The Great Franchisees: Joey and Becky Gamez: 1-800-JUNKPRO, Texas

Husband and wife team Joey and Becky Gamez are the owners of the Laredo Country Store in Laredo, Texas. Last year, after struggling to find a local dumpster service that could meet the needs of their store, they began researching services available outside of Laredo. That’s when they discovered 1-800-JUNKPRO, the emerging junk-removal franchise. 

After some research, the Gamez’s concluded they were not the only ones who could benefit from having a 1-800-JUNKPRO in Laredo, so they decided to open their own. Now, Joey and Becky are two of the newest franchisees with the franchise. 

1851 Franchise: Tell us your story – what did you do before franchising?

Joey Gamez: I worked for U.S. Customs for 11 and a half years.

Becky Gamez: I worked for Merrill Lynch as a financial advisor for 14 years. We also own the Laredo Country Store.

1851: How did you initially find out about franchising? 

Joey: The store we currently own is a franchising-type license with Purina, so we’ve known about the industry for a while. 

1851: Why did you choose franchising over starting your own business?

Joey: We looked into starting our own business, but we really liked the call center that 1-800-JUNKPRO has.

1851: Did you look into any other brands?

Joey: Yes, we looked at other brands that offered roll-up container services.

1851: Why did you choose 1-800-JUNKPRO? What excited you most about the potential?

Joey: We had a need for a dumpster ourselves with our country store and had issues finding one that fit our needs. We decided to take matters into our own hands and started researching various franchises that we could open in Laredo ourselves since there was a high demand. There’s a big potential for growth with 1-800-JUNKPRO, and we’d love to become multi-unit franchisees by opening up more locations in surrounding areas.

1851: What are your dreams with the business? What does the future look like?

Joey: Right now, we’re just offering roll-up containers not junk removal. Looking ahead, we want to expand our fleet to also offer junk removal. Again, we’d love to continue growing with the brand as well.

1851: What value do you see your business providing to Laredo?

Joey: The current competing companies in the market only provide big containers for large commercial operations. We have a niche market of folks who need our containers for smaller events and residential purposes.

1851: How has your experience with the 1-800-JUNKPRO team been so far?

Joey: We haven’t even received training yet and can already say how impressed we are with the corporate team. Mike Davis, 1-800-JUNKPRO’s CEO & president, has been wonderful to work with. We have had zero issues or complaints.

1851 Franchise: What do you do in your personal time?

Joey: I enjoy playing golf, hunting and fishing.

Becky: I love shopping in my free time.

ABOUT 1-800-JUNKPRO:

1-800-JUNKPRO is a leading junk removal and dumpster rental company headquartered in Wichita, Kansas. The company was first founded as Better Hauling Company in 1999 by husband-and-wife team Mike and Misty Davis as a way to earn some extra money. By 2007, the business was doing so well that Mike quit his corporate job and devoted himself full time to the business. In 2010, the Davises rebranded the company as 1-800-JUNKPRO and sold the first franchise in 2016 in Kansas City. Today, 1-800-JUNKPRO is a family affair, with Mike as CEO, Misty as CFO (Chief Fun Officer) and their daughter Brittany serving as Chief Experience Officer. The brand stands out in the industry by offering a simple, customer-centric business model that offers both junk removal and dumpster rental. Today, 1-800-JUNKPRO has six open locations and is on track to double in size in 2020 by targeting expansion in major metropolitan areas throughout the United States, particularly the Texas markets of Dallas, Houston and San Antonio. To learn more about franchising with 1-800-JUNKPRO, visit https://1-800-junkpro.com/franchise/.