Orlando Business Journal, May 2009
By Stephanie Kunchan

Rick Girard has come a long way in 14 years. In October 1995, the owner of Sanford-based Girard Environmental Services declared bankruptcy, unable to contend with a staggering debt, including a $120,000 bill from the IRS. This year, he projects his company will earn $23 million.

The difference? Bankruptcy taught him and his brother, Randy Girard, a lesson in humility, but the brothers also learned some valuable business lessons:

• They didn’t put all of their eggs in one basket — their largest customer has never represented more than 10 percent of their revenue.

• They diversified their business by focusing on everything green, including arbor care, fertilization, pest control, enhancement services, irrigation repair, construction and management services.

• They restarted their business small — three workers — and grew steadily to a point where they now employ 240.

• Every manager is educated on how to budget money, allocate expenses and payroll.

The restart of their business — which didn’t bear the family name for nearly three years — has been a slow, steady success. It took more than 10 years to reach $1.7 million in 1999, but their annual revenue reached $21.8 million in 2008 and is projected to hit $23 million in 2009.

In the last five months, Girard Environmental Services opened new branches in Winter Haven, Tampa, Fort Myers and Melbourne, with plans to open six more in Delray Beach, Ocala, Palm Coast, Jacksonville and Sarasota in the next 24 months. Rick Girard said the company has no plans to grow outside of Florida — their vision is to dominate their region and control it.

Rick Girard blames his first company’s failure on a lack of financial controls, keeping too many employees on the payroll and subsidizing its lack of cash flow by not paying payroll taxes.

After five years in business, the company, known then as Girard Landscaping Inc., declared bankruptcy.

"It was one of the worst decisions I ever made,” said Rick Girard.

"The stigma attached to a struggling business is far less than the stigma of a bankruptcy,” he added.

Borrowing $1,000 from his father-in-law in February 1996, Rick Girard began picking up the pieces, working under the name Outdoor Concepts Inc.

"My primary goal when I started this company was so my wife could go grocery shopping and her credit card could stop getting declined,” Rick Girard said.

Starting over wasn’t easy. Former customers didn’t want to do business with him, and vendors refused to sell to him even if he paid in cash.

Three years after declaring bankruptcy, after settling debts with more than 80 percent of his vendors, he asked Randy to join him as a 50-50 partner. The two lived modestly and placed all their profits back into the business.

After experiencing bankruptcy, the Girards believe failure is not an option.

"In the normal course of business, bankruptcy is giving up,” Rick Girard said.