When loan officer Dale Harrold started working at Self-Help many years ago, he didn’t know he’d one day be standing in a large manufacturing facility in High Point, NC, admiring a Bobst 87-inch Masterflute 324 Asitrade Singleface Laminator. But that’s exactly what Dale did last week, at an open house event for one of our favorite borrowers, Packrite.

Husband-and-wife team Michael and Mary Drummond co-founded Packrite in 2008 with 18 employees. The company fills an important but easily overlooked manufacturing niche — it helps create packaging for products in a wide range of industries.

Packrite co-owners Mary and Michael Drummond

Packrite has grown rapidly since they first worked with Dale to get Self-Help financing in 2012. The company now boasts 110 employees and plans to keep expanding. Our most recent loan to Packrite, in 2016, helped finance a 60,000-square-foot expansion and new equipment – including the Bobst Asitrade. Our loans to Packrite – five in all since 2012 – come through our SBA 504 program, a federal lending program that provides low interest rate loans to help companies create jobs and boost economic development.

Packrite’s new Bobst Asitrade machine is approximately 300 feet in length – as long as a football field!

It’s always a treat to visit our borrowers and learn more about the work they do. Thanks Packrite for your hospitality and for showing us around!

Packrite and other news, stories and tips are highlighted in our recent newsletter.