[Market Watch] PCO field reports from across the United States

Arrest-A-Pest

Warwick, R.I.

Although business conditions for Arrest-A-Pest, Warwick, R.I., have been stable throughout the year, President Paul Wyrostek said the pest control business in Rhode Island fell far shorter than expected and the biggest culprit was the weather.

Quoting Rhode Island’s Providence Journal, Wyrostek said the average temperature for March, April and May was a mere 46°F.

As far as how the rest of the year will go, Wyrostek said weather may not be the only factor in the way the company earns its revenues.

"I think the market condition(s) for the coming quarter will ‘tighten up’ if the price of oil continues to rise," he said. "The pinch from this economic engine is just starting to be felt. If we have some pricing relief from the oil companies, I think we can finish the year in a relative comfort zone."

Although Arrest-A-Pest will not make up the lost revenues from March, April and May, Wyrostek said he hopes this year’s total revenues will be higher than last year’s because temperatures have almost returned back to normal.

Wyrostek named carpenter ants, house ants and termites as the pests causing his customers the most problems.

Rising fuel costs have also been a struggle for Arrest-A-Pest. Coupled with skyrocketing housing prices, Wyrostek said he believes people will start to "think twice about how they spend their money," meaning the remaining months could end in a rough year for Arrest-A-Pest if customers decide they no longer can afford pest control services.

Gunter Pest Management

Kansas City, Mo.

Business for Gunter Pest Management has steadily increased at a moderate rate for the past year, according to Jay Besheer, president of the company.

"Our particular company is up approximately 11 percent in sales through June," he said. Besheer said he expects the market to be "slightly better for the rest of the year."

Pests that have caused the most problems for Gunter Pest Management include ants, silverfish and springtails. Besheer said because of an increase of homes being built with wood roofs, silverfish have made their presence known, resulting in an increase in business. And he said the increase of springtails calls is notable. "Although not one of our biggest pests, springtails calls were up higher than any other year I can recall," he said.

With sales up 75 percent since 1999, the company was named one of the fastest-growing companies in Kansas City in a report by Ingram’s magazine.

Besheer also made note of the risk the company took in dropping the size of its Yellow Pages ads. This move not only helped the company financially by saving $14,000 this past year, but it unexpectedly increased its business as well.

"My sales have increased at a higher percentage since I dropped the size of my ad," he said. "I dropped from 2nd position to 7th position in ad placement."

Besheer said he anticipates the upcoming quarter to be a bit above average because of "less expected rain levels."

Killum Pest Control

Lake Jackson, Texas

Market conditions for Killum Pest Control in Lake Jackson, Texas, have been good this year, despite a drop in the termite market.

Vice President Eric Melass had a few ideas as to why the pest control business in his area has picked up momentum.

"There are a lot of people moving from the city to the suburbs," Melass said. "By moving out into areas with new developments, people are now on properties where pests have been for years."

Time management may be another reason why the phones at Killum Pest Control have been ringing a bit more frequently than usual. "I also think people are lacking time and thus would rather hire someone to do the service than to do it themselves," Melass added.

With less rain and higher temperatures, Melass said his company was called into jobs dealing with insects they don’t normally see — such as a beetle species that was sent to a university to be identified.

Spiders also have been the cause of a growing number of pest control calls. Melass again attributed this to suburbs sprouting up in the country.

"Again it goes back to more people moving out to suburbia. These are old crop areas and cattle field areas that are now developing. People who just move in aren’t expecting earwigs, spiders, wasps and ants," he said.