I remember the first time John Anker asked me to come work with him. I said no. He asked again a few months later. I said no again. This went on for years — John asking, me declining, both of us going about our business. But that's the thing about John: he doesn't give up. Not on an idea, not on a person, and certainly not on his vision for what AnkerPak could become.
When AnkerPak started, it wasn't much to look at. John leased space in the old Litho-Krome building in Columbus, Georgia — a space that had seen better days but had the bones for what he needed. He started acquiring equipment piece by piece, often buying used machines that others had written off, then figuring out how to make them run better than new. Every dollar was stretched. Every decision was weighed against the question: does this move us forward?
What struck me most, even from the outside, was John's ability to see what wasn't there yet. While the rest of us saw a guy in a leased building with secondhand equipment, John saw a full-scale contract packaging and logistics operation. He saw production lines, he saw warehouse space, he saw a company that could serve major brands from right here in Columbus. That vision — stubborn, specific, and unwavering — is what finally convinced me to say yes.
Ten years later, and AnkerPak is still growing. The leased space in the Litho-Krome building has given way to over 350,000 square feet across four facilities. The secondhand machines have been joined by state-of-the-art production lines. But the vision hasn't changed. John still sees what isn't there yet — the next expansion, the next capability, the next way to serve a client better. That's what a young man's vision looks like when it's backed by decades of relentless work.