June 25, 2007
Shred head
A chat with Heather Rideout, founder of File-Busters in Lisbon.
Founded: January 2006
Employees: Rideout, one full-time worker and two part-time workers
Startup costs: $650,000
Revenue, year one: $50,000
Projected revenue, year two: $150,000
Contact: (800) 373-7566
95 Lisbon Rd., Lisbon 04250
www.filebusters.net
What kind of services do you offer?
File-Busters is a records-management center and we specialize in secure shredding and recycling as well as records storage.
Why did you start this business?
File-Busters actually developed because of the need. My husband was a surgeon and he was closing his practice because we were taking the family to New Zealand for a year. He was looking for a records-management center that would manage his medical files for him.
In the Lewiston-Auburn area, we needed people who would shred the files or [store them], and there was no one that did the whole thing. We came back from New Zealand and I started researching it. I found out that it meshed with my need to do something to help the environment. For every ton of paper we shred, 17 trees are saved.
How did you start the business?
I went to shredding school down in Georgia, [at American Document Securities Inc.]. It's for people already in the business or interested in getting into the business. It basically takes [students] through the nuts and bolts ˆ how your plant is set up and what equipment you need, how you go about your marketing, how you go about your sales. After I went to shredding school, I put together my business plan.
How did you get startup funding?
Part of it was private funding. We did a lot of funding ourselves and then we got a bank loan.
Were banks receptive?
No, it was very difficult. Just being a new business, there was no financial history. I ended up securing [loans] mostly through personal assets. Things that were tangible, like the work truck, the furniture in your office, your computer equipment, I could secure with loans.
How does the process work?
We have these big carts that hold about 300 lbs. of paper. We'll drop off carts and they'll fill them up. The carts are loaded onto our truck and the truck comes back to our facilities. Once the paper is off-loaded, we run it through the shredder. Then we bail the paper and take it over to the pulp mill where it's recycled into new paper. After people have their paper shredded, we send them a certificate in the mail [saying] how many boxes or carts they've shredded, for an audit trail.
How much is it per cart?
Well, that's quite dependent on the volume. That I don't really want to share because that's a real competitive thing and competition would love to know that information. I don't want people to come to me based on price. I think that we're a really good resource.
What is the competition like?
The market isn't saturated. There's room for all the companies out there to grow because Maine is becoming more aware that things have to be shredded. Most businesses now need to have a policy about how their confidential paper is handled.
As opposed to just dumping it in the recycling bin?
Right. A while back, that's what people did. They thought dumping into a recycling bin would be fine, but it's not. A lot of people think, "Oh, it goes to the recyclers, the details are going to be made into paper or whatever." But often, if a bail gets wet or gets broken open, the paper is there for everyone to see.
Who are your clients typically?
Well, medical and financial fields are the most regulated. Those people probably use the services more because they have specific laws. Most of our customers are within a 90-mile radius.
What are your plans for the future?
We are looking at getting into document imaging. So we'll be scanning people's files and then we'll be storing their files on computer servers. One of the things we are doing is, for every customer we had last year, we are planting a tree, in conjunction with the Androscoggin Land Trust. Last year I had 31 customers, so I am planting 31 trees native to Maine.
New Entrepreneurs profiles young businesses, 6-18 months old. Send your suggestions and contact information to kelson@mainebiz.biz.
Founded: January 2006
Employees: Rideout, one full-time worker and two part-time workers
Startup costs: $650,000
Revenue, year one: $50,000
Projected revenue, year two: $150,000
Contact: (800) 373-7566
95 Lisbon Rd., Lisbon 04250
www.filebusters.net
What kind of services do you offer?
File-Busters is a records-management center and we specialize in secure shredding and recycling as well as records storage.
Why did you start this business?
File-Busters actually developed because of the need. My husband was a surgeon and he was closing his practice because we were taking the family to New Zealand for a year. He was looking for a records-management center that would manage his medical files for him.
In the Lewiston-Auburn area, we needed people who would shred the files or [store them], and there was no one that did the whole thing. We came back from New Zealand and I started researching it. I found out that it meshed with my need to do something to help the environment. For every ton of paper we shred, 17 trees are saved.
How did you start the business?
I went to shredding school down in Georgia, [at American Document Securities Inc.]. It's for people already in the business or interested in getting into the business. It basically takes [students] through the nuts and bolts ˆ how your plant is set up and what equipment you need, how you go about your marketing, how you go about your sales. After I went to shredding school, I put together my business plan.
How did you get startup funding?
Part of it was private funding. We did a lot of funding ourselves and then we got a bank loan.
Were banks receptive?
No, it was very difficult. Just being a new business, there was no financial history. I ended up securing [loans] mostly through personal assets. Things that were tangible, like the work truck, the furniture in your office, your computer equipment, I could secure with loans.
How does the process work?
We have these big carts that hold about 300 lbs. of paper. We'll drop off carts and they'll fill them up. The carts are loaded onto our truck and the truck comes back to our facilities. Once the paper is off-loaded, we run it through the shredder. Then we bail the paper and take it over to the pulp mill where it's recycled into new paper. After people have their paper shredded, we send them a certificate in the mail [saying] how many boxes or carts they've shredded, for an audit trail.
How much is it per cart?
Well, that's quite dependent on the volume. That I don't really want to share because that's a real competitive thing and competition would love to know that information. I don't want people to come to me based on price. I think that we're a really good resource.
What is the competition like?
The market isn't saturated. There's room for all the companies out there to grow because Maine is becoming more aware that things have to be shredded. Most businesses now need to have a policy about how their confidential paper is handled.
As opposed to just dumping it in the recycling bin?
Right. A while back, that's what people did. They thought dumping into a recycling bin would be fine, but it's not. A lot of people think, "Oh, it goes to the recyclers, the details are going to be made into paper or whatever." But often, if a bail gets wet or gets broken open, the paper is there for everyone to see.
Who are your clients typically?
Well, medical and financial fields are the most regulated. Those people probably use the services more because they have specific laws. Most of our customers are within a 90-mile radius.
What are your plans for the future?
We are looking at getting into document imaging. So we'll be scanning people's files and then we'll be storing their files on computer servers. One of the things we are doing is, for every customer we had last year, we are planting a tree, in conjunction with the Androscoggin Land Trust. Last year I had 31 customers, so I am planting 31 trees native to Maine.
New Entrepreneurs profiles young businesses, 6-18 months old. Send your suggestions and contact information to kelson@mainebiz.biz.
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