At Supply Chain Game Changer we believe in sharing experiences and expertise from people in every industry and from across the globe. As such we have introduced our “Seasoned Leadership in Action™” Interview series. This interview is with Lorrie Watts, Director of Logistics at Red Stag Fulfillment.
Since the inception of Supply Chain Game Changer our mission has been to share experiences and expertise for the benefit of everyone.
Here is our interview with Anthony Magaraci, Founder and CEO at Trinity Packaging Supply.
1. Tell our readers a little about your background and experience
My career in packaging supplies started after I graduated from Rowan University’s Entrepreneurship Program, where I was one of the first eight graduates. After being hired by a packaging supplier straight out of college, I realized that utilizing a drop-shipping distribution model with suppliers enabled me to bypass the second distribution phase.
This approach not only allowed me to save on additional warehousing and freight charges but also provided customers with quality packaging supplies directly from the manufacturer. So, in 2010, on the heels of a recession and with my first baby on the way, I took a leap of faith and started Trinity Packaging Supply from my home office.
During Trinity’s first year, I never stopped cold-calling and walking into businesses asking for opportunities, despite receiving rejection after rejection. Since I didn’t have a warehouse or inventory, I used a consultative approach to compete against billion-dollar packaging companies.
This helped me land Trinity’s first national account, where I went location by location and helped them save money on pallets. I developed nearly $1 million in new business during that first year – and our first account is still a customer today!
Since that first year, Trinity has achieved sustained hypergrowth, doubling in revenue every two years to become a $100 million company that has made the Inc. 5000 Fastest-Growing Companies in America list seven times in a row, the Inc. Best Places to Work list four times, and ranked 89th on Fortune’s list of America’s Most Innovative Companies 2023.
We recently launched Trinity’s new e-commerce website, powered by SupplyStream, our proprietary software that aggregates hundreds of supplier catalogs into one main storefront. This online storefront offers packaging’s largest catalog of packaging, janitorial, sanitary, safety, and office supplies that ship locally at low prices. Just as Airbnb and Uber changed the hospitality and transportation industries, this first-of-its-kind software is disrupting the $200 billion packaging industry.
2. What are some of your greatest achievements in Business?
We built something that is going to change the world.
Back in 2010, when I started Trinity, I quickly recognized how painfully inefficient it was to figure out pricing for packaging supplies in different markets. I’d spend days chasing after quotes for wholesale products and waiting for reps to call me back with their best pricing, which was frustrating because I knew the data I needed already existed.
I realized that if I could get that information and standardize what everyone called those same supplies across the country, I could create an e-commerce platform that finds wholesale products with the quickest lead times and low pricing.
To do this, we had to create our proprietary software, SupplyStream, that could power Trinity’s e-commerce catalog. We had to compile data, standardize it in a way that has never been done before, and create a compelling e-commerce landing page for each product. At the same time, we had to create algorithms that manage that data in a way that best serves the user, then display it in a way the user could understand and ultimately make a purchase.
On top of that, we had to be able to process millions of lines of data in a millisecond, find competitive shipping rates with a variable point of origin and destination, and create a platform to manage all orders from the website and communicate with suppliers. Not only did we succeed in creating SupplyStream, but we did it in just three years!
Not only am I proud to have created SupplyStream, but I am excited about the impact it will have on wholesale businesses across the country. SupplyStream levels the playing field by aggregating and standardizing hundreds of supplier catalogs for local suppliers to sell their products on a national scale. Plus, this drop ship model of business is more cost-effective and reduces the need for a brick-and-mortar operation.
It’s crazy to think that ten years ago I was by myself in a home office. Now we have over 50 employees, $100 million in revenue, and created software that is the wholesale industry’s equivalent to Uber competing in the transportation industry and disrupting our competitors while empowering our suppliers.
3. How has Business and Supply Chain changed over the course of your career?
The speed of business, specifically the speed at which communication and information are exchanged, is the fastest that it’s ever been, and I don’t see it going backward. Customers expect a higher level of communication and interaction than ever before.
Trinity is here to help make the speed of business even faster. I recognized early on in my career that the packaging industry could benefit from having information readily available. I realized that, if we can assign, standardize, and scale industry data, we can empower customers to make decisions on wholesale items as quickly as shopping at a retail store.
Quotes that had taken days to receive happen in seconds, and instead of waiting weeks to get an initial order, we can sign customers up and have them place orders in minutes.
