Today we’d like to introduce you to Matt Ward.
Hi Matt, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
My journey started when i began working with my dad at his heating and air-conditioning business he started in the 80s. I learned from him how to run a business, how to deal with customers and all the ins and outs of owning a small business. I worked with him for 15 years and the last 5 i was pretty much running it myself. I enjoyed the freedom and thrill of being self employed, even though it came with its challenges. My dad had established a great customer base but that line of work was very seasonal, it was truly feast or famine! But i enjoyed it and used the slower months starting other small business, like lawn mowing, handy man work and for 5 years had a Crossfit gym. I had plans to take over the AC business after he retired, and hopefully wouldn’t have to put in the long hours with the other work i was doing. But at a birthday party for my friends daughter, he mentioned to me that if i wanted some of the old turf that the company he worked for replaced, i could send 18 wheeler flatbeds to the fields and they would load them up. (The rolls of turf weigh 1800 to 2000lbs each!) He said i could use them at my Crossfit gym, but i had no way to unload these huge things or move them once i got them off, but the business next to my gym had a forklift and they were kind enough to let me borrow it. Id never unloaded an 18 wheeler before, nor ran a forklift, but i was excited to have something new at my gym, so i agreed. The trucks came in, i got them unloaded, and just like that, we had a new turf running track at my gym! I decided to sell the leftover rolls online, but quickly realized the weight and size of the rolls limited many people from buying them. And plus, most people wanted turf without the lines and markings on it, they wanted something lightweight and all green…so i began experimenting. I would bring rolls home and the wife and kids and i would start figuring out ways to remove the weight (the sand and rubber infill that’s brust inside of them). I quickly realized that if i could get these huge things upside down, i could shake the infill out, by hand! So after hours of trial and error i found out that i could use my truck and a tow strap to unroll them upside down, then cut them into smaller sections, and shake baby shake! Then after the infill was removed i could cut all the lines and numbers off and presto! All green synthetic grass thats lightweight and easy to handle and could be put together for all kinds of applications like yards, patios, dog pens etc. So i kept sending trucks to pick up the old turf, only a few trucks at a time, then shake and cut them behind my gym during the little off time I had, and began posting them online. And to my surprise, people loved it! It was a product no one knew they needed until it was available! Then, my friend who connected me with the turf called one day and said a school was going to keep the rolls from their feild they had just replaced but changed their mind and said if i wanted them, they’re mine! So of course i said yes, but then the wife and kids asked, “daddy, where are your going to put all of this? And how in the world are you going to sell all of it?” It was an entire football fields worth of turf! Over 80,000 square feet! But, I’ve always been a risk taker, and the type to jump headlong into something and figure it out later. In my mind i thought this amount of turf would last me a year, it was a great side hustle and I’d figured out how to work it and that there was a market for it, so i was eager to get it. It didn’t last a year, it didn’t last half a year, I sold every bit of it in 8 weeks! It was then that i realized I had something. So i convinced my wife i needed to buy a piece of equipment, i couldn’t burden my neighbor everyday borrowing his forklift. So, i bought a machine and leased a piece of property across the street from my gym, became a vendor with my friends turf company, and the trucks started coming in… alot of them! Not just one field, not two but dozens were coming in! We had turf stacked everywhere! I was by myself for the first few months, but i couldn’t keep up with the demand so i asked my oldest son Jonathan (the oldest of our 6) who was working at a bowling alley at the time in the kitchen, if he wanted to quit his job and come help me. He’d never operated any kind of machinery, never dealt with customers, and neither one of us really knew what we were doing, but he said yes! And every day we would try to figure out better ways to work the turf, more efficient ways to sell it, market it, roll it, cut it, you name it! I would bring turf home and the kids and i would experiment with different ways to make this product more accessible and usable. Turf was everywhere and all consuming, but i loved it! It was something new, something different, and something my whole family was benefiting from. I would bring small scrap pieces home that my young daughter would sell on Etsy. We were finding all kinds of ways this stuff could be used. Everyday people would ask me, “what can you use this stuff for”? I said anything, its universal! So i sold the gym, told my dad i was going to pursue this full time and just like that, Universal Turf was born! It was and is truly a family