Boren brothers happy to talk trash in new career
By Tom Knox / For Columbus CEO
Posted Oct 6, 2018 at 3:28 PMUpdated Oct 6, 2018 at 3:28 PM
Zach and Justin Boren were central Ohio football royalty, highly ranked recruits from Pickerington who starred for Ohio State University and had careers in the National Football League. Now, they’re using their name and ties to the Buckeyes to buoy Boren Brothers, a fast-growing waste-management business. Here’s how it began, and how they’ve leveraged and balanced their ties to Columbus’ most prized pastime.
Q: How did you become an expert in waste management?
Zach Boren: It started from surrounding myself with people who knew the industry. I constantly networked, was kind of an open book — I took in a bunch of information. And honestly I started with the Yellow Pages, companies who can utilize our services. ...
But also, just the network we were able to build at Ohio State. There were so many people we came across being Buckeyes and when we played football that, you keep in touch with those people. It’s crazy how big the network is at Ohio State and especially football supporters and football boosters. When you’re done playing, you’re able to reach out to those people and really talk to them about the business world and see how they can utilize your services.
Q: How have your connections to Ohio State benefited the growth of the business? Even when you were cold-calling at the beginning, did people say, “I know that name”?
Justin Boren: I think it’s huge, and it’s not just us. One thing about Ohio State football — there’s so much tradition. Ohio State and Columbus, they take care of their own. If you play sports, especially football, and you do the right things, and you don’t get into trouble, and you don’t do something stupid, there’s going to be endless opportunity. Whether it’s your own business, or opportunities for employment, I think that’s one of the great things........
https://www.dispatch.com/news/20181006/boren-brothers-happy-to-talk-trash-in-new-career