When Jake Poche launched Trash Rangers in 2018, the idea was simple: reliable service from a company that would actually show up when it said it would. Today, that same promise has carried the business from a residential garbage service in Ascension Parish into a regional waste provider that stretches across the Capital Region — and into nearly every corner of the industry, from front-load dumpsters to luxury restroom trailers.
Poche runs the locally owned business alongside co-owners Jimmy and James Boyce, and he says that same customer-first approach is now driving its fastest-growing venture: commercial services.
For Poche, the company grew out of a gap he saw in the local market.
“It was just something I’ve always wanted to do, but also the other providers in the area, especially the big guys, were just providing bad service, and there was a need for somebody to come in, offer good service, show up every week like you say you’re going to do and pick people’s trash up,” Poche says. “That was the biggest driving factor, just the competition wasn’t doing their job.”
Today, Trash Rangers employs 54 people, including roughly 35 to 40 drivers, serves about 27,000 residential customers each week and has approximately 1,600 commercial accounts.
The company’s first expansion came in Livingston Parish, driven by customer demand as residents there learned about its reputation in Ascension.
“People started calling, asking us, ‘Hey, will you come to Livingston? Will you come to Livingston?'” Poche says. “There was very little competition in Livingston as well, and then it was growing. They’re building neighborhoods out there, so we saw that opportunity as well.”
Commercial services have become the company’s fastest-growing business line since it launched in 2023. What began with one front-load truck and one roll-off truck has expanded as the company added new commercial customers nearly every week.
“We were adding new businesses to our routes every week and we just constantly were buying new trucks, hiring new employees, just so we can continue to provide that same great service and not miss,” Poche says.
The company now provides commercial dumpster and roll-off services across roughly a 50-mile radius, including Baton Rouge, Livingston, Ascension, St. James, East and West Baton Rouge, West Feliciana and surrounding communities. Last August, it also launched a portable sanitation division offering portable toilets, hand-washing stations, holding tanks and luxury restroom trailers.
Poche says Ascension Parish’s rapid residential and industrial growth has created new opportunities across every segment of the business.
“With more homes being built, that’s more customers we’re able to service,” he says. “If new businesses get built, that’s a new business that we could potentially pick up and service. It’s always a good thing for new growth and development in our area.”
The company has also seen increased demand tied to industrial construction projects.
Despite its growth, Poche says the company’s biggest competitive advantage remains its local presence.
“When you call us, you’re calling our offices. You’re not calling a call center out of state,” he says. “You’re calling people that know the area, know the people. We’re living in the community, we’re spending our money in the community, just like our customers are.”
That philosophy extends to the company’s long-term plans. As the Capital Region continues to add homes and businesses, Poche says Trash Rangers expects to add more trucks, equipment and employees to keep pace.
“Success for us is going to be to continue to obviously grow the company, but also to provide the same great service that we provided day one,” he says. “No matter the size of this company, we can still provide the same great service day after day.”
