Focused on providing quality service to customers and educating them on effective ways of recycling, this growing company has accomplished a lot since it opened and continues to expand into new areas of the industry.
Rizz Containers & Disposal (Easton, PA) was developed in 2011 as a part-time business. At the time, Robert Rizzolino also owned a nursery/landscaping business with his three brothers; however, after a growing concern with how seasonal it was, especially in their area, and with the the waste industry being a 365 days per year operation, Robert became very passionate about waste and recycling. He and his brothers eventually sold the nursery/landscaping business and Robert officially made Rizz Containers & Disposal a full-time company in 2014. He was able to dedicate all of his time to his garbage company. When asked the question “Why a garbage company?” He responds, “Garbage never stops.” However, his main motive behind starting the company was to provide for his wife and three children who were just beginning their college careers. In 2018, his son Robbie Rizzolino graduated from North Carolina State and joined the company as Director of Operations, managing weekly trash pickup and distribution of 2, 3, 4, and 6-yard dumpsters, both in commercial and residential services. In 2019, his daughter Nicole Rizzolino graduated from The Jay S. Sidhu School of Business and Leadership at Wilkes University and also joined the company as Director of Marketing, Advertising and assisting with office operations. Meanwhile, his daughter, Karissa Rizzolino, is pursuing her Doctorate in Psychology.
Dealing with trash, C&D collection, commingles and single-stream recycling, Rizz Containers & Disposal currently has nine employees and 12 vehicles and serves areas in Pennsylvania—Northampton, Lehigh, Monroe, Bucks and Carbon counties—and in New Jersey, including Warren and Hunterdon counties.
Meeting Challenges
According to Robert, one of the greatest challenges within the garbage industry is recycling. Knowing the importance of recycling and the benefits of doing so is something everyone needs to learn more about. “As a company, it is our goal to educate our customers on what and how to recycle properly. We use social media platforms such as Instagram, Twitter and Facebook to reach not only our own customers, but also the general public as well. We like to repost articles regarding recycling around the world and other important information that deals with the garbage industry. A lot of our customers have reached out to us via social media and telephone asking what they can do to become a better recycler.” The office staff have put together a document that they send out to customers informing them on effective ways of recycling. Robert believes the interest in recycling is at an all-time high right now, however, it is important to do it correctly and get everybody on the same page.
Although Rizz Containers & Disposal is surrounded by national companies, Robert is very focused on providing quality service to his customers. He believes this is a major key to success. “No matter how much we grow, we will never go to automated phones. I believe in creating a relationship with our customers when speaking one-on-one with them on the phone.” Robert has thought about hiring a veteran or disabled person to answer phones when things get busy. “This will not only create jobs for people, but will also continue to create a bond between us and our customers. As we grow, I plan on hiring veterans and the disabled to help with answering phones and dispatching.”
Safety First
When Rizz Containers & Disposal hires new drivers, they have two weeks of mandatory training with an existing driver and an eight-hour class with Robbie that covers proper safety procedures and other company rules and regulations. “It doesn’t matter if they have 30 years of experience or 30 days, each new driver goes through the same process,” stresses Robert. Drivers also go through a series of ongoing training reviews via once per month mandatory meetings. Topics include: cell phone usage, texting, proper visibility, flashers on lights, headwear, footwear, making sure of your surroundings and keeping the office informed of any malfunctions of the truck, like if a light is out, a blinker, brake light, etc.
A big believer in “Safety First”, Robert makes sure his trucks are safe enough to go on the road each and every morning. Inspection checks include tires, brakes and lights. If there is ever an issue with a vehicle, he has his maintenance man fix it as soon as possible to ensure safe driving for not only his employees, but also anybody else on the road. If there are bigger issues with the truck, the driver will go out in a backup truck that is on standby if needed.
Robbie’s role also includes being the Safety Coordinator and every month, he holds monthly safety meetings with company drivers and employees. “We make sure all drivers wear florescent safety vests every day and they each have a hard hat in their truck for when it is needed. We are also looking into florescent safety pants for them. Backup cameras are also a must in our trucks,” says Robert.
