From Cradle to Grave in the Uline Catalog

A few days ago, I thumbed through the latest issue of the Uline catalog, an inch-thick treasury of industrial solutions for every imaginable warehouse scenario. It occupies a niche in the catalog market, with most of its products impervious to muddy feet, chemical waste and general abuse. I receive this hulking volume because I ordered a wooden dolly a few years ago during a move, making me a valued customer to the Wisconsin-based company.

Most catalogs land in the kitchen garbage can before the...