Friends join to form junk-removal business
Two longtime friends have launched a trash-collecting business just in time for the spring cleaning season.
Barrington High School graduate Nick DeGiulio and Corey Heidkamp, a graduate of St. Viator in Arlington Heights, started the first Junk Genius franchise in Illinois. The business specializes in both residential and commercial junk and trash removal.
Garage and basement cleanups are popular at this time of year, said Heidkamp, 28. The men have been working with local Realtors that handle foreclosures and short sales.
"We deal with distressed properties," he added.
Junk Genius also works with commercial property owners and is associated with the National Association of Professional Organizers.
"We pride ourselves on being 'green' and recycling and donating as much as possible," said DeGiulio, 27.
The company donates to area schools, churches, and the social service agencies Wings and Helping Our Heroes.
The men, who operate the business in Lake Zurich and serve the entire Chicagoland area, say they are licensed, bonded and insured.
The company handles both big and small jobs, including appliance pickup.
DeGiulio started working in the industry while he was in high school. He went to college in Montana and then moved to the Denver area, where he continued working for garbage cleanup businesses.
He hooked up with Junk Genius founder Tom Reimann, a former professional hockey player. The company now has several locations across the United States and has launched an aggressive growth plan.
Heidkamp, who is a PGA apprentice with hopes to one day run his own golf course, joined DeGiulio about four months ago to start the junk-removal business venture.
"We have a lot of contacts in this area, because we grew up here," DeGiulio said.
He added that the business partners have been friends since meeting at the age of 12 at an area basketball game.
The business partners say they offer free estimates and charge by the volume of items they remove.
For more information, call (847) 714-6802 or check out nwchicago.junkgenius.com.