Flash

ENTREPRENEURIAL SPIRIT ACROSS 4 GENERATIONS

The Wipf Group celebrates its 100th anniversaryDigital printing Wipf is the world‘s first beta user

Trade shows Successful kick-off: Innovationparc Packaging (Interpack 2014)

Products Superbly packaged

Customer magazine2014 Edition

Editorial 2 Flash | 2014

Dear customers and partners,

We are now 100 years old and still young!

A remarkably eventful year started in 2014. First of all, the Wipf Group turned 100 – as a privately owned enterprise! Despite difficult phases, the owner family always stood behind the company and resisted all temptations to generate short-term profits. We, the employees, are grateful for that. But you, as customers and partners, always had and continue to have the assurance of of working with a reliable supplier. Our underlying values – quality, innovation, reliability, customer orientation, social stewardship, and sustainability – are not empty phrases. They have evolved over time and today give you the certainty that we will give our very best to assist you in the development of new and sustainable solutions.

On the other hand, we as the Wipf Group and also as Wipf AG are eager to explore new avenues and give new technologies a chance.

What has happened since January 2014: Our Elco Shop went online for B2C (Business to Consumer) processes. Visit www.myelco.ch to

see the many products our subsidiary can personalize for you. A high-performance digital press was inaugurated on 20 January by Swiss Direct Marketing AG,

the youngest subsidiary of the Wipf Group. After an 18-month development phase, Wipf AG was the first European beta user of the latest

digital printing technology when it commissioned the first HP Indigo 20000 press. This issue of Flash provides details and explains what we expect this investment to yield.

In our role as a pioneer, we are delighted to acquaint you with new and interesting options based on the link between the digital world and the realm of flexible packaging. Now, you can expect to tap into many new opportunities. Just like Coca-Cola, which boosted sales with a personalized label, you can set yourself apart from the competition with new concepts and position yourself as a unique and innovative market player. All it takes is a good idea and a conversation with our specialists.

We will celebrate the anniversary appropriately before the summer holidays begin. Details on our history and the festivities are provided at the end of this issue. I would be very happy if you could take the time to join us in raising a toast to our storied past and to an interesting and innovative future rooted in a spirit of partnership.

With kind regards,

Hansruedi SchafflützelCEO

Impressum

PublisherWipf AG, Industriestrasse 29, 8604 Volketswil SwitzerlandPhone +41 (0)44 947 22 11 Fax +41 (0)44 947 22 89info@wipf.ch www.wipf.chwww.wicovalve.com

Responsible for contentKarin Weidmann, Marketing Manager, karin.weidmann@wipf.chEditorial staffWipf AG, MarketingGraphic Design ConceptFBM Communications AG, Zürich

PhotosWipf AG© Copyright by Wipf AG, 2014 All rights, especially distribution rights, reserved. Reproduction of text and images, translations into foreign languages and duplication are prohibited.

Published once a year / Downloadable as a PDF from www.wipf.ch

For 5 years now, we have been in a close working relation-ship with Compass Group, one of the world’s largest providers of catering and food services. As a specialist in serving nursing centres and hospitals, Compass

Group has enjoyed international success in the health-care sector for the past several years, not least due

to the innovative DreamSteam® cooking process, which is marketed under the Steamplicity®

trademark. With the DreamSteam® system, complete meals can be quickly prepared in portion trays or pouches in microwave ovens. The WICOVALVE® valve integrat-ed in the system regulates the pressure

built up in the microwave while the food is being cooked. The fast, gentle, and fresh

food preparation method is appreciated par-ticularly in nursing centres and hospitals.

