STEPHANIE HERZOG

In the late eighties, after college, Phil DeLange moved with his new wife Debbie to Vero Beach from Daytona Beach to accept a position as an aircraft engineer with Piper Aircraft. The newlyweds spent the next two years falling in love with Vero’s hometown charm. In 1989 Phil lost his job with Piper in their bankruptcy. To make a tough situation worse, the young DeLanges had recently bought a house and discovered they were expecting their first child.

Phil and Debbie dreamed of raising their family in Vero Beach and could not bear the thought of leaving, so Phil began investigating various career opportunities outside the scope of his field. Finding a 6 month old Pak Mail franchise for sale in South Vero Square, Phil launched his career in the business world. He was intrigued by Pak Mail and the company’s straightforward approach to the packing and shipping business, so Phil and Debbie took a leap and purchased their first Pak Mail.

As a leading shipping company known internationally, Pak Mail has earned a stellar reputation as a one- stop-shop for residential and commercial packing and shipping services, specializing in their ability to ship anything, anywhere. Whether one is sending a crated fragile family heirloom or a grand piano to a destination that is down the road or across the globe, Pak Mail integrates it all into one convenient and affordable process.

Most shipping carriers offer only limited packaging options and flat shipping rates for a limited range of items, usually enacting size and weight restrictions as well. Pak Mail has traditional box packaging or custom wrapping and crating available for any size item, then the package and its destination are evaluated in order to determine the best method of shipment for the customer; transit by air, ground and sea are all utilized to provide various shipping choices based on price, speed and the nature of the item shipped.

After the opening of their first store in 1989, the DeLanges gradually built up their shipping enterprise to include four locations across Vero Beach and the state of Florida. They took care to ensure all of their stores exemplified the Pak Mail standard of efficiency, integrity and community. With this winning formula, Phil and Debbie’s businesses continued to evolve and grow over the years to meet the ever rising demand for quality shipping.

Initially, services offered at Pak Mail included custom packaging/crating as well as comprehensive national/international shipping and delivery. However, the DeLange family saw constant opportunity for innovation and realized the community’s need for reliable moving services. With this in mind, Phil expanded his Pak Mail franchise to include White Glove Moving, Storage & Delivery, a certified moving company which can handle moving jobs of any size and storage in a climate controlled facility.

With the integration of White Glove, Pak Mail Beachside reached a new level of convenience- there was now a single company able to combine the pick up, packing, storing, shipping, receiving, inventory, delivery and set up of any shipping order into one doable process.  With this success, in 2005 Phil opened another White Glove operation in Miami to service the South and Central Florida market. Anna Valencia, VP of Marketing commented “It really is a full service type of approach and Phil’s vision has been instrumental in the success of both growing companies”.

In addition to its status as the area’s primary shipping hub, Pak Mail Beachside has also been a positive influence in the community. The DeLanges continue to give back to the town they love by enacting ecofriendly recycling policies and participating in charitable pursuits such as the Cell Phones for Soldiers Campaign, Move for Hunger, his church, Master’s Academy, as well as supporting many other local charities. In so doing, Pak Mail Beachside has managed to stand out among thousands of other locations nationwide as a model of ethical business and community service.

The DeLange family has gradually grown along with their business ventures; Phil and Debbie now have five children and one grandchild, and still happily reside in Vero Beach. Through their efforts, the Pak Mail/White Glove name has become a symbol of professionalism as it enters its 25^th year of business and will continue striving to meet the needs of Vero residents every day.