Mr. Joe Foster
2020 WinnerAustralia
Australia
Joe's forty years running flexible packaging businesses across the globe is proof that he sees beyond what flexible packaging is,to what it can be, and hopes to create an evolved understanding of flexible packaging and the place it holds in society. His goal is to improve the relationship we all have with plastics, helping inspire new respect for packaging and lead towards improved consumer and waste behaviours.
Joe has provided countless free innovation and sustainability presentations and seminars to a variety of industry sectors, as well as sessions for large private corporations and global clients overseas. He continues to persuade people along the packaging supply chain to not fear packaging innovation, but keep an open mind and instead find solutions that can further the application of flexible formats across all categories.
The numerous recognition and awards won by both Foster and Omniverse Foster in both packaging and business spheres have been of great importance to Joe, as it helped confirm the importance of his passion and contributions to the packaging industry as a whole, as well as to his employees. His son Regan won the PIDA Award: Young Packaging Professional of the Year for 2018, having learnt the business from his father. Regan is now undertaking a Diploma in Packaging Technology through the AIP and represents the new generation of packaging professionals. It brings Joe immense pride to see those around him succeed, with all employees considered family, not just those related to him. Packaging truly is his life, and he wouldn’t have it any other way.
Joe also is a lecturer on the Australian Institute of Packaging education team and provides the industry with training on The Future of Flexible Packaging.
As one of very few people across the globe that have run four flexible packaging businesses in four countries across a 40 year career Joe was also the first to multiple markets with short run digital printing and local pouch-manufacturing, offering services across South Africa, UK, Australia and NZ before any other packaging company. Joe himself helped engineer the pouch machine currently used by O.F. Pack in their Melbourne warehouse, and spent many long nights perfecting the processing side of the business.
As Co-Director and Co-Founder of O.F Pack (formerly known as Omniverse Foster Packaging Group) in Melbourne’s south-east, Joe has worked hard since to help create a fundamentally customer-focused business, that still allowed the capacity to service both domestic and international markets efficiently. Joe has never waivered from his ethos that the business should be customer-centric, and driven by packaging solutions and innovation rather than purely servicing the every-day packaging and processing ‘norms’. The merger between Omniverse Group and Foster Packaging in 2016 provided the best platform for the company to grow further, and pursue a greater breadth of services locally as well as overseas. Between 2016 and 2018, Joe spearheaded the formation of both The Pouch Shop (to manage the local digital printing and small volume packaging market), as well as Inno Bagclosures (a bag closure supplier to rival U.S. company Kwiklok in the Australian marketplace).
Joe’s expertise is well noted by the packaging community in Australia and New Zealand, and his success hasn’t gone unnoticed. Joe was awarded the 2029 PIDA Industry Packaging Professional of the Year Award for his 40 years in the flexible packaging industry. OF Packaging has also won numerous PIDA Awards.
Joe has presented at a variety of events, including the AIP National Conference, AIP National Technical Forum, AIP Technical Dinners and seminars, the 2019 Global Packaging Forum at ProPak Asia, as well as for the PKN Publication LIVE Conference and AUSPACK Packaging and Processing Exhibition. Joe is a long-standing support and member of the Australian Institute of Packaging (AIP) and recently joined the education team to give back to the industry and to share his 40 years of expertise with future packaging professionals.
Joe Foster, Co-Founder & Director, OF Packaging has had a passion for flexible packaging for most of his life and has run four flexible packaging businesses across four countries over the last forty years. Joe has spent the majority of his career working to not only understand flexible packaging at its core but progress the possibilities of flexible plastics with a continued focus on packaging innovation. Joe Foster’s true legacy revolves around his resoundingly passionate attitude towards flexible packaging. Joe is recognised in Australasia for his kindness, passion and generous attitude to share all of his years of experience and knowledge with others. He goes out of his way to ensure that everyone is better educated in flexible packaging. His 40 years of flexible packaging expertise and as an owner of a reputable flexible business in Australasia is proof that he is a world-leader in a very competitive field. He also brings with him extensive global flexible packaging knowledge as he continues to work across the world and ensure that OF Packaging's designs and innovations are cutting-edge.
