Meet PackageIt’s #SeattleStrong Team:

PackageIt Team • June 3, 2021

Teresa Nelson, Quote Department Estimator

When the Northwest fully reopens after a successful COVID-19 vaccination campaign, customers at Seattle’s PackageIt won’t see much of Teresa Nelson at the company’s shipping, packaging and warehousing facility. As part of the company’s back-of-house team, Teresa doesn’t interact with customers. Instead, she connects with PackageIt vendors who supply crates, fillers, tapes and custom bags for PackageIt’s manufacturing and shipping clients.

Teresa’s role as quote department estimator enables her to work from Kelso, WA—about two hours from company headquarters. Her typical workday consists of contacting new and existing suppliers and negotiating reasonably priced supplies for Seattle packaging customers.

Both Sides of the Packaging Industry

Teresa’s connection with PackageIt and Operations Manager Bill Gunning began when she was employed by one of Bill’s longtime Portland, OR vendors. “I was the only one in the office, so I was responsible for customer service, purchasing, quotes, estimating and billing. I was a ‘jack-of-all-trades’ in the packaging world,” she jokes.

When the Portland vendor closed and Teresa was looking for a new employment opportunity, Bill Gunning invited Teresa to join PackageIt and work remotely from home. “I was grateful for the chance to move closer to family in Southwestern WA and pursue my new career with PackageIt,” said Teresa.

Teresa continues her virtual work schedule eight years later, but she connects daily with her team and fields email requests from account reps needing client estimates. PackageIt’s account team manages packaging specs for stock or custom products like specialty bags, custom crates and other shipping or packaging supplies.

“Once the sales team works out the product details, I get to work finding the best solutions for reasonable prices,” says Teresa. She generally contacts four or five packaging wholesalers before preparing an estimate. “PackageIt has a mix of approved vendors, both local and out-of-area, that we rely on for many client products,” Teresa said. The company has also developed a network Teresa and her colleagues can reach out to for unusual supplies. “Last week, I spoke to a company in Italy about a strapping machine,” she adds. “We’re open to building vendor relationships in both the U.S. and outside the country.”

A Portrait of Excellence

As a Seattle region packaging specialist, Teresa appreciates the challenge of tracking down unusual clamshells, boxes or cartons. She is also an agile, cross-trained team member who occasionally fills in for sick colleagues or provides additional labor for a significant project. “My job is never the same from day to day,” says Teresa. “We never run out of work, and if things slow down, Bill always has special projects he has set aside.”

In part, Teresa attributes her PackageIt success story to a quote she’s taped onto the side of her computer monitor. “I’m not sure where I found it, but it resonated with me, and it now sets the tone for my daily workflow,” she says.

Teresa says she now reflects on this anonymous sentiment in everything she does, from comparison shopping for her clients to managing vendor inventory. “I take my work seriously because working at PackageIt is much more than a job,” Teresa says. “Everyone is so nice and caring. All the employees pull their weight. It’s like being part of a good family, and it makes me want to do my part, too.”

Beyond the Virtual Workspace

When Teresa isn’t working from home, she puts energy into her yard and embraces cooking, fiber crafting and other home pursuits. “I like to garden, but I’m only good with green beans and wildflowers,” she laughs. “I’m a self-taught knitter, and I always have a skein of yarn within easy reach. I cherish the quiet, Zen mindfulness of knitting. I give away nearly all of what I make because it’s the knitting process I love the most.”

Another of Teresa’s talents is cooking, and she is best known for her chicken-bacon ranch pasta. “It’s a family crowd-pleaser that’s become a weekly menu staple around here. We all love it!”

Teresa and her boyfriend share a Kelso, WA home with three 13-year old children, one cat and their pugs. “When we’re together, we watch movies, visit with family and go to the seaside. I see the same people all the time, and it’s so nice,” she says.

Once a year, Teresa and her clan head to Hawaii, where they have access to a family condo. “We’re fortunate to go quite frequently since we only need to pay for the airline tickets, and we have an automatic place to stay. It’s great. It’s tough to get tired of Hawaii!”

Experience PackageIt’s Service Legacy

Teresa says PackageIt team members are 100 percent committed to premium customer service. “It goes beyond the warm smiles of our account reps and warehouse team,” says Teresa. “Behind the scenes, our packaging specialists chase quotes, track shipments and negotiate the very best deals on Seattle business and packaging supplies.”

“Teresa has been part of our PackageIt family for about eight years, and her previous industry background has been very beneficial. Her main role is estimating, but she regularly pitches in with other initiatives—like purchasing and managing our upcoming website portal,” says Bill Gunning, operations manager. “Teresa is one of our go-to people for special projects, and she spends a great deal of time interfacing with our sales team. She fits perfectly with PackageIt’s family culture, and we’re grateful to have her as a team member.”

To learn why most PackageIt team members call the Pacific Northwest firm their “second home,” call 888.743.0907 to speak with a member of our management team. For more information about the benefits of lowering shipping costs with lightweight custom bags and logoed tapes, connect online.

PackageIt Creates a Memorable Unboxing Experience

Our sales representatives know how to create an exceptional client unboxing experience. A recent study conducted by Dotcom Distribution found that 40 percent of online shoppers were willing to post on social media about their purchase when they received a carefully wrapped item arriving in an attractive, branded package. Unboxing helps drive customer loyalty and offers benefits like these:

Overcoming the “clinical” experience of buying online.
Empowering consumers to feel like their opinions are valued.
Creating a touchpoint that resonates with the carton recipient.
Providing an excellent first impression of your company.
Increasing perceived value of what is inside the box.
Sharing your brand story, so consumers get to know you better.

Request Seattle Packaging Supplies

To request specialty packaging options or shipping materials from PackageIt, use our convenient online form. These bespoke shipping and packaging supplies, like specialty bags, custom logo tape, luxury printed boxes and color-rich Inspyre tissue paper, delight your customers, win their loyalty and increase order frequency. Call now for Seattle packaging supplies: 888.743.0907.

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