Shortlist 3

In this Flash2 Editorial

3 Shortlist Successful collaboration with Compass Group / Sales team strengthened /

Climate-neutral packaging

4 Markets First beta user worldwide – Wipf AG invests in a further digital press

5 Trade shows High exposure in Germany and the USA

6 Products Superbly packaged with innovative solutions

7 Marketing and communication Entrepreneurial spirit across 4 generations – The Wipf Group celebrates its 100th anniversary

The Wipf Group – with its three operating companies Wipf AG, Elco AG, and Swiss Direct Marketing AG –is celebrating its 100th anniversary on 20 June 2014. We cordially invite you to come to Volketswil and celebrate with us. / page 7

Climate neutrality is becoming a more and more important criteria in packaging busi-ness. For this reason, we have been com-mitted to climate protection together with the myclimate environmental organization since early 2012. myclimate is an interna-tionally active organization based in Swit-zerland. It ranks among the leading pro-viders of voluntary compensation schemes. You have the option to offset the emis-sions generated in the production of your packaging by committing to various pro-jects. Your contributions support mycli-mate’s certified climate protection projects. All contributions are forwarded to mycli-mate which in turn guarantees that the same volume of CO2 will be offset across a maximum of three years. We trust that you will continue to decide in favour of cli-

mate-neutral pack-aging and make a crucial contribution toward a better en-vironment.

For further information, visit www.myclimate.org or contact our sales team.

Climate-neutral packaging

C E L E B R A T E W I T H U S

I N V I T A T I O N

You are cordially invited to attend our anniversaryparty in Volketswil on 20 June 2014.

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In early February 2014, Ms Gülcin Gök joined our subsidiary Wipf Doypak A.S. in Turkey as Head of Sales. She has several years of flexible packaging market experience. During her career, she held a number of management positions in various industries. In her new function, Ms Gök (42) will be responsible for new customer acquisition and distribution.Additionally, Ernst Herrmann and Monika Signoriello will support the sales team in Volketswil. They both have many years of experience in the packaging industry. Most recently, Ernst Herrmann was a key account manager and Monika Signoriello a sales executive. Ernst Herrmann will develop digital printing activities at the national and international levels, while Monika Signoriello is responsible for expediting Wipf’s export business.

Confirmation

The Swiss climate protection organisation myclimate confirms that

Wipf AG in Volketswil, Switzerland

participates in the myclimate program carbon neutral packaging.

Confirmation-Number: 111010-107342

myclimate - The Climate Protection Partnership is registered under Swiss Federal Law as a non-profit, tax exempt foundation that promotes climate protection. Date of issue: 5th July 2011 File number: 11/10 312

Zurich, 4th of Januar 2012

René Estermann Chief Executive Officer

Sales team strengthened

Successful cooperation with Compass Group

4 Markets Flash | 20144

FIRST BETA USER WORLDWIDE

Wipf AG invest in a further digital press

As a reel fed press designed primarily to handle flexible packaging materials, the HP Indigo 20000 accommodates rolls with a width of 76.2 cm (30 inches) and a repeat length of up to 1.1 m (44 inches). With this width, it covers virtually all sizes and materials used for flexible packaging films and pouches. The printing technology of the HP indigo delivers very good roto-gravure like quality with up to 7 colours and meets all requirements.Digital printing offers numerous advan-tages for successfully implementing cus-tomer projects. The print data is transferred directly to the press and requires no plates. Therefore, the production process is very fast and flexible, and the consistently high quality is one of the key benefits of this printing method. Additionally, we use the Esko Webcenter to handle the “OK to print” process online. The Esko WebCenter is a high-performance web-based platform for

packaging that handles the entire digital data organization process. Fast and pre-cise display tools are always available, which is another advantage. Because of the intelligent approval and review process, the user-friendly interface, and not least the tools that are perfectly tailored to packaging, WebCenter is the ideal platform for managing and releasing graphics files.The HP Indigo 20000 allows us to increase our productivity and take a quantum leap forward in quality. Needless to say, this system also delivers all the other advan-tages of digital printing:

With digital printing, the precise amount of short-run stock can be printed just-in-time in exactly the right quantity.

Digital printing assures that the printed packaging material fulfils all relevant legal requirements.

As the first of 4 beta users worldwide, Wipf AG is investing in an additional digital press. The performance of the HP Indigo 20000 and the consistently good results are impressive. The beta system was installed in early March 2014.

4

Above: The assembly team

Left: The new digital press HP indigo 20000 guarantees a high degree of printing accuracy with minimized material consumption.

