Winter Woes: Lack of Snow Impacts Black-Owned Snow Removal Companies   

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So far, it’s been a relatively mild start to the winter season across metro-Detroit.

The average amount of snow for Southeast Michigan tends to hover around 40-45 inches, according to the Midwest Regional Climate Center. Since December we’ve only seen around 17 inches of the white stuff. 

While there are many more days left in February on the calendar, along with the months of March and April ahead, we are off to a slow start to winter. Remember temperatures were in the 70s in the early days of November last year? Most of the ground has remained dry and the air unseasonably warm. 

While some people take great pleasure in the abnormal mild conditions, oftentimes, it’s an after-thought for many people about how a less than average snowfall can impact businesses and industry. 

“It’s impacting us,” said Jerome Powell, owner of Powell & Son LLC, a snow removal company in Detroit. “When you have a crew not working and not getting paid, it becomes very hard to depend on the winter season.”  

There’s the reality of winter weather starting later in the season and picking up more after the beginning of the new year. This was the case in the past two years where Southeast Michigan picked up over 20 inches of snow in just the month of February alone in 2021 and 2020. 

Despite the snowfall nearing its normal rate in the past years, there is no question Powell has seen a change.  

“When you go out and buy a lot of salt products that you have to hold on to until the following year, it can be challenging.” 

Powell’s year-round landscaping and snow removal company has been operating in Detroit for 28 years. He employs 16 people and said the abnormal start to the winter season has saved him money on gas for his vehicles but hasn’t gained much on revenue. 

“It has a dramatic effect on us,” he said. “Every year was a good year for us, until about 5 years ago, [when] we saw a change.” 

Most of the clients he serves are commercial businesses who pay upfront annually while a percentage of other customers are serviced on an as-needed basis, depending on weather conditions. That’s about 60 percent of his business coming from seasonal contracts and 40 percent per plow. 

Powell said his company tends to make more money on applying salt instead of just snow plowing alone. This is a result of temperatures changes and melting and refreezing conditions which create the need for salt application on the ground throughout the season, even when there is no major snowstorm forecasted.  

“You make money when you salt, not a lot of money, but you make a reasonable amount.” 

There is a lot of hard work that goes in to this business, something Powell knows all too well. Powell is over the age of 60, a retired Ford Motor Company worker who was inspired to jump into the landscaping business because of his grandmother. She landscaped as well. 

“I had a passion for dirt,” he said. “I started off cutting lawns and then concrete work which we do mainly in the summer.” 

“Being in Michigan, it’s hard to predict December to April what the weather will bring. You just have to be ready to piggy back off of spring clean-ups and other seasonal work. If we only did snow removal, that five months would kill us.” 

It’s a balancing act on how businesses like Powell do their best to stay afloat during the winter season while pulling in revenue from sources during other seasons of work in the year. 

“When you have seasons like this, it can impact your bottom line dramatically sometimes,” said Kevin Williams, owner of Kevin’s All Season Lawn & Landscaping LLC, in Detroit. “We rely on this snow business, but we learned early on that you have to balance out your portfolio.” 

Williams has been in business for 27 years and with over 20 employees, he mostly services schools, auto plants and corporate companies who pay a flat fee “regardless” of winter weather conditions, a similar business model to Powell as it relates to seasonal contracts.  

“Seven-plus years ago, it was almost hard to keep up,” William said. “Those were the good old days. Every week there were storms keeping us busy.”  

There is no doubt both Black-owned snow removal businesses have seen a change in Michigan’s winter season. Will snowfall and more winter-like conditions improve? It remains to be seen.