One Earth Recycling – CONNECT Springboard Company

Feb 25, 2016

OneEarth works with producers and consumers in various ways to make the transition to a sustainable lifestyle. Through their initiatives to bring people and ideas together they are making a positive impact on the Earth, moving away from wastefulness and toward a healthy future.

We spoke with Josh Turchin, CEO and Founder of OneEarth Recycling Inc., to get some insight into his life and inspiration for this organization.

CONNECT: How do you recharge?

Josh Turchin: Gardening; grow hops/make beer, grow grapes/try to make wine

CONNECT: If you were to tell one person “Thank You” for helping me become the person I am today, who would it be and what did they do?

Turchin: My Father: besides teaching me our business, he has instilled in me the drive to succeed.

CONNECT: When are you the happiest?

Turchin: No contest – on a diving vacation with my wife, Katie.

CONNECT: What’s the best business advice you’ve received?

Turchin: Answer (the question) first, fill in supporting details second.

CONNECT: What’s one lesson you learned in the “school of hard knocks” (or “the hard way”) that you help your fellow entrepreneur avoid?

Turchin: Overhead kills.

CONNECT: Why are you building THIS company (why this topic, why are you inspired)?

Turchin: I’m 3rd generation in the recycling business: I am excited about the opportunity to deliver user-friendly reverse-retail recycling to as many people as possible while unlocking value squandered via traditional recycling approaches. 

CONNECT: What are three values you’re building your company on?

Turchin:

  • Exhaustive focus on the quality of the customer’s experience: shouldn’t just exceed customers’ expectations of reverse-retail recycling, should exceed customers’ expectations associated with any traditional shopping process.
  • Develop culture of free communication across the organization, “bottom up, top down, and sideways.”
  • Deliver the most good to the maximum number of interests who can symbiotically benefit from our business.

CONNECT: What characteristic do you most admire in others?

Turchin: Trustworthiness

CONNECT: What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned in the last year?

Turchin: Acknowledge impact on all ancillary cost factors of every incremental business decision.

CONNECT: How do you think your coworkers see you?

Turchin: At least a little crazy, approachable, a treasure chest of knowledge/experience.

CONNECT: What’s your favorite business book or website?

Turchin: Bloomberg