affair, with my 3 oldest kids now working with me, my wife doing the books and all the paperwork, the younger kiddos selling scrap pieces on Etsy, turf was our life, and we loved it! Then the business began to grow and grow, we got better and smarter at what we were doing and now we are vendors for several large turf companies and im now know as, “the turf guy”! We have been able to figure out a way to take something considered a waste and turn it into an affordable and useful pruduct people can use in all kinds of different ways. Its taken alot of thinking, planning, networking and ALOT of hard labor! But its been, and continues to be, a wonderful ride, but what i enjoy the most is having my family with me along the way, without them, Universal Turf would not be possible, and i wouldn’t have it any other way.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
There have definitely been challenges, some financial, some logistical but being relentless and determined to figure out how to make this business work, we made it happen. The most challenging thing for me though was none of those things, although they were very much there, the hardest thing was hearing that it can’t be done. I knew in my heart that this was something special but other than my family, no one thought i could do it, or that it was a good idea. Anytime someone would look at me funny when i told them what kind of business i was building, it motivated me even more. I get that from my grandmother. If anyone tells her she cant do something, you better believe she’ll prove them wrong. Whether its good motivation or not, its definitely kept me pushing forward. And now looking back, im so glad i didn’t quit
As you know, we’re big fans of Universal Turf. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
We specialize in repurposing used field turf (football, baseball soccer fields etc.). When a highschool, college or pro team replaces their synthetic turf field after 8 to 10 years we haul the field away to our location in Canton Tx. We then remove the infill (a crumb rubber sand mix inside the turf) making the turf considerably lighter and able to be moved by hand and installed easily. What we mostly sell are the sections of the field that are all green without any of the sports markings, enabling the customer to install them and beutify any area of a home or business. For some people the lines and markings arent an issue, like for batting cages, dog kennels or any other area where it doesnt really matter what it looks like. But what sets us apart is that we are one of the few, if any, that take the time to cut the lines and damaged parts off and just sell the green sections. When I first started getting into this business, i noticed that everyone else who sold used turf treated it as a waste product (even though it is!) and didtn take the time to remove the infil and cut the lines and markings off. But what i saw was that most of the turf we recieved was still in good shape, and with a little extra effort, it could become a product that could be installed for a fraction of the cost of new synthetic grass, and still look amazing. No one considered putting all this extra work into used turf due to the fact that it would create more waste, which seemed to defeat the purpose of repurposing it and keeping it out of a landfill. But what i noticed is that no matter what we cut off, even the smallest of pieces, people found a use for them. From door mats, to dog kennels, deer blinds and even truck beds, the options are endless! But the biggest challenge was the infill. After going through literally millions of square feet of turf we had hundreds of millions of pounds of infill pilled up at our yard, and in the beginning we could not find a market for it. So we would just give it away for free for anyone who could find a use for it. We had some succes our first year when a local road construction company started mixing it with other materials to make driveways, great! But then, he retired. As the infill began to pile up, i could hear all the voices of the many who told me this was a bad idea. But after months of relentlessly making phone calls and sending out samples, we finally got the attention of several sports field construction companies that were looking for a cheap alternative for small areas and little league sports fields and now, we are able to bag, ship and sell the infill just about as fast as we remove it. It’s been a long and stressfull journey trying to make all the pieces fit, but it all finally came together, and now we have a unique business that takes a waste product and turns it into something not only useful, but beautiful! And that, im proud of.
Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
What makes me happy is making other people happy. Everytime someone comes to our store and says, “im so glad i found you guys, i was about to spend a fortune on new turf, but this saved us a ton of money!”, i smile from ear to ear. Whether it was fixing someones air conditioner or mowing their yard, i found satisfaction when people were proud of my work. And now, I not only find that same satisfaction in a business that is different and unique, i get to do it with my family, and that makes me happy the most.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Universalturfrecyclers.com