Cost-effective production thanks to digital prepress work, which drastically shortens makeready times before printing.

No printing plates or cylinders needed. Less spoilage and waste, lower energy

consumption. Minimal inventory.

The joint beta phase between HP and Wipf involves testing the press for pack-aging films and pouches for the flexible packaging industry. The commercial re-lease is scheduled after completion of the beta phase in the course of 2014. The first packaging samples were shown at Inter-pack in Düsseldorf from 8 to 14 May 2014. A milestone in the 100-year history of the Wipf Group.

Markets 5

EXHIBIT ION REVIEW

High exposure in Germany and the USA

From 2o to 22 March 2014, we success-fully presented our WICOVALVE® line for the second time at the NCA Conven-tion. The 103rd edition of the show took place in New Orleans, where key deci-sion-makers from well-known US cof-fee roasting companies convened.

Malte Jonsson, VP Sales & Marketing, summed it up: “The many professionals who visites our stand and the great in-terest in our valves once again confirmed that our presence here makes sense.” With partners such as Printpack, a lead-ing US flexible packaging manufacturer, El-Plast, and Planet Label, we were able to boost awareness of WICOVALVE® thanks to a co-branding initiative on various promotion packages.Our participation at the show was worthwhile, and we had many project-related meetings. Wipf’s presence in New Orleans confirmed how important it is for us as a venerable Swiss company to seek exposure in the USA. We plan to be at the show again in 2015.

Interpack 2014 was a great success

The world’s most prestigious packag-ing industry fair – Interpack – attracted 2700 exhibitors from 60 countries as well as about 179,000 visitors this year. For us, it was a great success. The at-mosphere was vibrant and many con-tacts were forged.

In the midst of other packaging compa-nies in the Innovationparc Packaging, our première was a welcome opportunity get acquainted with new potential custom-ers. Visitors and exhibitors convened to creatively exchange thoughts in the SAVE FOOD context and jointly develop vision-ary ideas regarding fundamental social, economic, and ecology topics. Accord-ingly, seats and standing room in the forum were always booked during the presentations that were held there. Malte Jonsson, VP Sales & Marketing, lectured on “Steamplicity – how Compass Group

helped hospitals reduce Food Waste through Innovative Packaging Solutions from Wipf AG” and was delighted to be able to address such a large audience.During the show, it became clear that stand visitors were mainly interested in the broadly diversified and multifaceted possibilities offered by digital printing. The bio valve was the second highlight at In-terpack. Many visitors found the different combinations involving biodegradable components to be particularly appealing.We forged many interesting contacts, and upbeat mood was not only tangible, it was visible as well. “We’ll expect very good post-show business; many people who visited our stand came to us with specific enquiries for which we had perfect solu-tions,” says Head of Sales Melanie Hauser.

The WICOVALVE® line thrilled customers in the USA

From left to right: Malte Jonsson, VP Sales & Marketing, was delighhted to be able to address such a large audience. Promotion packages with WICOVALVE® valve.

Malte Jonsson, VP Sales & Marketing, lectured on “Steamplicity – how Compass Group helped hospitals reduce Food Waste through Innovative Packaging Solutions from Wipf AG”.

Products 6

INNOVATIVE PACK AGING SOLUTIONS

Superbly packaged

Agrícola Nova S.A., an innovative company based in Chile, has been active in the agricultural sector for over 20 years. Apart from fresh pro-duce, it also markets a broad line of deep-frozen products, including vege-tables and fruit. Since the spring of 2014, the company has been market-ing corn on the cob in a retortable POLIVEL® stand-up pouch under the well-known Agrinova brand.

Because the pouch is heated at 800 W directly in the microwave oven, we rec-ommended a POLIVEL® laminate. It is a premium laminate that is suitable for ap-plications of this kind. In addition to a longer shelf life, it offers extra protection against aroma loss, oxidation, moisture, and odours.The pouch is particularly simple to open thanks to convenience features such as tear notches and double laser scoring. The film is printed with high-end gravure quality. Thanks to a window on the front side, the consumer can see the product, which can make a decisive contribution to the purchase decision.

