A building being remodeled in Pendleton anchors the latest expansion for Fire Dawgs Junk Removal. When finished, the building will house the training facilities, a shop for Junk Dawgs’ local operation and open the Muncie, Anderson and Fishers markets for daily service.

Fire Dawgs Junk Removal Owner Bennett Grove II started the company in northwest Indianapolis – along Guion Road – in 2011 while he was still a firefighter. In 2020, he resigned from firefighting to operate Fire Dawgs full-time. Grove has branched out to Fort Wayne and Bloomington and is set to open in Lafayette in 2022. Fire Dawgs Junk Removal enters 2022 with over 50 employees. His wife, Miranda, is co-owner and marketing manager.

Fire Dawgs purchased a four-acre property in Pendleton that includes a residential home, a garage and barn. Each building needs renovation. Fire Dawgs is operating out of one building on the Pendleton property. Work on the remaining structures should be concluded in March 2022.

Financing for Fire Dawgs’ project comes from a U.S. Small Business Administration 504 loan from Lake City Bank and Indiana Statewide Certified Development Corporation.

Indiana Statewide CDC works with local Indiana lenders – usually banks – to issue SBA 504 loans to help owners of expanding or startup small businesses buy real estate, buildings and equipment. SBA 504 loans can give small-business owners long-term, fixed-rate financing similar to commercial loan terms commonly available for only large companies.

Regarding his SBA 504 loan, Grove says, “As the sole owner, with no outside investors, a company like ours needs to pay close attention to cash flow. Keeping profit in the company allows us to reinvest in our people, as well as buy more trucks and equipment for future growth into new Indiana markets. The 504 helps us conserve cash with a smaller down payment than that of conventional financing.”

Ryan Hart of Lake City Bank says, “The ability to purchase real estate with only a ten percent down payment is a benefit for Fire Dawgs because it allows more capital to be reinvested back into the business, supporting the company’s continued growth and job creation.”

Fire Dawgs is a home services company, focusing on junk removal (televisions, refrigerators, other appliances, hot tubs, furniture, swing sets and more). Grove believes that reusing items is so important that Fire Dawgs sends its customer a donation receipt anytime the company recycles an item it hauls away.

Grove earned designation as a “Fire Dawg” by graduating from military firefighting school. He was a fire fighter at different locations for the Air Force for six years, then spent most of his 17-year firefighting career as a civilian member of the Grissom Fire Department, located at Grissom Air Reserve Base near Peru in Miami County. Grove started Fire Dawgs in 2011, about mid-way in his firefighting career.

Background:
Indiana Statewide CDC (www.cambridgecapitalmgmt.com) has approved over $760 million of financing for more than 1,600 Indiana companies since 1983, creating or saving more than 30,000  jobs, and is the most prolific CDC in Indiana. These projects represent more than $1.9 billion in expansion financing for Indiana businesses.

Exact figures for FY 2021 ending September 30, 2021, include: $34,583,000 in dollars approved; an increase of more than $5 million over FY 2020.

Executive Director Jean Wojtowicz says, “SBA 504 loans help small businesses grow because borrowing companies can put as little as 10 percent down and receive a low, fixed interest rate for as long as 25 years. The SBA guarantees bonds sold privately to finance a portion of the loan.”

Lake City Bank (www.lakecitybank.com) is the largest bank 100 percent invested in Indiana. Lake City Bank was founded in 1872 in Warsaw, Indiana and now has 51 locations covering Northern and Central Indiana.

Fire Dawgs (www.firedawgsjunkremoval.com) is a home services company that provides junk removal and hauling services such as household cleanouts, brush, debris and demolition removal. The company focuses on recycling and reusing more than half what it removes from customers’ homes. When Fire Dawgs can donate items on the customer’s behalf, they send the customer the donation receipt. A “Fire Dawg” is a military firefighter, which the owner was for six years.