Reviewed by: Callie Morrison
This woman-owned business has been creating beautiful branding in Birmingham + beyond for 127 years
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What do Spanx, Big Spoon Creamery, Regions and Jack’s Family Restaurants have in common?
If you guessed that City Paper Co.—a woman-owned fourth-generation family business located right here in Birmingham—has created beautiful branding and packaging for them, you’d be right.
We sat down with Stephanie Friedman, who became their owner and CEO in June of 2023, to get the scoop.
Take a look at City Paper Co.’s creations
City Paper Co.’s tagline is “If you can dream it, we can brand it.”
After a recent inside look at their office, just off Montclair Road, we can definitely say they’re not wrong.
From packaging and promotional marketing to printing and their in-house art department, City Paper Co. really can put your company’s mark on anything you can possibly imagine.
Plus, they do it with a fabulous sense of style and genuine concern for their customers.
Meet Stephanie Friedman, owner + CEO of City Paper Co.
Stephanie Friedman is a graduate of the University of Georgia, where she focused on advertising, marketing and business.
UGA is where she met her husband Brad—a fourth-generation member of the Friedman family that’s been running City Paper Co. since the early 1900s.
Now, Stephanie is the owner and CEO while Brad serves as the company’s President.
They’re also the proud parents of two daughters, ages 10 and seven.
When they’re not at City Paper Co., you’ll find Stephanie and Brad shuttling the girls to gymnastics or tennis, being active, watching football, traveling or spending time with friends and family.
Stephanie credits a supportive team at work as key to the company’s success, plus family support to the family’s ability to juggle everything.
About her work, Stephanie said:
“Work is one of my passions. It makes it easy when you love what you do.
I love the creativity, our team and the ideas that we get to brainstorm for our clients. These people I get to work with are so talented and kind and challenge me to think bigger and take risks.”
Stephanie Friedman, Owner + CEO, City Paper Co.
Together with the rest of the team at City Paper Co., Stephanie Friedman is perfectly positioned to lead this 127-year-old institution into a new era.
One of the few thriving fourth-generation family-owned businesses in the US is now woman-owned
(L) Brad and Mark Friedman, 4th and 3rd generation Friedman family members by the company’s history wall; (R) Announcement of the company’s Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (Jacob Blankenship / Bham Now; City Paper Co.)
As one of Birmingham’s oldest companies, City Paper Co. has had some nail-biting times in its 127 years in business. That said, through tenacity, grit and endless creativity, the company has managed to keep reinventing itself for the times.
A few recent highlights include:
- Growing the company from near-bankruptcy a decade ago to thriving today.
- Having their best year in the company’s history during COVID, thanks to solid suppliers of medical supplies, personal protective equipment (PPE) and hand sanitizer that they were able to get to healthcare organizations and businesses in need.
- Being recognized in 2021 as the Family Distributor of the Year by the Advertising Specialty Institute.
- Receiving their Women-Owned Business Certification from the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC).
A who’s who of companies
One of the first things visitors to City Paper Co. see is their “swag room.”
It’s full of bags you’ve undoubtedly taken home from many a store or restaurant, plus all the branded things you could imagine, from backpacks to notebooks to flying discs and more.
Just a few recognizable clients through the years include:
- Alabama Outdoors
- A’Mano
- Bromberg’s
- Cafe du Monde
- Carnival
- Cracker Barrel
- Gus Mayer
- Jack’s Restaurants
- Kendra Scott
- Regions
- Spanx
- And more
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