyone’s success.”

Hybrid approach 

Harmonized Label was strategic in selecting the right equipment to launch the company. The printing press and subsequent equipment needed to serve Harmonized Label’s book of business. Since opening, the converter has specialized in nutraceuticals labeling, as well as the personal care products market. The company has also done some work in the food and beverage space.

For Boecklen and Gotham, a hybrid label press made the most sense. After assessing the market, they invested in a CEI BossJet powered by Domino. As a small company starting out with two employees, ownership wanted an automated piece of equipment that didn’t rely on significant manpower.

“I had always felt the hybrid was a good platform for the business that we had,” notes Boecklen. “You’re not running three million labels, you’re printing multiple SKUs with lots of color and lots of changes. But it’s not just lots of SKUs but SKUs that change all the time. Vitamin supplements, shampoos, their ingredients change all the time. I honestly didn’t want to get caught up making plates, so going flexo just wasn’t a fit for my customer base.”

Hybrid label printing also differentiates Harmonized Label in the marketplace. 

“I felt if we went with hybrid, while more expensive because you’re building it yourself, it would be more beneficial down the road,” says Boecklen. “The ROI would be quicker, and the press would differentiate us instantly from a lot of other companies out there.”

Harmonized Label has seen tremendous value in running label jobs in one pass. From a technical standpoint, the Domino has held excellent color consistency, too.

“Our first customer needed a beige, and we said we would keep it consistent – and we proved it,” adds Boecklen. “We needed to do cold foil and sequential numbering on this job, so it had to be digital from the start. Our first customer was one of the hardest labels we could make. It was all BOPP, sequential numbering, cold foil, critical color match, and beige. That was our foundation for the company, and the hybrid was just the best fit. The Domino can go 165 fpm top speed, and it can do that regardless of what you’re printing.”

Figuring it out 

In getting the business off the ground, Boecklen and Gotham reverted back to the philosophies that made them successful during their Label World days. A humble beginning was expected, as Harmonized Label originated with just the two employees. Boecklen anticipated serving as the press operator and rewinder/inspector while Gotham would work remotely and handle operations.

A stroke of luck brought Boecklen to employee No. 3, though. “I had a friend who was always asking me questions about what I was doing,” states Boecklen. “We would cycle together and we had dogs that would play together, and he was a former customer, too, but fired me. He would keep asking me periodically, and I told him I was going to buy a printing press and he wanted me to send him a video. Eventually we got the building here and he wanted to come by and see it. He also wanted to be here when the press got delivered, and I said, ‘Sure.’ He comes into my office right here and said he wanted to learn how to run that thing. 

“At the time, he and his family owned the largest winery in NJ – Valenzano Winery,” continues Boecklen. “He was also part owner of a brewery called Brotherton Brewing, which is also very well respected around here. This was Mark Valenzano. He was looking to exit the business he owned and didn’t know what to do next.”

Valenzano is gifted with an engineering mindset, and he adapted to the CEI BossJet powered by Domino immediately. Despite Boecklen heading to Domino for operator training, he never once ran the press. 

“Mark is so smart and gifted with equipment, he has that type of mind, that he just picked up the operation immediately,” recalls Boecklen. “When Domino came in to do installation and general training, he picked it up and ran with it. So, he’s employee No. 3. A former customer that becomes a press operator. You can’t make that up. He’s also got that ownership mindset and mentality, where if you waste 10 feet of material he’s upset because he feels he could’ve gotten it to eight feet. 

“That’s just how he thinks,” adds Boecklen. “I’ve been around a lot of press operators in my life, and I’ll take him in a press operator contest any day of the week, over anyone I’ve ever been around.”

Following the first year in operation, Harmonized Label tripled its business. “We just had great support with our partners,” says Boecklen. “Domino and CEI have been great. We worked everything out, and Label Traxx was super helpful, as well.

UPM Adhesive Materials was particularly supportive, as well. “UPM was the only company that would talk to me in the beginning,” states Boecklen. “They treated me like I was a real company. Other suppliers weren’t accepting new customers coming out of Covid. UPM did. They’re our largest supplier, and now everybody wants to do business with us. But they’re doing such a great job that that will never change. They’ve been wonderful to deal with, and that has been a good partnership.”

