Much of the cardboard and paper goods strewn about our homes — the mail-order boxes and grocery store bags — are sold by a single private company, with its name, Uline, stamped on the bottom.

But it was a challenge, she quickly ascertained, to find another supplier whose extra-large double-walled cardboard boxes were as cheap as Uline’s. For companies that ship only small things ...

Uline currently has 13 distribution centers, and its corporate headquarters is in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin. "It's weird to develop a love of corrugated boxes and shipping supplies, but I really ...