[Rearview] When pest control and ‘Jersey Shore’ collide

What happens when the pest control profession meets “Jersey Shore?” Viewers will find out later this summer when the A&E network premieres “Rambug,” which follows Robert (Robbie) Mercante and his team at Brooklyn, N.Y.-based Rambug Pest Control. A&E described the show as “a series about a brawny group of hard-working, over-the-top Italian exterminators from Brooklyn who dress in camouflage and wage war on the city’s nastiest critters.”

The Rambug Pest Control team is led by Mercante and supervised by his older brother, Ralph. The general manager of the business is Big Rob, who struggles to juggle his work duties, his relationship with office manager Rose and being a father to an often impertinent Lil Rob, who also works at the company. Lil Rob’s best friend and wingman, James, and rat-trapper extraordinaire, Steve, round out the Rambug crew.

Mercante told PCT that the “office drama” on display is what makes Rambug unique among reality TV shows. “We all know that every exterminating company has issues with employees, with staff, with people being on time, or dealing with the problems of their customers, and the customers themselves. I just wanted to show what really goes on in a pest control company. Plus, we have some characters, so it worked out really well.”

Despite the drama that the whole world will soon be seeing, Mercante said the Rambug team is a family. “At the end of the day we walk out the door and say, ‘What are we doing tonight?’ or ‘Where are we going to eat?’”

Will Rambug resonate with pest management professionals? Mercante believes so because it will be relatable to PMPs, but he is quick to point out that “Rambug” is not what he calls “a protocol show. We’re not going to sit there and teach you how to get rid of the bugs.”

Mercante’s story is not unlike many successful PCOs. Twenty-five years ago, he was going to college, playing in a band (note: his band, Sounds of Infinity, plays the show’s theme song) and working part-time as service technician. After six months working as technician, he decided to go into business himself, so in 1987 he opened Rambug, on Avenue T, in Brooklyn (the “RAM” in Rambug is Mercante’s initials, Robert A. Mercante).

“I’ve had good times and really tough times,” Mercante said. “I’ve had infestations I couldn’t solve but others that I’ve solved. It’s just the way this business goes. But just having that love and dedication for the business has pulled me through.”

The idea for “Rambug” came after Mercante saw a news segment featuring a pest control company. He thought it was boring and that he could do better. According to an article in the New York Daily News, Mercante contacted a friend of his Los Angeles-based cousin, who put him in touch with an agent, which led to a producer and now a show.

— Brad Harbison