There’s an old saying, “When one door closes, another opens.”
In the case of Bill and Sherry Burnham, it took a series of closings and openings coupled with answering the door when opportunity knocked that led the couple to where they are today: celebrating twenty years in the document destruction business as owners of Cortland-based Protect-N-Shred, Inc.
The couple married in 1996 and Bill, an Air Force veteran, continued his teaching career while Sherry completed her education at
Youngstown State University. She graduated in 1997 with a degree and a baby on the way and began substitute teaching. For the new parents, everything was falling into place.
But after two years as a teacher, Bill decided to close the door on his educator life and open the one into the business sector to increase the family income. It seemed like a wise move at the time, until a series of restructurings and buyouts led to several job changes, something Sherry’s father, Gary Bosley, was also experiencing in his career.
“Gary was in his fifties, so together we came up with the idea of having a small business where we could put our talents together and control our own destiny,” says Bill.
What happened next, he says, was almost by accident. “We looked at a small shredding equipment manufacturer that was for sale. But when we did the research, we discovered the real potential was to do the shredding for clients, so we ended up pivoting. We purchased some used equipment and in 2005 started a shredding company.”
It was a gutsy move, Bill notes, especially given that Protect-N-Shred had no customers to start with. Sherry gave up her substitute teaching position and took on the responsibility of bookkeeping and daily management of the business, while her mother, Pat, who had been a top Avon saleswoman back in the 1980s, went out to introduce prospective customers to the new company.
“We started with our network and began building a small client base and worked from there,” recalls Bill. “Sherry’s father and I did it part-time, since both of us still had our full-time jobs. It wasn’t until the spring of 2007 that I was able to completely dedicate myself to this business.”
By 2009, Bill, as president, and Sherry, as secretary-treasurer, were running the company as primary owners, with Sherry’s parents continuing as partners until they retired from the business in 2020.
The Growth of Protect-N-Shred
Initially the company started small with one shred truck and a service area confined to Trumbull, Mahoning and Columbiana counties. Eventually its territory expanded to the neighboring Pennsylvania counties that bordered their Ohio territory.
The owners also acquired two other businesses—Docu-Shred and Alpha Omega Document Management—and grew their service area, in Ohio, to cover the Cleveland Metro area. Included in the territory expansion was coverage for the greater Akron/ Canton area and as far south as Steubenville. In Pennsylvania, they expanded east to Erie, coverage for the entire Pittsburgh Metro area and as far south as Washington and Uniontown, PA. Each decision that grew the business was based on adhering to the goal that was set on day one: to provide outstanding service.
That approach to business is something that Pete Noll, Vice President, Relationship Manager, Commercial Lending at Farmers National Bank, praises. “They’re good, trustworthy people and they care about their business and their customers.”
In the two decades the company has been operating, it’s expanded both geographically and in the services offered. Not only does Protect-N-Shred provide document shredding both onsite and at the nearly 4,500-square-foot Cortland facility—about 2.2 to 2.5 million pounds annually—it also handles the collection, processing and destruction of X-ray films, and other healthcare scans, destruction of hard drives and other electronic media, and recycling of unwanted IT equipment including computers, printers, copiers and more. All of this is done in an environmentally responsible manner.
“Our ITAD or Information Technology Asset Disposal service is fairly new,” says Bill. “This includes electronic equipment such as computers,
copiers and hard drives, for example. Anything that's media bearing is destroyed, then the rest of the machines are broken down and reprocessed, and their components are put back into the supply stream and reused in some manner, shape or form.”
The company is AAA NAID certified and compliant with HIPAA, FACTA, GLBA, state and federal regulations. Not only do the company’s employees undergo thorough background checks and drug screenings, they are also highly trained to ensure the security of client information. . It’s the combination of attention to customer service and scrupulous adherence to industry regulations that has enabled the company to successfully compete against the bigger players in that market. It’s also why Protect-N-Shred has had a fifteen-year business relationship with Farmers.
While it had its roots in the personal connection the couple had with Farmers leadership, it was Protect-N-Shred’s ability to provide the type of secure document and media destruction services that the bank required that turned it into a business arrangement.
Bill and Sherry utilized Farmers for both their business and personal financial needs. In the early years, the bank assisted them with the acquisition of Alpha Omega and subsequently provided equipment loans and a line of credit for their working capital needs.
“Farmers has been instrumental in the growth of our business,” says Bill. “They have really treated us like you would expect from a hometown bank and how you would want your financial institution to treat a small growing, business. And I can't say enough good things about Pete Noll. He's been fantastic to work with over these years.”
The Importance of Relationships
In the twenty years since Protect-N-Shred has opened its doors, the focus has been on creating strong relationships with its client base, whether they are major businesses or smaller operations. While about ninety-five percent of the shredding work is handled onsite by its six shred trucks, there are times when clients prefer to have it transported back to the Cortland location for destruction. Customers can also bring items to the Cortland facility to have them destroyed for a reasonable fee or take advantage of the shredding service at no cost during its Community Shred Event days.
Protect-N-Shred also has established a network with other shredding companies across the country. This allows the company to connect clients who have offices beyond its service area with other reputable shredding companies in those locations, a reciprocal arrangement that benefits both parties as well as the customers.
The success thus far of Protect-N-Shred bodes well for the future, as the couple looks to grow their client base within the existing service area. At the same time, however, they will continue to provide the same high level of service and value to their customers they’ve demonstrated from the beginning—a commitment that has made Protect- N-Shred a trusted and locally-owned shredding provider in the northeast Ohio and western Pennsylvania area.