Meet The Team

Laura has been captaining this ship for at least 30 years; if we told you exactly how many, you’d have to walk the plank. She spent her entire career in the packaging industry before founding ForeFront Packaging in 2004. The team appreciates Laura for her keen oversight and compassionate leadership. When we can get her to stop working, she enjoys spending time by the lake with her husband and two cats.

This year, Nathan celebrated his 10th work anniversary! Technically, Nathan has been in FPC his entire life; our largest customer sent Laura a baby shower gift for him. Nathan has his hands in all the pies around here, helping our customers source materials, design artwork, and launch new products on a regular basis. Nicknamed “the Solution Guy,” Nathan is an idea machine, eagerly offering resources and guidance on request. Passionate about innovation, he helps shape company initiatives and plan new efficiencies on our Strategic Leadership Team. When he’s not sharing interesting facts with the team, he is probably cooking a new recipe, playing piano or getting his 10,000 daily steps in nature.

Erin has eight years with FPC under her belt. She has primarily acted as our inventory systems architect, designing methods to track usage that are as efficient as they are aesthetically pleasing. Although her attention to detail is insane, she is also creative and incredibly handy, cultivating the industrial décor theme of our office and building pipe shelves and desks by hand. Although she recently transitioned to part time to spend more time with family, she is so useful, she is not allowed to ever leave us. She finds the most joy in fostering rescue dogs with Adopt-a-Bull or doing a crossword over brunch with her husband.

Meredith’s nickname is the Queen, because since spring of 2019, she seems to oversee just about everything and does it with style. Meredith is a key contact for multiple customer accounts, manages all pricing and serves as the operations rep on our Strategic Leadership Team. Always with a smile and a notebook, she will meet any request to your specifications, before the deadline, and might even throw in a joke that would make your uncle jealous. She enjoys cooking in her painstakingly-renovated kitchen and adventuring in Chicago with her boyfriend.

Crystal joined the team in December 2019 and truly shines as our marketing content creator. She writes blogs and creates infographics, analyzes data for the BD team, and puts her creative talents to work to better connect our services to food brands in need. Crystal also serves as Cultural Communicator and head of the Party Planning Committee, and finds great fulfillment in celebrating team birthdays, anniversaries and holidays while also coordinating quarterly team outings and community service events. She loves performing in plays and re-watching TV shows with her husband/co-worker Lucas.

Aleyna joined the team in November of 2020, which was the highlight of the craziest year in recent memory. She goes above and beyond basic bookkeeping: Aleyna transformed our AP system to be completely paperless, customized our Salesforce CRM for optimal inventory management, and is a go-to resource for problem-solving operations. Aleyna loves all things K-pop, animal and Costco-related, and hates everything else. She is the mother to our adopted llama, Cinnamon.

In August 2021, our team got 200% funnier because Bryan joined our ranks. He brought six years of experience in logistics and account support, quickly rising to serve as our logistics lead and the point person for all freight coordination. If you looked up “Team Player” in the dictionary, you’ll find Bryan’s headshot. He never hesitates to help out a teammate in the weeds and is a never-ending fountain of knee-slapping Dad jokes. He is a loyal friend, an avid bowler and #1 Fun Uncle to MJ.

Originally from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, he met his now-wife Crystal in 2018 and is a US permanent resident. He is currently a part-time student at DePaul earning his master’s degree in Data Science and applies his new skills on projects for FPC. He serves as the account manager for our largest wholesale bakery, communicating with each plant and analyzing their inventory to ensure they never run out of packaging. Lucas is a goofy dancer, an exercise-aficianado, and the most curious person you will ever meet.

Our Atlanta-based sales rep is armed with 22 years of sales experience. Michele takes “people person” to a whole new level; it feels as if there is no one she hasn’t met! With a business-first approach, she is adept at customer assessment and support and leverages her exceptional communication skills for easy interaction with customers and vendors. When she’s not taking care of her customers, you might find her at a Braves game, the neighborhood pool or gardening in her backyard with her two dogs.

Roy came on board at the beginning of 2017, although he and Laura had been working together for years. He is a highly accomplished professional with a background in finance and many diverse talents. Roy finds a way to balance work and play, traveling extensively to trade shows and international destinations. Roy is based in Chicago and a huge hockey fan on and off the ice.

Erik is our newest addition to the team, bringing his six years of experience in business development to FPC in August 2022. He is a bright go-getter with a warm, friendly energy. Erik is quick to strike up a conversation with everyone, be it our newest customer, or Lupe from housekeeping. Always grateful for others, “I appreciate you!” is his signature catchphrase. Erik spends his time working out, cooking, and making friends with strangers.