Location

Countryman Rubbish Removal (CRR) is located in Junjuwa Community, Fitzroy Crossing, 400km east of Broome and 300km west of Halls Creek. 

The business assists the Shire of Derby/West Kimberley in the Fitzroy Crossing area, as well as local small businesses and individuals.

Background

CRR was established in 2023 by Keith Andrews, a proud Bunuba man.

Keith became concerned about the lack of local employment opportunities for young people and asked himself

 “How can I create something local for my mob to engage the youth of the community and empower them”? 

His idea was to develop a rubbish removal business. This would not require large capital or a highly skilled workforce and the business could expand as demand increased. 

Once the business was established, the first contract secured was with the Shire of Derby West Kimberley, carrying out clean ups around the Fitzroy Crossing town centre. The contract involved three hours of work each day. While not a large job, it provided a reliable cash flow and gave Keith the confidence to begin employing young people. CRR’s work with the Shire proved so effective that additional work was offered. Positive word of mouth referrals created more demand in the Fitzroy Crossing area and at one stage Keith was asking himself “What I have I got myself into?”

This initial success led to further work with Leedal and Marra Worra Worra, undertaking weekly clean ups around key businesses such as IGA and BP in Fitzroy Crossing.

When the floods struck, CRR was engaged to provide essential clean up services, clearing debris, removing damaged furniture, and assisting with property clean ups for the Department of Communities.

Building on this experience, Keith went on to secure a contract with Marra Worra Worra to deliver community clean ups across the Fitzroy Valley.

Since its inception, CRR has continued to grow and now employs eight young Aboriginal men from the Fitzroy Valley, creating valuable opportunities for them to work within and contribute to their own community.

Challenges

Since establishing the business, Keith has received support from Morrgul through the Aboriginal Business Capability Building Service and Aboriginal Procurement Advisory Service programs. This assistance has covered a wide range of areas, helping Keith build both knowledge and confidence in core business topics including pricing, marketing, business growth, governance, and contractual compliance. 

The support provided has included guidance on pricing and costing to remain competitive while ensuring profitability, advice on occupational health and safety requirements and insurance obligations, help in securing the first contracts, and financial obligations. 

Despite this support, there were still challenges. Keith found it difficult working with a bookkeeper based in eastern Australia, as the distance and communication barriers created delays. His limited understanding of QuickBooks also meant he relied heavily on the bookkeeper for raising quotes and invoices.

Keith also had the concern of ongoing work opportunities, with the Shire of Derby West Kimberley going into administration the contract Keith held with them wasn’t renewed due to financial restraints and Keith also worried if he gets all the communities cleaned up, will the ongoing clean up work be as consistent going forward. 

Keith was focused on thinking of expansion ideas for sustainable growth to increase work opportunities for his employees and to provide pathways for staff to further develop their skills. This led him to consider diversifying CRR’s services, however he was unsure which opportunities would be most viable and what capital investment in equipment would be required to support this expansion.

Where and how to Fitzroy Valley Aboriginal Business Program and Morrgul assisted.

The Fitzroy Valley flood recovery program was the ideal opportunity for Keith to meet with Morrgul BDM and assess expansion opportunities for the business. After unpacking Keith’s ideas, gardening services was identified as the ideal expansion plan for CRR with immediate work opportunities as an add on service to contracts Keith already holds with Marra Worra Worra for community clean up. 

Morrgul worked with Keith to develop business plan and assisted to obtain quotes for the required equipment and lodge grant application.

Achievements to Date

• Evaluation of expansion plan and business plan developed
• Successful grant funding secured
• Key gardening services equipment purchased including: a mulcher, zero turn mower, box trailer with dual purposes of transporting mower and transporting garden waste/mulch, and power tools such as chainsaws, pole saws, weed sprayers, whipper snipper and PPE. 
• Equipment Insurance sourced and secured 
• NR TAFE courses including working safely at heights, first aid, chainsaw training, chemical handling and traffic management booked/completed and assistance with processing enrolment forms (ongoing)
• Website development underway (ongoing) 
• One-on-one bookkeeping training booked (ongoing)
• Local bookkeeper sourced and transition to local provider complete 
• Company registration pending 
• A key training session was delivered by Tree Care Services, who supplied the Hansa mulcher, covering safe operation, key safety features, and daily maintenance. Given the risks associated with mulchers, this training was invaluable in ensuring the CRR team’s safety, particularly in remote locations. The Hansa mulcher was chosen for its strong safety features, and the session, held at Morrgul’s Broome office, was a great success building the team’s confidence in operating the first mulcher to be permanently based in Fitzroy Crossing.

Results

Countryman Rubbish Removal has hit the ground running with all the new equipment already being utilised in remote communities across the Fitzroy Valley, gardening services are now included in CRR’s contract with Marra Worra Worra. In addition, Keith has already received enquiries from other local agencies, including Yiramalay Remote School and KRSP, requesting gardening services. Remarkably, these opportunities have arisen through word of mouth alone, with no active outreach required. Given that the equipment has only been in operation for a matter of weeks, Keith is confident that a steady flow of work opportunities will continue to build, with demand already exceeding his initial expectations.

Most importantly, the equipment and expansion of services have now created increased hours, training and learning opportunities for young indigenous men employed by CRR. 

The business is flourishing and really ‘cleaning up’ in Fitzroy Crossing.

What differences have Morrgul and FVABP made to your business?

Keith Andrews said:

“We simply would not be where we are today without Morrgul.  I can’t thank Kelsey and Ruth and the other members of the team too much. I still can’t believe what we’ve achieved with Countryman Rubbish Removal, but what I do know is that our success is due to  Morrgul’s support. Thank you so much.”