The Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce is pleased to recognize Danny's Dumpster as Small Business of the Month.
Read on for our interview with owner Danny Keaton.
Tell
us a little of the history of the company
In 2007, Danny Keaton began hauling trash and recycling in the
back of a 1985 Toyota van for residents in Madison County with the laid back
motto, "Danny's Dumpster - You Make It, We Take It". But in 2008,
when green legislation passed in North Carolina requiring businesses with
alcoholic beverage permits to recycle their bottles, Danny recognized that the
future of trash lay in responsible disposal, not mass disposal. He began
offering all-inclusive hauling -- compost, recycle and trash. With an emphasis
on compost collection, Danny opened a local certified compost processing
facility in 2012, simultaneously diverting large volumes of materials from area
landfills, while creating quality topsoil as a by-product for the community. As
the business continues to grow, thanks in large part to the vision and of his
customers and the dedication of his employees, Danny's Dumpster is able to more
fully realize its mission: "Working towards a waste free WNC by
enabling, educating and inspiring people to dispose responsibly and reduce
waste through composting and recycling."
What
are you most proud of about the company
I am probably most proud of the
fact that we started out with little more than an idea and a working
opportunity, and we've managed to not only survive amid competitive giants but
thrive, thanks in large part to a community that values local relationships and
responsible business practices.
Danny Keaton (left) and staff pose with Chamber president Kit Cramer |
Your
favorite thing in your workspace
Hands down - relationships with
our employees. Whether its 90 degrees out and we're up to our elbows in pungent
compost, or we're standing in the middle of downtown traffic hefting 200-pound
carts of compost and recycling into our trucks -- the co-worker standing next
to us is most likely the only one who can help us laugh our way through the
situation. More significantly, it is a continually rewarding process to work
with people you respect... for their work ethic and for the relentless strides
they make in their daily life to be better for their family, their community
and their own self.
Best
advice you’ve gotten for leading a small business
Some of the best advice I've received, business or otherwise,
has come from my father-in-law, who has taught me: it's not about leading a company to success, its about
adding value to the lives of individuals and influencing them, by your own
example, to do the same. Whether professionally or personally, we all want
to lead lives of significance, and that has everything to do with the character
of our relationships and the beliefs that shape that character.
What’s
next on the horizon?
I'm constantly
scouring for innovative ways to improve and accelerate our composting process.
With the help of an upcoming North Carolina Department of Environmental
Resources grant we hope to put some of our ideas into action. We are also
working to expand our compost hauling service to residential customers, and
we're excited to see that the City of Asheville has residential compost
collection on its radar as well. The Small Business of the Month program allows the Asheville Chamber to recognize outstanding small businesses for their contributions to the community. Nominate an Asheville area business.
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