Torch Talk March 2016 | Page 8

BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU ® bbb.org CLE A N U P COM PA N Y TA KE S ON TH E BU RDEN by Veronica Craker BBB Managing Editor & Writer “Do you ever get use to death?” TORCH TALK MARCH 2016 That’s a question John Stavros gets asked a lot. His response is always the same. -8- “No, I never do,” he said. “How can you?” Stavros owns and operates BioManagement Northwest. The company headquarters are in Edmonds, but offers services throughout Washington and Oregon. Some of the services he provides include: homicide, suicide and unattended death remediation; police and personal vehicle cleaning; hoarding and clutter cleaning; blood, body fluid and tissue disposal; fire, smoke and water damage remediation and insurance assistance. “We use the word remediation and abatement a lot, but we’re basically a very specialized hazmat company,” Stavros said. “We get some exotic cases. The things you would not normally think of —we handle it.” Some of those “exotic cases” even brought him 15 minutes of fame when he was featured in two episodes of A&E’s show Hoarders. In The Beginning Prior to launching BioManagement Northwest, Stavros ran a commercial janitorial business. But in 2006 he sensed a recession was on the way and decided a career move was in order. “I researched what three factors were involved in the last recession and what businesses flourished,” Stavros said. The three industries that remained profitable included funeral homes, entertainment and forced economics.