06/05/2026
Starting and running a service business in the middle of nowhere is not for the faint of heart. 💪 We took a leap of faith and jumped head first to fulfill a need that was a long time coming without any security that we would make it.
Nationally, about one-third of small businesses do not make it past the first two years, and about half do not make it to five years. Rural businesses face even more pressure because our costs are higher, our service areas are spread out (think of all the driving), and access to labor, vendors, and capital is limited. In our industry, especially in our area, a lot of work is also done on net terms. This means we provide the service first and sometimes wait weeks to actually get paid for work we have already completed. And then theres those that just don't pay at all😑.. But the bills to keep the business running do not wait.
A lot of people see the trucks, the toilets, and the Facebook posts and think, “They must be doing great!” The reality behind the scenes is we work early mornings, late nights, weekends, holidays, and whatever hours are needed to make this business successful. We are constantly grinding, learning, fixing, investing, and pushing forward because we believe in Trackside and we believe in serving our community well.
There are a lot of expenses that people don't think about or see. Start up loans for units and trucks, business and truck Insurance. Truck repairs. Licenses. Software. Wages. Rent. Taxes, more and more taxes.. Equipment - and lets be real here... the hoses, pumps, the crust buster for septics are not cheap! Dump fees (the dump is an hour and 20 min away) Fuel.... Let me just reiterate that.. FUEL! We spend $3500-$4000 a month in diesel alone! Then there's the supplies... Toilet paper (the good kind), chemicals for cleaning, blue tabs that break the waste down, hand sanitizer, etc. And the list goes on.
So far this year, every dollar that Trackside brought in, about 55 cents goes to operating expenses, about 32 cents goes to vehicle-related expenses, and only about 13 cents is left as net income.
So when you support a small rural business, pay your invoice on time, refer a friend, leave a review, participate in our challenge, or choose local instead of corporate, it truly matters.
We are sharing this to bring awareness that small businesses are not endless wells to pull from. Every discount, every freebie, every unpaid invoice, every “can you just help us out?” has a real cost behind it. We we are proud of what we are building. We love serving our community, helping our customers, showing up in emergencies, supporting events, and being a local option people can count on.
We appreciate every single customer who understands the value of reliable top notch service and the work it takes to provide it.
Thank you for helping us to keep Trackside pushing forward. 🧡
🏁 When you gotta go, go Trackside!® 🏁
