After graduating high school, Louis A. Bencardino earned his stripes raking concrete, digging footings, and grading and stoning slabs for a neighbor who had a concrete business. He soon decided he'd rather go back to school so he studied to be a computer repair technician. In 1986 he landed a job with Xerox.
Soon realizing that office life with a briefcase wasn't for him, Lou Bencardino naturally returned to his neighbor's concrete business and gained more skills, learning to use a backhoe among them. Armed with his newfound abilities, Bencardino set out to buy his own backhoe and start an excavating business. He had his first backhoe delivered to his mother's house because he had nowhere to put it!
Doing odd excavating jobs, Bencardino caught the attention of A.T. Chadwick, which sent him on his first independent job to a chemical plant in south Philly. Bencardino recalls leaving at 2 a.m. and driving the backhoe all the way there.
Chadwick quickly became a good customer, keeping Bencardino busy for the next few years. From Chadwick, he also learned sanitation/storm and mechanical work. Growing quickly and steadily over the years, Bencardino Excavating built a large shop building in 1995, and in 1999 built an adjacent office building, which now houses 85 employees.
The company's secrets to success? Lou Bencardino chalks it up to three things:
- Family. "My mother handles all the accounting, taxes and union reports. When it comes to trust, there's no question."
- Hard work. "Being willing to do whatever it takes, whenever. We don't say no to anyone."
- Luck. "I've had a lot of it, but I think luck also comes from working hard."