For us, standardizing this data has been like mining for gold in the 1842 gold rush. Having all of the data at our fingertips has made it easier to attract and retain customers. That’s what we’ve done here in the packaging industry, and we can replicate this success in other industries.
4. What are some of the lessons you learned in your career that you would like to share for others to learn from?
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned throughout my career is that you don’t have to tackle everything at once. It starts with the first step. I’ve noticed that some people will get so caught up in asking, “What if this happens?” and “What if that happens?” If you just take it one step at a time and one day at a time, you are one step closer to achieving your goal.
I’ve also noticed that many aspiring entrepreneurs want the idea, the vision, the investors, and other rounds of investment, but no one wants to sell. Selling is the blocking and tackling of being an entrepreneur. If you don’t sell, you don’t have a business.
When I started Trinity, I never put the phone down or stopped walking into places, even when all I heard was no. I never backed down because I was tired. I never stopped because I wanted to. I worked and sold until the job was done. If you have a dream, you have to work hard to fulfill it.
5. What challenges facing the world are important to you?
As an entrepreneur and a father of three young children, creating a sustainable future is a cause I care deeply about. Packaging is not the most eco-friendly of industries, so raising awareness and educating customers about the environmental impact of packaging waste and providing them with alternatives is of the utmost importance to me.
6. What is the role of Business, Supply Chain, and Change Leadership in addressing these challenges?
To ensure that our customers (and ultimately, their consumers) embrace sustainability efforts that will leave a cleaner environment for generations to come, we need to make sustainability simpler and more cost effective. If adopting sustainable best practices isn’t easily attainable or adversely affects the bottom line, businesses won’t do it.
As leaders within the industry, we need to illustrate to our customers how sustainability efforts can lower costs while reducing their carbon footprint by offering out-of-the-box packaging solutions. At Trinity, our packaging specialists find ways for businesses to use less packaging, which cuts down costs and minimizes environmental impact.
Last year, we saved over 400,000 pounds of plastic from landfills and oceans by converting customers from traditional plastic products to more sustainable alternatives like biodegradable stretch film.
Trinity is committed to zero landfill waste, and we have various national programs that help simplify operations, maximize budgets, and ensure processes are as ergonomically and environmentally friendly as possible. Through our National Pallet Buyback Program, where we buy broken pallets from customers and either repair them or turn them into mulch, we saved over 250,000 pallets from ending up in landfills.
7. What are you working on these days?
My goal is to take Trinity from a $100 million company to a $1 billion company. To do this, I’m taking Trinity international. Our wholesale division currently services the United States, Canada, and Mexico, but I want to take things to the next level and build an international expansion team. Why settle for one market when we can bring top-quality products to customers around the world?
Another opportunity I’m excited about is GPO purchasing. Our model allows us to partner with GPOs for leveraged pricing, and we have developed the capability to integrate with most enterprise operational systems through API, EDI, and punch-out to automate and standardize the procurement process for all GPO members.
I’m also working on scaling our team. Operationally, Trinity’s e-commerce catalog has been a game changer. We’ve seen incredible demand since launching the site, and data is showing that we’re able to generate more new accounts in a single day of web sales than one salesperson previously could in an entire month. To keep up with the demand, we’re hiring more sales reps and customer service specialists to continue to provide our customers with exceptional service.
8. What advice would you give to people who have a career in, or who are considering joining, Business and/or Supply Chain?
It goes without saying that, in any field you are venturing into, you should be hardworking. Growing up, I always had to work for whatever I wanted to do, and it instilled a really great work ethic in me where I would never back down because I was tired or wanted to quit. I just worked until the job got done, and I think that’s been the key to my success in business.
You also need to be extremely flexible and nimble in your approach. What works today may not work tomorrow, and you need to be able to adjust with the rapidly changing market.
Lastly, business is relationship-based. You need to be able to sell, whether it’s your company and what it stands for or your product. When a customer calls up with a need or a concern, always start by listening. Understand, “Hey, how can we fix this? How can we make this better? If you’re out of film, we can help. We’ll find a way.” Don’t just say, “Hey, your product shipped and is on its way.” Get out there, hustle, and find a way to make it happen.
9. How can people contact Anthony Magaraci?
You can follow Anthony Magaraci on LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com/in/anthony-magaraci/) or reach out to me on Trinity’s press kit page.