Start your own recycling company is a good way to generate income and show solidarity with the environment. Every day the number of people who become aware and recycle what they throw away is increasing.
In addition, governments are creating new initiatives for society to recycle, and are launching grants and subsidies for businesses that engage in this activity.
The best thing is that there are still few ventures in this sector, and although it is an industry that has a lot of potential, few are the companies that are dedicated to it.
If you want to enter this booming industry and start your own recycling company, here I show you the 7 steps you must take to create your own recycling business.
1. Choose the type of recycling you want to do
The first thing to think about is what type of recycling company you are going to start.
There are many options here: recycling of paper, metal, plastics, even automobile wheels.
However, you should not do it based on what you like, but on the possibilities that are around you.
Maybe you want to start a glass recycling company; but if in the area where you will start your business there are hardly any wastes of this type, you will not be very successful.
So it is vital that you first do some research on what materials are thrown the most in your area and which could be recycled.
After this, it is also important that you check if there are other businesses in that area that are dedicated to recycling the materials that you have chosen.
This type of business is not like a clothing store or opening a restaurant. , where on several streets there may be 3 or 4 different businesses of this type.
In a recycling business, unless you have a very good strategy to differentiate yourself, the competition can be very tough.
2. Find out who your buyers will be
You may have thought about what materials you are going to recycle, the machines needed to do it … But who will buy you the recycled material?
You should investigate who will be the customers to whom you sell your products because that part of the process will be the one that really generates benefits for you.
In a recycling company, it is normal for your buyers to be other businesses. So take a good look at who your potential customers might be.
Here are some customer ideas that you could look for:
- Small and medium-sized companies that sell some type of recycled product (papers, notebooks, furniture made with recycled materials).
- Small and medium-sized offices that use recycled materials (such as pens, pages, clips and staples, etc.).
- Companies that distribute products to large stores such as shopping malls or chain stores.
- Colleges and universities (you can also sell notebooks; litter bins, seats made from recycled wood, etc.).
- Public administrations such as city councils or ministries, since these government agencies are the first to show an awareness of the environment.
- Businesses that are dedicated to manufacturing products solely or for the most part with recycled materials.
- Craft workshops dedicated to making objects with recycled material.
If you have a little more budget for this business, a good idea would be to rent a place where in the back is your small recycling factory, and in the front you would put a store where you can sell recycled items.
For example, if you decide to recycle paper, you can rent a place with enough space to put machines that recycle it and make office supplies in the back room, and in the front, a stationery store.
3. Create your business plan
Every new business should have a business plan to guide the first steps, and to help if any problems arise in the future.
So if you already know what materials you are going to recycle and to whom you will sell them, make a good plan with the rest of the important questions for your company.
Every good business plan must provide answers to essential aspects such as:
- What will be the product or service to be sold.
- What is the potential market for the project.
- What competitors are there or what competition can arise.
- What is the available budget, how much will it cost to start the project, and whether or not financing will be needed (and how to get it).
- Who will compose the company (how many employees will there be, who will be the director or owner and what tasks will be performed, etc.).
- What benefits are expected to be generated, making calculations between what the production will cost and the final sale price of the product.
- The basic steps to start the project.
- And what will be the marketing and sales strategy that will be implemented.
4. Check the grants and apply for an opening permit
The education of citizens often begins with the governments themselves. And in each country, these organizations put in place aid and subsidy systems for those businesses that want to dedicate themselves to recycling.
So a good idea is that you go to your town hall or ministry of environment and development to inform you of possible financial aid for you.
There are also grants for new entrepreneurs that you can take advantage of to finance your recycling company.
So find out before requesting a loan from the bank if you don’t have enough money to start your project.
In addition, it is important that you carry out the necessary procedures to register your business and obtain an opening license.
For this type of business, you usually need a permit to resell items (even if they are recycled) such as gold, car wheels, and other delicate materials.
5. Choose how you will collect the materials
To start this business, you will also have to think about where you will collect the raw material that will start your project.
There are several ways you can put into practice to collect waste that will later be recycled.
For example, you can put a clean point in some crowded area where you put a container for the material you have chosen to recycle, and so people will throw away the waste for free.
The second option would be to offer to go house to house to collect the waste; here you can make the service free, or get paid a small amount to withdraw it from homes.
Remember that here, if you decide that the collection is free, you will have to have the gas expenses of the truck with which you provide the service.
As a third option, you can agree with different businesses and companies to collect free materials that are no longer used in their facilities, and take them to your small recycling plant.
Here you can collaborate with offices that frequently throw away paper and cardboard if you want to recycle paper or with bars and factories if you are going to reuse materials such as oil, metals, plastics or glass.
6. Find a place for recycling
Now that you know where to get the materials, customers to sell to, and a good business plan, it’s time to find a location for your recycling company.
Depending on the products you are going to recycle, you will need a bigger or smaller place, and it may be located in the city center or on the outskirts.
If you want to recycle paper, you can rent a small central location; But if your business will be made of glass, the warehouse will have to be bigger because the articles made with this material usually take up more than paper.
The most important thing here is that you check the necessary space, because there are machinery for these companies that usually occupy more than other types.
7. Contact the machinery manufacturers
This is the final step to start your recycling company. When you have seen a few stores to rent, contact different manufacturers of recycling machinery and ask each for a budget to know their prices.
Depending on the money you have to invest in this, you can rent or buy the machines you need.
Not all manufacturers offer the option of renting them, but every day there are more who are doing it because they see that it is more profitable for them than selling only one machine.
My personal recommendation is that at first rent the machinery in case your business does not go as you expect; this way the investment will be less and you will run less risk.
And if you can agree to a rent with an option to buy in the future, the better.
Take a good look at what conditions of sale (guarantees, repairs, etc.) each supplier offers you, and what price is the most suitable for your budget.
Once you have taken all these steps, all you have to do is start collecting the materials, hitting the power button on your machines, and recycling and earning money!
A recycling company can be a very lucrative project if you know how to manage it, and you will also sleep better at night knowing that you are doing something valuable to change the world.
And you, have you thought about starting your own recycling company? Leave me a comment below and tell me what you think about this type of business. Be green!
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