Outside of the packaging sphere, his entrepreneurial spirit and strong work ethic saw him win the 3AW small business award, while also prompting the Victorian Government to use his story for an international migration campaign. The businesses contribution to the economy, 30+ employees, and continued investment in local printing and manufacturing, shows a great commitment to the Australian packaging industry that few other suppliers share
Joe has provided countless free innovation and sustainability presentations and seminars to a variety of industry sectors, as well as sessions for large private corporations and global clients overseas. He continues to persuade people along the packaging supply chain to not fear packaging innovation, but keep an open mind and instead find solutions that can further the application of flexible formats across all categories.
The numerous recognition and awards won by both Foster and Omniverse Foster in both packaging and business spheres have been of great importance to Joe, as it helped confirm the importance of his passion and contributions to the packaging industry as a whole, as well as to his employees. His son Regan won the PIDA Award: Young Packaging Professional of the Year for 2018, having learnt the business from his father. Regan is now undertaking a Diploma in Packaging Technology through the AIP and represents the new generation of packaging professionals. It brings Joe immense pride to see those around him succeed, with all employees considered family, not just those related to him. Packaging truly is his life, and he wouldn’t have it any other way.
Joe also is a lecturer on the Australian Institute of Packaging education team and provides the industry with training on The Future of Flexible Packaging.
As one of very few people across the globe that have run four flexible packaging businesses in four countries across a 40 year career Joe was also the first to multiple markets with short run digital printing and local pouch-manufacturing, offering services across South Africa, UK, Australia and NZ before any other packaging company. Joe himself helped engineer the pouch machine currently used by O.F. Pack in their Melbourne warehouse, and spent many long nights perfecting the processing side of the business.
As Co-Director and Co-Founder of O.F Pack (formerly known as Omniverse Foster Packaging Group) in Melbourne’s south-east, Joe has worked hard since to help create a fundamentally customer-focused business, that still allowed the capacity to service both domestic and international markets efficiently. Joe has never waivered from his ethos that the business should be customer-centric, and driven by packaging solutions and innovation rather than purely servicing the every-day packaging and processing ‘norms’. The merger between Omniverse Group and Foster Packaging in 2016 provided the best platform for the company to grow further, and pursue a greater breadth of services locally as well as overseas. Between 2016 and 2018, Joe spearheaded the formation of both The Pouch Shop (to manage the local digital printing and small volume packaging market), as well as Inno Bagclosures (a bag closure supplier to rival U.S. company Kwiklok in the Australian marketplace).
Joe’s expertise is well noted by the packaging community in Australia and New Zealand, and his success hasn’t gone unnoticed. Joe was awarded the 2029 PIDA Industry Packaging Professional of the Year Award for his 40 years in the flexible packaging industry. OF Packaging has also won numerous PIDA Awards.
Joe has presented at a variety of events, including the AIP National Conference, AIP National Technical Forum, AIP Technical Dinners and seminars, the 2019 Global Packaging Forum at ProPak Asia, as well as for the PKN Publication LIVE Conference and AUSPACK Packaging and Processing Exhibition. Joe is a long-standing support and member of the Australian Institute of Packaging (AIP) and recently joined the education team to give back to the industry and to share his 40 years of expertise with future packaging professionals.
Joe Foster, Co-Founder & Director, OF Packaging has had a passion for flexible packaging for most of his life and has run four flexible packaging businesses across four countries over the last forty years. Joe has spent the majority of his career working to not only understand flexible packaging at its core but progress the possibilities of flexible plastics with a continued focus on packaging innovation. Joe Foster’s true legacy revolves around his resoundingly passionate attitude towards flexible packaging. Joe is recognised in Australasia for his kindness, passion and generous attitude to share all of his years of experience and knowledge with others. He goes out of his way to ensure that everyone is better educated in flexible packaging. His 40 years of flexible packaging expertise and as an owner of a reputable flexible business in Australasia is proof that he is a world-leader in a very competitive field. He also brings with him extensive global flexible packaging knowledge as he continues to work across the world and ensure that OF Packaging's designs and innovations are cutting-edge.
Outside of the packaging sphere, his entrepreneurial spirit and strong work ethic saw him win the 3AW small business award, while also prompting the Victorian Government to use his story for an international migration campaign. The businesses contribution to the economy, 30+ employees, and continued investment in local printing and manufacturing, shows a great commitment to the Australian packaging industry that few other suppliers share