When Nate Bower, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran, graduated from UC Berkley in 1950, he worked in sales at National Envelope.
Along with business partner John McGraw, he realized the potential of the envelope industry and started Western Envelope in San Francisco in 1953. It was there that Brooks Bower, Nate’s son, was initiated into the industry—by sweeping the floors on Saturdays.
Soon after selling his original company, in 1964 Nate and partner Ira Lynch opened Papercone Corporation, a plant that originally manufactured paper collars for advertising on bottles. Representative of his deep-seeded investment in his father’s company, Brooks was there to unload the first truck of paper that was delivered.
In 1975, Brooks joined the family business full-time and in 1978 opened the Louisville, KY plant.
Papercone thrived in Louisville, a location that allowed the company to market toward the larger east coast market, and in 2000 the company made a difficult decision to close its original California plant. Today, more than 50 years after the company’s inception, Brooks Bower leads Papercone as CEO, and the family business has evolved into a leading producer of specialty envelopes.
Papercone has grown from one visionary entrepreneur to over 125 employees who work together to make the family-owned company an industry leader.
Under Brooks Bower’s leadership, Papercone continues to produce world-class products while remaining rooted in its humble, hard-working beginnings. Today, Papercone’s products, services, and values are unparalleled in the industry.
As a kid, I grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and worked at Papercone for my father on Saturdays and during the summers. It inspired me to take a printing shop class in high school, run my own printing press from the basement of our home, and start a small business.
My career at Papercone began in 1998. At that time, I served as a Human Resources intern while attending Bellarmine University where I graduated with a Bachelor’s in Psychology/Human Resources. After graduation, I accepted a full-time position in our HR department while earning my MBA from Bellarmine. Since then, I have held various roles within Human Resources and Manufacturing. I was the Executive Director of the Envelope Institute of America (EIA) for 8 years. I love Papercone and all the people I get to work with every day.
I graduated from the University of Memphis in 1987. My first job out of college took me to San Francisco, which ultimately led to my career with Papercone. I started working at Papercone in 1991 at our original headquarters in San Francisco. I have been blessed to work with great colleagues and awesome customers over the past thirty three years.
I started at Papercone as a consultant in November 1994 and accepted a full-time position as Customer Service Manager in February 1995. Prior to, I worked for a label manufacturing/printing company for six years.
I started at Papercone in January 2014 after working at a food manufacturing plant for thirteen years as a Customer Service Representative. Coming from the food manufacturing industry, working with envelopes was a whole new ball game.
I have been a dedicated member of the Papercone team since 2015, taking on the role of Marketing & Customer Support Manager in 2024.
I have been working in the Pre-Production Department at Papercone since June 1996. I love working at Papercone because of our great customers and very knowledgeable coworkers.
I started working for Papercone in October of 1998 as an Operator, a role that includes inspecting and packing envelopes. I then moved into our Shipping Department as a Shipping Clerk. From there, I took the position of Customer Service Representative and I now work in Pre-Production as an Analyst.
I am originally from Denmark, Wisconsin. After finding a job posting online, I began working at Papercone in 2013 as a Customer Service Representative. In 2014, I became the Pricing Analyst.
I worked as a corporate travel consultant for seven years before coming to work at Papercone in 1996. I am the Executive Assistant to the CEO/Chairman, President, and Vice President. After so many years at Papercone, this place is family. I love this team!
I have been around Papercone as long as I can remember. As a 12-year-old I would go to work with my father on the weekends and play Star Wars by jumping stacks of rolls or climbing to the rafters in the warehouse. Eventually they gave me a broom which started my career at Papercone. Once in high school I was promoted to prepress and spent some time in imprint.
I have been with Papercone since August 2023.
I am a lifelong resident of Louisville, Kentucky and attended Male High School. I graduated from Wittenberg University with a Political Science degree and then started my career at Kraft Foods. In 1989, I joined Papercone Corporation as a Sales Representative and have grown with the company into the position of Executive Vice President.