Harmonized Label also found a supportive partner in FLAG. “I love the idea of strength and independence,” comments Boecklen. “They were super supportive and connected us with a lot of vendors we hadn’t known. And I get to meet a lot of other companies that are in the space that I can learn from as the new guy. Hopefully I can return the favor, as well. So, it’s been a good relationship.”

Currently, Harmonized Label operates out of a 5,300 square-foot facility in Medford, NJ. That space will grow, as the company will expand another 10,000 feet in the near future. The facility size, much like the company’s initial business after the first year, will triple.

“It was a lot of money to get started, and a lot of people thought I was insane,” notes Boecklen. “But most of my friends are counting the days until they’re done working, but I’m going the opposite way, and I’m so grateful for this opportunity to serve my customers again. I had great relationships that I believed in. I didn’t have any contracts, I had verbal agreements. They were discussions. I’m going to start a label company, and people said they were in. 

“All I needed from people was their word,” continues Boecklen. “That was enough to become profitable. Plus, my wife was supportive. We prayed about it, and it wasn’t haphazard. She just believed in me, and that’s all you need sometimes is a couple people to believe in you – or even just one.”

Quality control 

Harmonized Label has built a culture on people and core philosophies – one of which is, “Don’t let good enough be good enough.” The NJ-based converter will not ship an order unless it is absolutely perfect. Harmonized Label also touts the utmost transparency with its customers.

Quality people help drive quality products, too. Today, Harmonized Label has 12 employees, and Boecklen and Gotham lean on everybody in making decisions and driving the business forward.

“I don’t pretend to know everything,” says Boecklen. “I might have had the most experience starting this company, but sometimes people have a much better way of doing something. Most of our systems and processes have been dramatically improved from when I started. We found a lot of people we have here – some came from other label companies but all are just good humans. If you start like that, we can train you to do anything. That’s how people found out about us. They weren’t just looking for 50 cents more an hour. They were looking for something new and refreshing.

“When I’ve done interviews with people, I say, ‘If you’re serious about coming here, I want this to be your last job’,” Boecklen continues. “If I’m doing my job and you’re doing your job, and the company is growing and you’re growing as a person and making more money – unless you want to do something completely different – I want this to be your last job.”

In figuring out the business, Boecklen acknowledges there will likely be mistakes along the way. However, the company will own them, be transparent with the customer, and do everything to rectify the situation.

“That’s what nobody was getting from other label suppliers,” says Boecklen. “First of all, do what you say you’re going to do. And if you fail to do that, then resolve it as quickly as you can. That’s what we’ve been able to do, and that part has been cool. I don’t have a blueprint for company culture. I just have a belief system that I try to apply, which is really nothing more than work really hard and care about who you work with. In the end, you’ll grow the business if you’re taking care of that person. It’s inevitable.”

When it comes to quality, Harmonized Label will not risk sending out an order that’s not perfect. If there’s an issue, the customer will get notified immediately. The converter has subsequently boasted a quality approval rating of 99.8.

“We had to deprogram some people where they might say, ‘This is good enough,” states Boecklen. “You’re not allowed to say that here; it is not our mentality. They might have come from other label printers where they would’ve shipped a job out that we deemed unacceptable. We prefer to throw something out than risk throwing out our relationship or damaging it. The customer probably wouldn’t even see it, but we know it. That’s been the culture here.”

In the future, Harmonized Label is striving to serve its customers by expanding its capabilities. That means expanding business relationships with existing customers. 

“We don’t have any contracts with people,” says Boecklen. “I have a long-term deal. I’m going to keep doing a great job for that customer for a really long time. That’s our deal. We’re like the opposite of all the things that a PE firm would actually want, which I love. That’s the reason why we’re growing with existing customers.”

Boecklen and Gotham will continue to lean on the dedicated team they have built over the last three years. 

“If there was a competition with another label company – Label Olympics – good luck beating this group,” comments Boecklen. “I just don’t think it could be done, at least not any place where I worked. That part is cool, and we tell them that. We also show them emails when people say nice things about their experience here. They really do care a lot, and it’s a lot more than just punching a clock. We literally just want to be the best label company in the country, and that’s our goal. We measure everything, and we’re going to keep trying to improve those numbers.”