For more than 30 years, Laboratoires Filorga from France has been devel-oping medical care products used by leading experts in the field of aesthetic medicine and plastic surgery. The spe-cialist for anti-aging solutions recently launched a new product: a mask for hands and nails that delivers rejuve-nating active ingredients through the skin. The innovative product is distrib-uted in a rigid stand-up pouch.

The pouch is made of a POLIALUVEL® laminate which is particularly suitable for aggressive products. The selected thick-ness of the stock is 200 microns. The laminate, processed in this thickness for the first time, assures optimized light pro-tection and a longer shelf life. Gravure technology with partial mat lac-quer was chosen to assure a high-fidelity printing result on the film. Additionally, the customer upgraded the pouch with several convenience features such as a starter notch, laser perforation, and a re-closeable zipper. The innovative personal care product is distributed in France.

Wipf AG has launched the world’s first biocompostible valve. The WICOVALVE® W606E was developed especially for the coffee industry and can be com-posted according to industrial. stand-ard EN 13432 in combination with bio-degradable laminates. This innovation is yet another milestone introduced in the centennial year of Wipf AG.

The WICOVALVE® valve technology has been systematically refined in the past 30 years to attain the highest conceivable quality standards. Thanks to a failure rate of less than 0.01%, comprehensive func-tionality, and a shelf life of three years, the valves represent the widely accepted benchmark today. The extensive range of valves has now been ideally complemented with the bio-compostible W606E. It is based on the highly popular W606 coffee valve and is designed for heat-sealing. In combination with biocompostible laminate materials, the coffee roaster can now offer a pack-aging system that is totally biodegradable and provides optimized protection of whole-bean coffee against aroma loss. This world first addresses the growing demand for biopackaging.

Corn on the cob in sterile packaging for a longer shelf life

Luxurious stand-up pouch for the cosmetics industry

World first: Bio valve for coffee packaging

Retortable stand-up pouch for corn on the cob Aggressive product packaged with a rigid laminate WICOVALVE® W606E – Bio valve for the coffee industry

Flash | 2014

Marketing & Communication 9

ENTREPRENEURIAL SPIRIT ACROSS 4 GENERATIONS

The Wipf Group celebrates its 100th anniversary

On 1 January 1914, Heinrich Wipf (1st gen-eration) incorporated Wipf & Feldmann in the centre of Zürich. He acquired all machines and activities from his appren-ticeship supervisor Carl Lüdin, whose company of the same name produced paper bags in a factory building on the Limmat River. After having completed his training, Heinrich Wipf worked for Carl Lüdin as an accountant and was later promoted to authorized signatory. Because Lüdin had no successor, he suggested that Wipf take over the com-pany. It was the beginning of a very successful corporate history. Due to a lack of space on the original premises, Heinrich Wipf and his then partner Hans Feldmann moved the company to a new location somewhat outside the city centre. Even at that time, the emphasis was on investing. In 1926, for example, Wipf & Co. – with Heinrich Wipf (2nd gen-eration) in command – commissioned a modern 3-colour rotary press for paper bags. In the years that followed, the company boomed and grew continu-ously. In 1970, Heinrich R. Wipf (3rd gen-

In 2014, the privately owned Wipf Group established by Heinrich Wipf celebrates its 100th birthday. The history of the company has been forged by tradition and innovation across four generations. This is one of the reasons why group members Wipf AG and Elco AG were able to achieve leading market positions in Switzerland and Europe – the former in flexible packaging, the latter in envelopes and stationery.

eration) moved the business to a new production location in Volketswil – yet another important milestone in the com-pany’s history. Since it was incorporated one hundred years ago, the Wipf Group has experienced sustainable growth by leveraging a successful combination of tradition, innovation, technology, and in-vestment. The Group consists of Wipf AG in Volketswil, which is active in flexi-ble packaging, Elco AG in Brugg with its well-known ELCO brand in the station-ery and envelopes segment, and Swiss Direct Marketing AG, also in Brugg, which was recently incorporated and is spe-cialized in cross-media multi-channel direct marketing campaigns. Today, the Wipf Group ranks among the most emi-nent and innovative packaging special-ists in Europe. It generates annual sales of 150 million Swiss francs.

