Only halfway through winter, Milford has already seen over a foot of snow, and many residential homeowners struggle to keep up with the snow removal. Some teens choose to take on the task of pocketing some easy cash by clearing driveways, sidewalks, and walkways.
Many students in Milford have taken up this opportunity for some cash over the past few storms and have been able to do so by posting ads across social media to gain customers.
Two Juniors, Daniel DeSousa and Anthony Chianca, work together.
DeSousa says, “I got my customers through Facebook ads and handing out paper flyers,” utilizing his resources to gain business and help increase his profit.
Although some people think snow removal is easy, it can be difficult to deal with the large piles left at the end of driveways after the Milford Department of Public Works (DPW) clears the streets.
Chianca states, “When they push all the snow that is on the street to the front of the driveways, it is harder to get through all that snow in the front.”
When pricing out the driveways, it usually depends on how much snowfall happens. In addition to that, some driveways are bigger than others, making it more time-consuming.
“The houses with no cars were the easiest because there was nothing to go around and not as much to shovel besides the walkway,” states Chianca.
Even with all of the right equipment and plenty of manpower, they still faced challenges.
“The phone would not stop ringing, and people wanted better prices,” DeSousa says. In addition, they also faced challenges with equipment.
“Two of our machine belts broke,” says Chianca.
The time required to assist customers varies significantly due to the size of the driveway and walkway, along with other factors, like having to clear cars and any other work requested by the homeowner.
DeSousa argues that many important factors go into quoting his customers, adding, “I eyeball them and give a price based on how big the driveway is, and if the customer called later in the storm. When this happens, it costs more because it is considered an emergency.”
Although the hours may be long and very physically demanding, the payout after a storm is high and worth the time if anyone is determined to push themselves and is looking for some cash.
