Dave Leder

Junk Bros. is more than just a business; it’s a community service.

Owner Jacob Castillo and his team get a lot of satisfaction out of helping their neighbors in the Yakima Valley, and while they can’t offer their services for free, they know they are making a difference in people’s lives.

“We could generate a lot more money if we were profit-driven, but we just love helping people,” said Castillo, who started the Yakima-based junk-removal business in 2019 with help from his wife, Delia, and brother, Jeremy. “The way I see it, if I can help someone out, it will come back to me.”

Castillo has been buying and selling items on eBay since 2002, and he thought offering junk-removal services might help net him some additional inventory. But after doing some freelance junk-removal jobs around the Valley for about a year, he realized that most of the items he obtained were just that: junk.

“We put an ad on Craigslist to help people get rid of their yard sale leftovers,” he said. “But that idea never really worked out, and we realized that the business wasn’t going to be scalable or sustainable.” 

Just when Castillo thought his plan was dead in the water, a woman asked him if he would help her dispose of an old refrigerator and some other appliances. She handed him a $100 bill to take those few items away, and that’s when the lightbulb went off.

“I went home that day and changed the Craigslist add to say, ‘We will pick up your unwanted stuff,’” said Castillo, a former airline pilot for Horizon Air and Sky West Airlines. “We got a pretty good response right away, and so we purchased a trailer and a business license before launching the business full time in 2020. It’s hard to believe we’ve already been doing this for six years now.”

Junk Bros. got an unexpected boost later that year when it won the Enterprise Challenge competition through the Yakima County Development Association. The win netted the owners $10,000 in startup funds, which they put toward the purchase of two trucks. They also secured a storage facility on River Road in Yakima and another one in Zillah, where Castillo lives.

“Ever since winning the Enterprise Challenge, we’ve been going at it pretty hard,” he said. “We now have two full-time employees and two part-time guys, and our client list is growing all the time, even though we don’t promote it very much.”

With 4,000 customers served in just the past six years, the Junk Bros. team has been staying pretty busy. Word of mouth and repeat clients have keep the business growing year after year, although Castillo admits he could probably do more online to build awareness about his services. 

At the same time, Castillo doesn’t feel comfortable posting pictures of his clients on social media since not everyone wants the world to know about their personal situations.

“If we find a nice table and chairs and can give it to a family that needs it, we don’t feel like it’s right to splash their photos all over the internet to promote ourselves,” he said. “We want to respect people’s dignity.”

Finding a way to repurpose unwanted household items has become a priority for Castillo. Instead of automatically transporting every piece of inventory he finds to the landfill, he tries to find a home for it first.

“Our goal is to donate, recycle and then dispose. That’s what separates us from the other guys,” he said. “We try to find new homes for things rather than just getting rid of them.”

Junk Bros. charges a minimum pickup fee of $125, which includes a truck with two workers. The company often works with realtors, landlords, nursing homes and government agencies, but it also serves hundreds of everyday homeowners looking to downsize.

They also help families that have lost a loved one manage their accumulated household items.

“When people call us, they have a problem that they’re needing our help to solve,” Castillo said. “We find ourselves in a wide variety of scenarios, and we never want it to feel transactional. We always try to respond compassionately because the stuff we are removing may have sentimental value to our clients.”

When it comes down to it, Junk Bros. is providing customer services, just as much as it is removing junk and disposing of it.

“We’re here to help, and even if people can’t pay for our services, we know a number of volunteers who are willing to help out,” Castillo said. “Just give us a call and we’ll take good care of you.”

If you would like to learn more about Junk Bros. and its services, visit junkbros509.com or call 509-314-8132.