Mazza Recycling: From Family Scrap Yard to State-of-the-Art MRF—Dominic “DJ” Mazza’s Playbook
Dominic “DJ” Mazza walks through how a third-generation New Jersey scrap and demo outfit became one of the region’s most diversified recycling platforms—spanning transfer stations, a single-stream MRF, mulch & bagging, roll-off and commercial collection, scrap, concrete, and more. The Blue-Collar Twins dig into capital intensity, acquisitions (Liberty/Bull), building a professional management layer, and why process, cost accounting, and tech are DJ’s real superpowers.
You’ll hear:
- How a Big Four CPA ditched fluorescent auditor rooms to scale the family business with cousin Jimmy.
- The “feed your own transfer station” move: launching roll-off & commercial collection to control inbound.
- Building a state-of-the-art single-stream MRF and a Scotts mulch bagging line—plus what they’d do differently.
- Buying right: Liberty & Bull, when to keep local brands, and bringing in an A-player COO from Waste Management.
- Valuation reality in waste/recycling, why the industry is capital- and compliance-heavy, and where DJ’s building next.
Show links:
From Gym Teachers to Service Leaders: The Julio Twins' Story | Last Bite Mosquito, Viking Pest https://youtu.be/DAYxtzhswxs
From PE Teachers to Pest Control Owners: The Julio Twins Share Their POTOMAC Experience https://youtu.be/HAx9noqsqTo
https://www.linkedin.com/in/paulgiannamore
Produced by: www.verbell.ltd
Timestamps
00:00 – Cold open: capital-intensive ops, team size, and early acquisitions (Liberty/Bull)
00:49 – Intros; first waste/recycling guest on the Buzz
01:32 – BU → Deloitte CPA years; why auditing felt like “double-checking” not building
02:36 – Back to the family business; the 1964 roots and grandfather’s original operation
05:12 – The cousins’ plan: DJ + Jimmy begin shaping the next chapter
07:24 – From local scrap to regional platform; footprint across New Jersey and greater Philly
07:46 – Exiting demolition to focus: redeploying time/capital into scalable lines
09:15 – “Feed the transfer station”: launching roll-off with a truck and ten cans
10:32 – New bagging plant: producing Scotts mulch for Home Depot/Lowe’s in the Northeast
11:17 – Inside the single-stream MRF: optical sorters, PET capture, and why the facility’s different
12:59 – Why processing costs are high; plant capex and how the permit strategy started (cardboard → full stream)
15:08 – Touring plants, picking vendors, and what they’d change in hindsight
15:41 – Size, scope, and staying privately owned; leading a 250-person team
18:45 – Property bets from the ’80s and how real estate underpins growth
25:22 – Business lines roll-call: transfer stations, MRF, mulch/topsoil, scrap, concrete, tires, roll-off & commercial routes
27:17 – Open to the public; marketing mix and in-house director driving search & demand
31:20 – M&A integration: DJ runs diligence/legal, Jimmy runs deal sourcing; adding a seasoned COO
32:47 – Valuation talk, regulatory moat, and why scaling takes management depth
35:24 – Planning horizon, pivots, and what it takes to double again
38:03 – Hours & throughput: accepting to 5pm, processing to 10pm; hiring/keeping A-players
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