Sherwood Forest Recycling has been passed on to the next generation, and the business has been given a new name.
Cole Sherwood took ownership of the newly renamed Sherwood Recycling Inc. July 1 from his grandfather and business founder, Robert Sherwood.
Cole Sherwood said the transition has been in the works for the past two years.
“He told me that he wanted to get out of it before he turned 80,” he said. “He said if you want the opportunity, you’re going to have to make up your mind quick.”
Robert Sherwood turns 80 in August.
Grandfather and grandson have spent the past two years getting things sorted out — new contracts for where they send the materials, a new tax ID, DOT numbers and other paperwork.
The recycling business began as a salvage yard in 1967, and Robert Sherwood began buying aluminum cans in 1972. The business moved into Tomah in 1986 as Sherwood Forest and Recycling.
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Robert Sherwood believes his grandson will be successful with the enterprise.
“I think he’ll do good,” he said. “He’s been going there since he was five years old, helping me down there ... and he’s grown up with a lot of my customers.”
Cole Sherwood said the recycling business is all he has ever known − he done it since he could walk, but he enjoys it and is happy to keep the business going.
The benefit to the planet from recycling is what Cole Sherwood likes about being in the recycling business.
“For me, it’s the sustainability, the helping the planet (that I like) and that I can help people get rid of their junk at the same time ... everybody needs a place to go with their stuff,” he said. “Another reason why I want to keep (the business) going is because I have a lot of customers that depend on the place, so I want to keep it going for them.”
Cole Sherwood is a 2010 graduate of Tomah High School and a 2012 graduate of University of Wisconsin-Richland (now University of Wisconsin–Platteville Richland), where he received an associate degree in business management.
Immediately following his college graduation in 2012, Cole Sherwood returned to Tomah and Sherwood Forest Recycling upon his grandfather’s request.
“He called me up that summer, actually, and said, ‘Do you want to come work for me full-time?’” he said. “I said, ‘I don’t have any plans, I’m a broke college student, so it sounds good,’ ... and I never really looked back. It worked out good.”
As the new owner of Sherwood Recycling Inc., Cole Sherwood has few changes he plans to make to the business.
“For the most part it’s going to be about the same. There’s not a whole lot that’s going to change, but I’m definitely trying to have more of a web presence,” he said.