Giving Back
When it comes to community outreach, Rizz Containers & Disposal not only sponsors many local sports teams, but Robert also recently painted his first ever breast cancer awareness dumpster. The feedback was so overwhelming that the company decided to paint a few more of their dumpsters. The dumpsters are pink with white lettering and read ‘Faith, Hope, Cure.” “The ‘Rizz’ on our dumpsters, garbage cans, and trucks has become our trademark and we worked really hard to brand the name. Our dumpsters are like billboards and have helped our company grow so much in a short amount of time, so we wanted to adopt an organization to help bring awareness to the public. We picked Breast Cancer Awareness because it affects so many people. I wanted to do this in order to show that Rizz Containers is not only a garbage company, but also is a company that cares about its community and especially those affected by this disease. We have gotten overwhelming responses from friends, family, customers and people we don’t even know—many thank yous and e-mails. We also held a promotion that if you took a picture of the dumpster and sent it to us, you received a free breast cancer awareness t-shirt,” says Robert. The pink dumpsters stay out all year and on October 27, the town held their annual Halloween parade where Rizz trucks and pink dumpsters were on display.
The city of Easton is all about tradition. Easton Area High School has a 110-year tradition of being in a football rivalry with Phillipsburg High School on Thanksgiving Day. The game is played at Lafayette College and is sold out every single year. “Both Easton and Phillipsburg High School alumni come back home for something we call Turkey Week, which is full of festivities and events. One event we participate in every year is the bonfire. Throughout the entire year we collect wood and donate it to the bonfire.” It is important to Robert that he gives back to the place that helped shaped him.
A 5-Star Reputation
A challenge that the company has faced over the years and continues to face is the reputation of being a “small” company, which gives people the impression that Rizz Containers cannot live up to the expectations of nationwide companies. However, Robert says that is far from the truth. “Rizz Containers overcomes this challenge by providing excellent customer service to all of our customers. Actually, being a small company works out to our benefit because we are able to create a relationship with our customers, which is more difficult for nationwide businesses. I am very proud of having a 5-star reputation on Facebook and Google.”
Robert explains, “When I started Rizz Containers & Disposal, I didn’t want to just be a regular run of the mill garbage company. I wanted to be known for our high-quality customer service and as of today, we are. I remember, for the first few years, I answered the phone, I dispatched, I scheduled deliveries and I wrote and sent out bills. I was so nervous to hire my first full time roll-off driver, Randy Lippincott, in 2013, then to hire my first full-time office manager, Rose Mercado, in the same year—both who are current employees of our company.” He points out that the amount of roll-off containers in inventory and the work that is done during the day is mind-boggling and that is all achieved by great dispatching and setting up their logistics the night before—dropping off, picking up, and where to dump containers in a timely and safe manner.
As the company hires new people, they are always looked at as a new member to the team, in which Robert is a big believer. The company is family owned, so their employees are truly part of the family. “We don’t have a lot of employees, but we have quality employees. Robbie really takes his time hiring key people for key positions. When you hire smart people, you don’t have to keep telling them what to do every day. We might not have 1,000 or even 100 employees, but the ones we have are very good at their jobs. I am very appreciative of the employees that I have. We always have people filling out job applications which is a great feeling. My strong belief is that quality equipment, great safety skills, and a pleasant work environment draws in quality employees.”
Robert says there are far too many company achievements to list them all. However, his biggest honor was receiving the Easton Area High School Community Leader Award in 2015. “I was very proud to receive this recognition from my high school 30 years later for community service. To be awarded at an award ceremony hosted at the school and then being invited on stage during graduation was a big honor.” He is so proud of how far his company has come. Starting it as solely a roll-off container company, it has grown tremendously in a short amount of time. “Rizz Containers has expanded into weekly/bi-weekly garbage and recycling pick up services, clean-outs, junk removal, bulk item pick-ups, compactor services and, of course, roll-off containers.” Currently, Rizz Containers hopes to keep growing and expanding into new areas of the industry. Says Robert, “The list of goals and future plans could go on and on. Expanding our coverage area is a strong focus for 2020. However, our main goal is to keep our 5-star reputation and keep providing our customers with the best of the best service. From behind the scenes in the office all the way to drivers—we have accomplished so much, and we can’t wait to see what the future holds for our young company.” | WA
For more information, call (610) 438-2814, e-mail [email protected] or visit www.rizzcontainers.com.