GRAND RAPIDS, MI—Grand Rapids Label today announced a key addition to its leadership team as part of an organization wide strategy to pursue new growth opportunities in the durable label marketplace. Bill Bergstrom has joined the company as VP of sales and marketing, replacing John Crosby, who held that position since 2007. Crosby has been promoted to VP of operations. The changes come amidst a strategic shift, as the company looks to grow its customer base in the durable label market.
“The printing industry has gone through a lot of changes since my family founded this business more than 130 years ago,” said Bill Muir, president of Grand Rapids Label. “Our ability to adapt to changing market conditions helped us survive the industrial revolution. Embracing new, state of the art techniques and innovations, and focusing our efforts on markets with the greatest potential for growth during this new era technology revolution, will continue to be the key to our longevity and success.”
Grand Rapids Label is already a well known resource in the industry, where the company has earned a reputation as a leader in custom label solutions. The company conducts ongoing research and development using its own lab to engineer products tailored to cope with the most extreme conditions and meet the most exacting requirements. It’s this ability to create custom solutions, particularly in the durable label category, that will be the focus for the new leadership team going forward.
“Grand Rapids Label is one of only a handful of companies in the industry that can offer customers a high caliber level of performance and customization,” said Bill Bergstrom. “Our goal is to engineer winning solutions by thinking differently about the value our labels can provide. I’m really excited about the opportunity and it’s an honor to be a part of such a strong brand.”
Before joining Grand Rapids Label, Bill Bergstrom was president of ThinkWise LLC, a pure technology and data shop, where he was responsible for operations, team building and organizational strategy. During his tenure, Bill championed the second stage mission and vision of ThinkWise and helped plan the company’s marketing to ensure a more focused and profitable future—experience that will help him manage the transition taking place at Grand Rapids Label. Bill Bergstrom also spent more than 10 years as national sales manager at Terryberry. There, he helped build and manage a high performance sales force and developed employee recognition programs for thousands of clients ranging from small family businesses to Fortune 500 companies.
John joined Grand Rapids Label in 1995 and has served in a variety of roles during his time with the company. In his new role as VP of operations, John will be responsible for the on time performance, quality, efficiency and safety of the company’s manufacturing operations. He brings an engineering background to his new role, based on prior work with The Boeing Company as well as an aerospace engineering degree from the University of Michigan.
“I love a good challenge, and I believe our ability to solve what may seem like an impossible task has truly set us apart in the industry,” said John. “Given our track record for delivering exceptional products and services, and the excellent team we’ve assembled, the future is extremely bright at Grand Rapids Label.”
Grand Rapids Label has extensive experience creating durable label solutions. Products are designed to withstand exposure to water, sunlight, extreme temperatures, multiple chemicals and the test of time. In fact, many of the labels developed by the company are designed to last longer than the product itself. The company creates safety and operational information labels that must remain intact and legible in extremely harsh conditions, requiring the use of both strong adhesives to ensure the labels stay in place, and extensive top coating options to prevent damage.
Grand Rapids Label serves the label needs of customers spanning multiple industries including automotive, heavy machinery, agriculture, aerospace, appliance and food manufacturing. The company also creates specialized durable labels for security, anti theft, and product authenticity.