Business Waste Celebrates Tenth Anniversary
♫ Happy birthday to us, happy birthday to us, happy birthday Business Waste, happy birthday to us ♫
On July 15th 2025, Business Waste celebrates ten years since the company started operating. Over the last decade, Business Waste has helped tens of thousands of customers across the UK manage their commercial waste, diverting 241,455 tonnes of waste away from landfill.
To celebrate this monumental milestone, we’ve worked out some fascinating figures about the amount of waste we’ve managed and its impact on our customers, the environment, our people, and the business. We’ve also pulled together some key landmarks, highlights, insight from the directors, and look to the future for what the next decade holds.
Join us in raising a (recycled) glass to celebrate ten years of Business Waste!
Business Waste – A brief history
Business Waste is the brainchild of David Adams and Mark Hall. In 2015, they saw a gap in the market for a waste brokerage business to transform the image of the industry. This involved moving from people in hi-vis jackets working out of portacabins with little web presence to a slick online service that matches businesses with the best solution for their waste needs.
The duo wanted to create a business that had a positive environmental impact. The goal for every customer is to provide services that benefit their company and the world around us. Over the last ten years, the company has diverted 241,455 tonnes of waste away from landfill.
The company started on 15th July 2015, with just three members of staff, who all proudly remain with the business today. Back then, the office space was a tiny room with no windows but now the business occupies a 15,000 square foot office space in the heart of York.
In the following decade, the headcount has expanded to more than 100 members of staff who work across sales, logistics, customer service, accounts, and marketing. Business Waste has seen significant growth. The company recorded revenue of £180,000 in 2015, which this year is expected to reach £23 million – an increase of 12,678%.
Over the last 10 years, the business has worked with customers large and small and built up a clientele of 36,150 customers. No challenge is too big, and the dedicated logistics team ensures Business Waste meets the needs of any business, offering creative and innovative solutions. The business has dealt with over 400 waste types in its ten-year history, from clothing samples to mercury-contaminated materials.
Honest and consistent customer service has always been at the centre of the business model. Each potential and existing customer will always find a real person at the end of the phone based in the York office. The company understands waste management doesn’t always run smoothly, so believes in old-fashioned customer service that provides the best solutions.
A decade diverting waste away from landfill
Over the last ten years, Business Waste has directly diverted 94,070 tonnes of waste away from landfill through its specific recycling collections across waste streams including dry mixed recycling, glass, cardboard, and food.
However, alongside this, Business Waste always aims to redirect any other waste that would ordinarily go to landfill to other disposal methods. 98% of general waste collections have also been diverted to other facilities, such as energy from waste (EfW) facilities, where waste is incinerated to generate energy.
This means an estimated further 147,384 tonnes of waste have been diverted away from landfill over the last ten years, bringing the total to 241,455 tonnes. This equates to the weight or size of:
- 160,970 cars
- 20,121 double-decker buses
- 1 million full wheelie bins
- 371,469 cubic metres of landfill (the same as 149 Olympic-sized swimming pools)
- 52 football pitches to a depth of 1 metre
The diversion of this waste is calculated to have saved 181,091 tonnes CO₂e, equivalent to:
- Offsetting the annual emissions of about 25,000 UK people
- Planting around 8.6 million trees
- Taking around 82,000 average UK cars off the road for a year
- Powering 67,000 UK homes for a year
- CO₂ saved could power about 540 rocket launches
Alongside the more common streams of waste, Business Waste has dealt with many unusual cases over the past decade, including managing:
- 1,698 tonnes of asbestos
- 392 tonnes of cooking oil
- 2,367 tonnes of e-cigarette liquid
- 188 tonnes of mattresses
- 600 tonnes of TVs
It would be impossible to celebrate our tenth anniversary without mentioning the pride I have for the development of individuals within our business. Over the last ten years, we have seen amazing growth, starting in just a tiny office with only three staff, it’s rewarding to see many of those are still with us today. We are fortunate to have a solid management team which covers all the key pillars of our business.David Adams
Managing Director at Business Waste
“Lee Bryson, our Head of Commercial, has been with the business since the start and worked with myself for two years before this. He has been fundamental to the growth of our client base. Liam Barrett our Sales Manager has been with the business for 5 years and has been responsible for driving sales growth and improving our whole team’s performance. Danielle McAlpine was recently appointed as our Head of Customer Experience thanks to her passion for delivering the best possible service over the last four years, boosting our customer retention and earning our 4.9-star score on Trustpilot. Ben Botterill, our Head of Finance has proven his impeccable attention to detail and strategic acumen which has allowed us to continue to drive our growth and plan for the future.
“It is down to these pivotal team members and many others that Business Waste has become the success it is today and I’m excited to continue to develop our staff to ensure the business both thrives and allows an outlet for our many talented individuals.”
Celebrating customer and charity achievements
At Business Waste, we’re particularly proud of our excellent customer service record, with a 4.9-star rating on Trustpilot and more than 2,600 five-star reviews. This has been no mean feat and can be credited to the passionate and empathetic customer service team who consistently work to solve any challenges.
The company credits its success to its strong core management team, made up of driven individuals who are constantly looking to better the Business Waste offering.
The success of the company has helped us give back to the local community and various good causes with nearly £80,000 donated to charities. Business Waste regularly supports the annual York Against Cancer charity golf day, made significant contributions to Kevin Sinfield’s Epic 7 in 7 in 7 Challenge for MND, and supports York’s The Island, which provides space and time for vulnerable children and young people.
What does the next decade hold for Business Waste?
Looking to the future, Business Waste wants to use the enormous skillset and wealth of knowledge among staff to become an educator for the industry. The business feels that there’s a knowledge gap whereby many are unaware of the possibilities of waste management and how we can make greater strides to reduce waste heading to landfill.
The business also hopes to continue its growth journey, spotting opportunities to acquire smaller companies and bring them under the umbrella of the BusinessWaste.co.uk group.
The ten-year anniversary of Business Waste is a monumental milestone for everyone here. When we began the business back in 2015, the waste industry was completely different, and we’ve seen such a transformation over the last decade. There have been huge obstacles to overcome during our operation, not least the Covid-19 lockdown in 2020.Mark Hall
Director at Business Waste
We feel that the dedicated staff we have, and our strong commitment to putting customers first have given us the foundations on which to keep our business strong and continue growing. As we look forward to the future, we’re dedicated to becoming educators in our field and helping businesses to understand the best ways to reduce their environmental impact, while protecting their bottom line.
And if you need help with your commercial waste, why not get in touch for a free quote today? Pick up the phone and call 0800 211 8390 or contact us online.
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