Veteran opens pet waste removal biz Serving Nokomis to Punta Gorda

Melissa DiBiaisio Richards has found a way to profit from pet poop by picking it up — with her DoodyCalls pet waste removal franchise. “A lot of people aren’t even aware that this service exists,” she said. COURTESY PHOTOS

The worst part about owning a pet has got to be cleaning up after it.

Melissa DiBiasio Richards not only understands that — she has two dogs — but she also provides a solution.

Blending the leadership skills she learned in the military with an entrepreneurial spirit, she opened her own DoodyCalls franchise. The pet waste management and disposal corporation started in the suburbs of Washington, D.C., 24 years ago, and has since expanded to locations in 13 other states, becoming a leader in the industry.

“Mine is their seventh in Florida,” DiBiasio Richards said, “and they’re growing rapidly.”

Her office serves a relatively large geographical area from Punta Gorda to Nokomis.

But she didn’t start off wanting to own her own business.

DiBiasio Richards said she joined the military at 17 and entered the U.S. Navy at 18.

“I saw some really great leadership and some not-so-great leadership,” she said. “And that inspired me to want to become a commissioned officer in the military.”

After eight years in the Navy, she became a commissioned officer in the U.S. Coast Guard.

“That drove me to wanting to lead.”

After earning a bachelor’s degree in education and master’s in human relations and counseling, she spent almost 18 years as a teacher and school counselor.

“Again, I saw some excellent leadership and not-so-great leadership, so I really wanted to open my own business. It inspired me to say, ‘Hey, I want to do something with the community … (to) be able to help people.

“I chose a franchise because they provide a lot of guidance and support, especially for somebody who doesn’t have that background in business. They give you all the tools you need to be successful.”

Not wanting to jump into anything, DiBiasio Richards said she took an entire year researching different franchises before settling on DoodyCalls, which allowed her not only to operate a homebased business, but also allowed her the flexibility that’s necessary when raising a family.

And with those two dogs, she knows that people aren’t exactly thrilled about cleaning up after their pets.

“People’s lives are so busy, they need somebody to pick up their dog waste,” she said. “We do it for people who are too busy, who don’t feel like doing it. Some are disabled or elderly; they can’t pick up dog waste anymore. We fill that need as well.

“We pick up waste from residential yards, and we also work with commercial properties — dog parks, community associations, veterinarians’ offices. Any place you find pets, we clean up the waste. … If there’s an event and they need pet waste pickup, we’re not going to bypass the trash on the ground; we’ll also pick that up as well.”

DoodyCalls also sells and professionally installs and services pet waste stations.

“Those are a really big hit with communities that have dogs, DiBiasio Richards said. “We help come up with a waste management plan for specific communities, working together with HOA managers to help alleviate the problem.”

One those her DoodyCalls office serves is in the master-planned community The Cove at West Port.

“There’s also a lot of development in North Port and Venice, and we’re looking to establish ourselves there as a reputable business.”

DiBiasio Richards hoped that National Scoop the Poop Week (which was observed at the end of April) would help bring awareness to the need for pet waste pickup.

“A lot of people don’t understand that dog waste is toxic,” she explained. “It contains a lot of things like hookworm, roundworm, ringworm. If we don’t get it off the ground, it ends up in our waterway systems.”

As a business owner, DiBiasio Richards said, her biggest challenge is getting the word out.

“A lot of people aren’t even aware that this service exists. As the summer gets hotter and hotter and more humid, a lot of people don’t want to do this outside. It takes one more thing off their plate.”

Attracting primarily business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs, “Sarasota County Connect Business Networking & Panel Discussion” opened with an hour of networking.

“It really came about in working together,” Richmond emphasized. “I’ve been working with Vinnie (Vinicia) Mascarenhas (North Port’s Economic Development manager) and the Sarasota EDC for a long time. We were on a call together and we said, ‘Why don’t we do something together to really begin create and recreate the ecosystem there?’

“North Port was hit very hard by Hurricane Ian, and that impacts the ability for people to connect. … With the physical rebuild that had to go on — and people worried about their personal well-being and their business well-being, and the pandemic in there — we talked about how do we bring this together.

We brought the resources of everyone to bear.”

26 West Entrepreneurial Center brings the educational component to the coalition.

“We have a spectacular 40,000-squarefoot building here on the State College of Florida campus in Bradenton,” Richmond said. “We don’t do academic classes. Our mission is to develop people, grow businesses and, ultimately, grow our local economy. So, our role is really to provide resources for entrepreneurs to start businesses.”

All classes are taught by talented and successful entrepreneurs, she noted.

“These are not college courses; these are things that entrepreneurs need for hands-on, how to start a business: social media marketing for small business, SBA loans and resources. … We also have a digital marketing agency that we run out of here, a video production studio, podcasting.”

Richmond said that the topics of the summer series workshops were chosen from what students at 26 West have shown the most interest in over the school’s two-and-a-half years of existence.

Entrepreneurial offerings

The workshop series is designed to provide an opportunity to network and personally connect with entrepreneurs and small business owners in our community as well as learn from those who have been successful starting, growing, or buying a company.

All the summer series workshops will be held in Wellen Park’s Solis Hall.

“As a community of innovators and thinkers with big ideas, the series connects prospective business owners with experts in digital and brand marketing, artificial intelligence and problem solving,” said Rick Severance, president of Wellen Park. “It offers great networking opportunities with like-minded entrepreneurs and small business owners, as well as discussions with successful local entrepreneurs.”

“We partnered with Wellen Park as well,” Richmond said, “and they are a very substantial partner. … Rick Severance and his team have been fantastic partners. They have sponsored this not only with their space, but also with the refreshments. And we couldn’t imagine a better venue to be at.”

The first summer session, “Boost Your Brand: AI Marketing for Small Business Workshop,” was scheduled for May 9 — and attendance was capped before the end of April.

Two more are scheduled, starting with “How to Solve Any Business Problem: Design Thinking for Entrepreneurs Workshop” on June 13.

“Design Thinking is a process developed by the Stanford Design School at first for product design,” Richmond explained. “It has evolved to be used in the business world and other industries as a way to solve problems with a true focus on the customer — understanding the environment, developing a customer journey map, brainstorming and prototyping solutions, and putting them into place. It’s comprehensive but it’s really powerful. … They can apply it to any situation. … People will learn how to think about problem-solving in a different way that has been proven around the world.”

That session will be followed by “Business IDEA Lab” on July 11.

The promotional literature describes it this way: “Do you have an idea for a new business? Do you want to be around other entrepreneurs and innovative thinkers? Attend the Business IDEA Lab, a community forum to share business ideas and industry expertise, get feedback on viability and connect with local entrepreneurs and business community members.”

All workshops begin with a half-hour networking session.

“We’re thrilled that we can really be a part of this,” Richmond said, reiterating her statement that “Partnership has power” and once again naming all of the other civic and business agencies involved.

“It’s what we can do together.”

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