History
Processes, people, and customers have changed; what hasn't changed are our values.
We will be successful if our customers are successful.
It was D.W. Friesen who said those words and that has been our motto from day one. Our processes have changed … our people have changed … and even our customers have changed. What has not changed are our values. Our commitment to service, quality, and innovation has always been at the forefront as we grow and expand our business.
Our company was founded by D.W. Friesen in 1907 in Altona, Manitoba, Canada. The first business he operated was a small confectionery store. He added to his business by taking on the post office and telephone franchises, both private franchises in those days. That was followed by the wholesale stationery business in the 1920s and a printing business in the 1930s. The Yearbook Division followed in the 1960s.
It was in 1971 when the Packaging Division of Friesens was introduced, after the purchase of Winnipeg’s ACME Paper Box Company, which came with two primary customers: Birks and Labatts.
think4D was purchased in 2009.
Friesens already had a world-class packaging division with 50 years of experience and a loyal customer base. So why purchase another packaging company, especially during an uncertain economic time? Friesens knew think4D had something special…a unique way of printing on plastic with thermoform technology that was futuristic even in its infancy. It wasn’t long before Friesens made the decision to expand with an additional print-related business.
It seemed only natural that think4D and the Packaging Division should work together, so in 2018 they amalgamated and combined product lines into four categories:
The future of packaging technology is now.
The fusion of Friesens’ passion for printing and think4d’s cutting-edge technology is reshaping the market and setting new trends. Packaging is the first point of contact that consumers have with a product on the shelf, and it can have a significant impact on quality perception.
At think4D, our Employee-Owners prepare innovative, premium packaging solutions that can feature decorations and tactile features to give consumers confidence from first “sight” and “touch” that they are purchasing a high-quality product.