When no one else will haul it away, who ya gonna call?
1-800-GOT JUNK? 02/03/2006
Source: Boulder County Business Report
Author: Laurie M. Fisher
BOULDER - When Ferral Dietrich's family recently moved to Boulder and renovated the basement, she knew who to call to haul away debris - 1-800-GOT-JUNK?
"We just moved from Washington, D.C, and had used the franchise there about five times over the past two years," Dietrich said.
Michele Kuester of Boulder found 1-800-GOT-JUNK? online, filled out a form and was contacted by local representatives.
"I just purchased my house this summer, and the previous owners thought that Xeriscaping meant filling the yard with random landscaping rocks and leaving it at that," she said. She had piles of rock with no clue on how to remove them. Six truckloads later, the service had cleared the yard.
"They ended up needing more truckloads than they had anticipated, but they stuck to their estimate," she said. Next year when she tackles the backyard, she plans to hire them again._
In December, Lilly Wallace and her brother Lorn Powell purchased the local franchise, one of 217 operating in 48 of the largest 50 metropolitan areas in North America. Locally, the franchise covers territories in Boulder, Louisville, Lafayette, Longmont.
1-800-GOT-JUNK? is a Vancouver-based junk removal company that takes away anything city garbage haulers or nonprofit charities won't remove. Founded under the name The Rubbish Boys in 1989, the company was renamed 1-800-GOT-JUNK? in 1998. In North America, the company recycles and donates 60 percent of the junk removed from homes and businesses.
Fees are based on volume, with no weight or labor charge. Customers contact a centralized call center and are assigned two-hour time slots for junk pickup. They are then notified within 15 minutes of the arrival of the 400-cubic-foot truck and given a no-obligation estimate of the service.
Wallace learned about the daily operations as a truck driver for 1-800-GOT-JUNK? in Ann Arbor, Mich. A former photographer who wanted to try something different, she decided to move to Boulder and attend Naropa University to study contemplative psychology.
"I got a call from the former (1-800-GOT-JUNK?) partner who owned the territory to work for him," Wallace said. She ended up driving the truck and handling the marketing. Several weeks later, she learned the owner was looking to sell his franchise. She convinced her brother that this was a viable business opportunity, and they flew to headquarters in Vancouver to secure the deal. Wallace will work part time while completing her degree, and Powell will manage the business full time.
Now, with two new blue trucks they plan to hire a small staff. They are currently focusing on marketing efforts, which include distributing door hangers, direct mail, radio ads, magnets and promotional gadgets. In keeping with corporate tradition, workers in bright blue uniforms and Afro wigs stand alongside busy intersections and attract attention waving to traffic.
"We want to show people junk removable doesn't have to be so dirty and foul - it is fun," Wallace said. She emphasizes the business is for both residential and commercial clients. For example, the service cleans up for contractors, Realtors, storage units and management companies and can be available within 24 hours. They haul away moldy boxes, crates of attic leftovers, renovation or construction materials as well as piles of brush, trees or gravel. All junk is removed without the owners touching any of it.
In environmentally friendly Boulder, Wallace estimates that more than 70 percent of junk is recyclable, and she tries to keep discards out of the landfill. "We pick through everything to donate or recycle," she said. Some items are taken to Savers, Salvation Army or EcoCycle.
It's the personal touch that makes the difference, Dietrich said. "The truck driver just called back this evening. He noticed a family photo we forgot to unpack, and said he would stop by the house to return it to us," she said. |
