Reed Disposal wants 100% Customer Satisfaction

Trash hauling is a dirty job with high expectations."Every day I'm tested with my job, and I have to get 100 percent every day or I'm not making someone happy," he said. Mark and his wife, Robin, bought Husker Waste Systems in August 2001. Mark started working for Husker Waste Systems in 1996 and helped grow the customer base in Holdrege. He is proud to be the owner of the only locally owned sanitation service in Holdrege and prides himself on reliable service with competitive prices. For Mark Reed, owner of Reed Disposal in Holdrege, that means he has to be right 100 percent of the time.

The business has doubled its Holdrege customer base since Mark purchased the company, and he would like to see that Holdrege base grow even larger. But one of the biggest obstacles holding him back has been finding reliable, dependable help. Trash pickup requires a sharp memory and attention to detail as house numbers aren't displayed in alleys and customers immediately know if their trash hasn't been picked up. Because of this, Mark hasn't missed a day of work that wasn't planned for 15 years. He even jokes that his three children, Maddy, 12, Zach, 9, and Josh, 8, cooperated in the family business by making sure they were born on weekends.

"I don't miss because I'm sick," Mark said. "I don't miss because I'm hurt, but I would eventually like to take a vacation."And Robin would love to plan a long vacation where Mark could join the family too.

Once you get involved in the community, people are a lot more receptive to you also," Mark said.And he feels youth activities are the driving force behind continued success in smaller communities."I think kids are the foundation for a community, and supporting youth activities is what is going to keep these kids from moving away," he said. "If you have a strong connection with youth, maybe they'll want to come back to Holdrege after college."

Reed Disposal also provides trash service for rural Phelps County, as well as Harlan, Kearney, and Franklin counties, in the towns of Ragan, Hildreth, Republican City, Atlanta, Harlan County Reservoir, and at Bethphage Mission in Axtell. As landfill regulations continue to tighten, Mark said it will be important for trash services to keep up. That is part of what drives him to be successful."It's a challenge to me," Mark said. "I want to be the best at what I'm doing."