Michael Licata

Background

About Michael Licata

My journey in this field started near Rochester, NY working on a small dairy farm. We had just 40 cows, one tractor, and two full-time employees, but we strived to be a superior dairy committed to producing safe, wholesome, high-quality milk for families while providing excellent care for the cows and the land. That inspired me to attend university to earn a BS degree in Printing with a focus on Packaging to design and decorate product packaging for a range of fast-moving-consumer-packaged goods. I learned about materials, processes, and techniques for understanding the customer's needs. My first job after R.I.T. was with Avery Dennison Fasson. I was one of five applications engineers specifying pressure-sensitive label constructions for a myriad of applications across all verticals. Within several years, I was promoted to Sales and relocated from Ohio to Baltimore, MD. Despite Avery being a world-class organization with nearly $5 billion in annual sales and employees, I could not fathom the amount of waste being generated during the pressure-sensitive labeling process. Literally, every day hundreds of tons of liner and matrix went to the landfill which left me anguished. I left to join a start-up company called YUPO which was focused on low-waste labeling solutions. Although it was a huge risk to leave a Fortune-500 company to start a new company, it was the right thing to do. After 25 years, I still wake-up every day excited! I have made over visits to brands, molders, printers, converters, suppliers, all over the world. It's been great! It draws on my biggest strengths including my love to explore (ideas, technology, geography, life), to work with others, and to develop unique solutions whether they are technology, strategy, or teams. Recently, the Association of Plastics Recyclers invited me to chair a team called "Labels, Inks, and Adhesives" which is one of six working teams that are part of the Olefins Technical Committee. I am thrilled for the opportunity to work with APR and with my colleagues on this team because I want to be part of the solution. It connects my reason for getting into this field to all of my previous professional experiences. If you’d like to chat, please reach out to me, because I'd love to catch up with you!