Start a recycling business
The waste and recycling sector is vast, however, there are a lot of areas that remain untapped, often due to large recycling companies and waste management equipment that make the market value seem too small, so a recycling business, among other reasons, can be highly profitable. For example, you might focus the business on collecting materials that are difficult to recover or difficult to recycle, such as certain plastics, carpets and synthetic fabrics. And there are many examples of small businesses and recycling companies that focus on glass and come up with innovative ways to use it, among other types of innovative companies in this sector.
See here the main environmental and ecological businesses
How much does a recycling business cost?
Depending on the area in which the business will be conducted, the initial costs of waste and recycling may vary. According to experts, it has become more expensive in recent times, possibly as a result of falling prices for household basket commodities.
The costs of a recycling business have increased considerably, but are still not as expensive as the entry costs required by other forms of business such as financial services, for example, as the quality of staff required in the two are very different.
There is a degree of investment, and how large it can be, depends on your approach, i.e. whether you need more storage or workshop space, machines for processing or manufacturing, a fleet of vehicles, or skilled personnel, among many others. It is also necessary to take into account the costs for the application of your town planning and other licenses for this type of business and the vehicles that will be used for such purposes.
However, remember that you can subcontract a lot of these things, you do not necessarily have to have a fleet of trucks, or buy all the machinery or rent the premises, especially when you are just starting your recycling business.
Tips and Advice
Contact all industry bodies and government agencies that will help you evaluate your proposal thoroughly, get as much information as you can. The legal side is usually the most complicated, so consider hiring a consultant in this area, mainly for health and safety issues, so using a consultant to come in and review the business processes will help considerably. For a recycling business that involves manual handling and employs many people, hiring a consultant is certainly a worthwhile investment.
As with any other type of business, it is important to have a very focused service offering. People need to know exactly what services our recycling business provides, you need to focus on what the customer wants to receive and how they are going to order it. You also need to take into account that you need to help your customers place their orders, as well as how they are going to invoice and what information they need to obtain for that purpose.
The waste and recycling sector is very difficult, and much of your competition will be bigger and more established, so look for large customers even if they do not use your services very often, this will give you much more credibility and you will be able to access new customers gradually and upwards.}
Requirements for starting a recycling business
When you decide to start a recycling business, you must plan the types of materials you expect to reuse in order to define the type of products you want to sell. A good example is the recycling of fabrics into garments. Then, like all types of businesses, make the appropriate records.
It is important to look for the location of the establishment, which is a suitable place for the transformation of these materials and where the greatest number of clients can be attracted to visit the commercial premises.
Advantages of having a business
One of the great advantages of this commercial area is to support the causes of environmental preservation, encourage the reuse of discarded materials and demonstrate that functional objects can be made from them.
Another great advantage of starting a recycling business is that the materials you want to market can be sold at a very low cost, thus offering very accessible products to customers. Nowadays it is very necessary to start this kind of business due to the pollution problems of the planet.
Problems that can arise
In the recycling business, customers may not be convinced that
acquiring products made in this way, presenting information on the process of creating the products offered, could appease these drawbacks.
Some of the recycled materials may not be suitable for reuse, so a relevant selection of the collected material should be taken into account to work in the business, otherwise this factor may represent delays in the manufacturing process of the products.
Success stories
Bolado, Gestión de Residuos, is a successful company leader in the removal, management of debris and pruning in construction site containers. Likewise, its trajectory and commitment with the environment makes it the only private initiative company with a treatment plant.
Another renowned and successful company is Femarec, which is dedicated to the integral management and
separate collection of waste, properly managing the waste, to make it useful again for consumption or, if not possible, to dispose of it in a safe way.