Dynamic family enterprise now in its fourth generationChristian H. Wipf, Chairman and CEO of the Wipf Group, represents the 4th gen-eration of the owning family. “Looking

forward, our traditional Swiss values – quality, dependability, and honesty – as well as the firmly established Wipf and ELCO brands remain constant values while our products, services, and tech-nologies will evolve in an environment characterized by rapidly changing mar-ket and customer expectations.” Thanks to outstanding employees and market partners, Christian Wipf is convinced that the company can master the com-ing challenges in development and prod-uct management. He is also certain that the Wipf Group’s export quota and for-eign market shares will grow beyond the 50% benchmark. Wipf AG in Volketswil substantiates that this is a realistic scenario: its export share is already 70% today.

From left to right: Heinrich Wipf, Active 1914 – 1944 Heinrich Wipf sen., Active 1926 – 1974 Heinrich R. Wipf, Active 1958 – 1999 Christian H. Wipf, Active 1991 – today

The Wipf Group invests in Swiss production resourcesChristian H. Wipf is committed to the location in Switzerland as well as to pro-gressive and socially responsible working conditions. Every day, some 500 employ-ees focus on delivering premium-quality products and services. The company’s management views the 100th anniversary as a fitting opportunity to ambitiously look forward and create the prerequisites for continued success in the future, for in-stance with strategically important invest-ments. Last year already, latest-generation digital presses were installed at the plants

in Volketswil and Brugg, and myelco.ch was introduced as Switzerland’s – and the world’s – first online shop for customized stationery as well as gifts and comple-mentary items. Doing business sustaina-bly and caring for the environment – this is the philosophy endorsed by the Wipf Group with a full commitment and latest technologies. For example, group-wide CO2 emissions were reduced by over 50% in the past years. Successful com-panies have the ability to continually improve and adjust to changing market situations. Christian H. Wipf is certain that the companies of the Wipf Group are

superbly positioned for the future and looks forward to successfully mastering the challenges ahead with dedicated em-ployees, loyal customers, and dependa-ble suppliers and partners.

Cardboard eyelets for shopping bags and document mallers

First Paper bag maschine 1890

1939 – 1950 New factory on Badenerstrasse

1914 Incorporation of Wipf & Feldmann

1926 – 1939 Production of cardboard boxes

Anniversary party 2014 – Celebrate with us!The Wipf Group – with its three oper-ating companies Wipf AG, Elco AG, and Swiss Direct Marketing AG – is celebrating its 100th anniversary in Volketswil this year. We cordially invite you to come to Volketswil and celebrate with us. Join our party and enjoy a few pleasant hours in unique surroundings.

We look forward to receiving your registration.

New: Register online! www.wipfgroup.com/100yearsor scanning the QR code.

Programme friday, 20 june 20143:45 pm – 5 pm: Production facility tour, optional5 pm – 6 pm: CocktailsAbout 6:10 pm: Welcome address by Christian Wipf6:25 pm – 9:30 pm: Dinner and screening of anniversary videoFrom 9:30 pm: Party

1949 – 1952 Incorporation of Seetal AG envelope factory

Webbased bag machine

1970 Relocation to the new premises in Volketswil

The seventies Development of WICOVALVE® valves

TodayIn the digital age …

Paper and plastic bag samples

POLAR trimmer

2012 Incorporation of Swiss Direct Marceting AG

Elco postcard app and personalised SDM landing page

2002 – 2007Promotion of the Elco brand

HP Indigo 20000 digital press

Event preview

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www.wipfgroup.com/100years or scanning the QR code.

Wipf AGIndustriestrasse 298604 VolketswilSwitzerland

Phone +41 44 947 22 11Fax +41 44 947 22 89

info@wipf.chwww.wipf.chwww.wipfgroup.com/100years