Albrecht Launches Big Cobb Enterprises
Andrew Albrecht (’19 agricultural business) grew up on a family farm and has always been thinking of ways to expand the farm. He always wanted to do something in agriculture and become a business owner. Starting July of 2019, he found a market that he figured was there for the taking.
Big Cobb Enterprises, LLC is a custom manure hauling business. Albrecht started out with two trucks in 2019 to transport manure from customer’s livestock barns to manure applicators in the field. “It’s more efficient to haul manure down the road with a trailer versus with a tractor and it helps out our customers,” Albrecht said.
He also provides other types of transportation services in other seasons, like hauling concrete for Wells Concrete with his semis. The business grew so fast, Albrecht was able to buy a third truck to keep up with demand.
How did the business grow so fast? Word of mouth.
“Last year I didn’t do any advertising, all my customers came through word of mouth. I started a business page on Facebook recently.” Albrecht’s goals are to “keep customers happy and maintain a profit. We were profitable in our first year and I want to keep those profits coming at a steady pace.”
To what does Albrecht attribute his success? Friends, family, and Start Something College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS). “I knew what I wanted to do last spring thanks to the Rural Entrepreneurship Academy, a summer Start Something CALS program. The Academy helped me come up with ideas and get started. My weekly phone calls with the other students in the program and Kevin Kimle were also very helpful.”
As the owner of Big Cobb Enterprises, Albrecht’s responsibilities include basically everything. “I do the business’s paperwork, all of the hiring, the managing, all the jobs day to day, and I drive every day.”
What advice does he have to aspiring entrepreneurs and future business owners? “Don’t overthink all the small stuff. Expenses are always going to be more than you anticipate, but just go for it and know there will be unknowns when you start, but it’s worth it.”