Amos Greenwood Takes Leap of Faith, Launches Own Pest Business

PALM DESERT, Calif. — Amos Greenwood’s path to making pest control a lifelong career encompassed adversities and challenges along the way. Greenwood, founder of Pest Protect 360, Palm Desert, Calif, said growing up, his mother and him woke up each day not knowing where their next meal would come from.

“I had to start working at a very young age because she had disabilities, and I had to take care of her,” Greenwood said. “When I went into the workforce, I had to teach myself how to read and write.”

Greenwood was introduced to the pest control industry 12 years ago by his father-in-law who works for Ecolab. He said getting into Ecolab was an opportunity to put some food on the table and gain responsibilities and independence that would set him up for a fulfilling pest control career.

“They gave me a service truck, a gas card, all of this equipment, and I was sitting there like a kid in a candy store,” he said. “I had no idea there were these opportunities to make money in pest control. I studied so hard to pass the applicator exams and I learned how to do all of this.”

After gaining experience at Ecolab, Greenwood worked for Terminix and held several executive leadership positions. Working for Terminix gave him the opportunity to adapt leadership skills, learn business operations and “be a man of sorts,” he said.

Greenwood’s a firm believer in taking chances, and he felt now was the right time to leave Terminix and start his own pest control company, Pest Protect 360, he said.

© Chaz Estrada

Having the experience and knowledge of the industry from his time at Ecolab and Terminix, Greenwood said will separate Pest Protect 360 from other small companies in Southern California.

“The reason I was there so long was because of the culture. I created my own culture there with the position that I was in.” he said. “I was a part of helping with developing new bait programs and mosquito service bundles — just helping them think outside of the box.”

Greenwood said one of the best things about the industry is freedom, which has allowed him to “soft launch” his business over the last couple of months. He’s been able to create his website, hire a technician and get his fleet together to service customers during this time.

On top of his pest control tenure, Greenwood also has a successful event rental company that specializes in large events and festivals with a warehouse, employees and vehicles.

He said he’s been able to scale his event rental company to merge into his pest control business, like setting up the infrastructure of a business to already deliver pest control services to customers.

“We have a handful of larger accounts once we get started because we do their events every year. It gave me so many additional contacts to work with,” Greenwood said. “I can now treat for festivals and parties in larger fields like for fire ants in the park because of a jazz festival going on.”

Pest Protect 360 will offer a full line of pest services, as well as ancillary services such as insulation, fumigations, heat treatment and wood repairs, Greenwood said. He also plans on hiring door knockers for the “off seasons” in his area, which is September through December.

Working with local companies is important to customers in the Coachella Valley area in Southern California, Greenwood said. To continue these local efforts, he said he plans to send a welcome video to each customer, “thanking them joining the Pest Protect 360 family.”

“I want to show customers exactly what we’re going to be doing and being fully transparent on what we do and show them why we’re worth, what we’re worth,” Greenwood said.

© Chaz Estrada

Greenwood said he plans on bringing a “new school” feel to his business with innovation and products being used and selling these services at a decent cost. He’s in the process of shooting a commercial and creating a jingle to help craft the branding of the company.

Greenwood’s hopes are to leave a legacy for his daughter, who he has listed as the “Future CEO” on his website.

“My time could be tomorrow or next year, and I want something to show my daughter besides working for a corporate company where I’m just a number,” he said. “Hopefully by the time I pass this onto her, we’ll have 100 employees and multiple locations.”

Greenwood said he credits the pest control industry for being able to provide his mother and family with a fruitful life.

“My mom passed away a few years ago, and she was able to see me turn from that little boy that she knew to now buy houses,” he said. “It’s a blessing for me to be able to do this.”