Maggie and D.P. “Dub” Hayes
Some people seem destined to work until the day they die — and they view this as a good thing! They love what they do, and they do it well. They feel called to serve others. For these chosen few, “work” isn’t work; it’s fun.
Meet D.P. “Dub” Hayes. He’s been in the pest management business since May 15, 1955. Hayes is a self-employed, full-time pest management professional (PMP) who shows no signs of slowing down at age 84.
“Just today I did a termite job by myself,” Hayes proudly says. “I’m not as spry as I was 56 years ago, but who is? I’m loving work more than ever … My customers are family.”
As owner/operator of Hayes Pest Control in Moberly, Mo., Hayes flies solo these days. He typically works seven to nine hours per day, five days per week. The majority of his business involves quarterly, residential accounts.
“At my age, I don’t want to mess around with climbing anyone’s corporate ladder or hiring anyone,” Hayes told pmp in a March interview. “Some days I might be a little busier than I’d like — yesterday, I worked 12 hours — but what are you gonna do when people call and ask for help? We are called to serve.”
Hayes’ first job in the industry was route technician for Orkin in McCook, Neb. After six months, he moved to Lincoln, Neb., to help open and run Orkin’s branch there. Eleven years later, after growing the Orkin office to a dozen employees, including 10 technicians, Hayes switched horses: He spent the next nine years helping Allied-Bruce Terminix Cos. run offices in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida and Mississippi.
“After working for the big boys, I decided to start my own company in Springdale, Ark.,” Hayes says.
Hayes had that company, Hayes & Co., 11 years. He grew it to 10 employees, including eight techs and himself.
Hayes sold the business to Terminix and spent some of the about $180,000 in net proceeds traveling across the country for six months, in a motor home, with his wife, Maggie, whom he lovingly refers to as “Ma.”
After returning from his travels, Hayes purchased Aban Pest Control, then a one-man operation in Kirksville, Mo. Over the next seven years, Hayes expanded the business to 10 employees and two branches, Kirksville and Moberly.
In 1994, Hayes sold Aban to two employees. Because he financed the deal, Hayes stayed on with Aban for 10 more years. “I was as much tethered to them as they were to me,” says Hayes, noting family ties also played a part in him deciding to stay.
“One of the two employees who purchased Aban from me was my son, Charlie,” Hayes adds. “But Charlie died of cancer three years after I sold Aban. In all of my 84 years, that’s the toughest thing I’ve been through. But you gotta pick yourself up and keep going.”
In 2005, Hayes left Aban and founded Hayes Pest Control in Moberly, where he’s been growing steadily for six years.
“I’ve lived — and worked — through a number of recessions, but this latest one was the worst,” Hayes says. “Even with that, I grew my business 20 percent the past two years.
“The one thing I’m most proud of is that wherever I’ve worked, we’ve always grown,” he adds. “It’s not rocket science: Just do good work — you gotta love serving people to do that in this business — at reasonable prices, and keep your image squeaky clean.”
You can reach Marty Whitford at mwhitford@northcoastmedia.net or 216-706-3766.
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