Why This US Army Veteran Family Signed on as a Multi-Unit JDog Junk Removal & Hauling Franchisee in Reynoldsburg, Ohio

After retiring from a 21-year military career that took her from New York to East Africa, Lillie Williams’ passion to serve only continued to grow stronger as she transitioned into civilian life. In 2021, Lillie and her husband Robert began looking for a career that would allow the family to stay true to its military background. When they discovered JDog Junk Removal & Hauling, a Veteran-centric home services franchise that offers junk removal for both residential and commercial property owners, it proved to be the perfect fit.

“I served as a logistics officer and a major in the United States Army,” said Lillie. “I was a human resources specialist and I was commissioned as an officer for logistics over my career that spanned from 2000 to 2021. During that career, I went all over the world, but was primarily stationed in Fort Drum, New York, as well as Somalia and Djibouti.”

While in Somalia, Lillie experienced a mild traumatic brain injury and was sent to Walter Reed National Military Medical Hospital for nine months to recover. “While I was there, I took the 12-week, Boots to Business Program course, which is offered to service members who want to get out of the military and start their own businesses,” she said. “During my recovery, I was told about a franchise that was exclusive to veterans and their families, and I initially reached out to them while still in the hospital.”

After getting out of the hospital, Lillie went back to her government job initially before deciding to visit the JDog Brands corporate office and meet the leadership team at Discovery Day. “We found out that their goal was to hire veterans and decrease the veteran unemployment rate,” she said. “We knew at that time that it was a perfect fit for us and within a matter of two weeks, we signed our first franchise agreement.”

The Williams signed on for three JDog locations in Ohio, all of which are already open and operating. To celebrate, the Williams are hosting an Earth Day celebration on April 22nd for their grand opening at Combustion Brewery from 9-11am followed by an e-waste drop-off from 11am-2pm.

“We want to be more than just a junk hauling company for our community,” said Lille. “We already do mentorships for the youth in the community. We also volunteer and participate in donation drives to support our community. We’ve always done more than expected and we’ll continue to do that for people. I am actually finishing the clinical portion of my social work degree so that I can be a licensed social worker on the side.

Looking ahead, Lillie says their main goal with JDog is to make a positive impact on their community and spread the word about Veteran-owned businesses. “Veterans don't always know about organizations that help them and it’s important that veterans who want to start a business have their voices heard,” she said.

JDog Junk Removal & Hauling is creating a surge of opportunities for transitioning veterans in their mission to lower the Veteran unemployment rate to 1%. Jerry Flanagan, JDog’s co-founder and a Veteran himself, designed his company specifically to provide lucrative work opportunities that align with the skills, needs and values of Veterans. The JDog Junk Removal & Hauling franchise only allows Veterans and their families to apply for franchising and provides in-depth support, a flexible and low-cost business model without the need for a storefront, streamlined operations and a tight-knit community of fellow Veteran business owners.

“As we continue to grow JDog across the country, we are thrilled to partner with passionate and driven Veterans and military families like the Williams to help them achieve their dream of business ownership,” said Flanagan. “The beauty of this proven business model and streamlined operating systems is that it requires no specialized skills or knowledge, but at the same time, it is designed to elevate the strengths of Veterans and make the most of their talents. So much of being in the military is about following a process, and with JDog, we’ve built a process Veterans can take and turn into a thriving business.”

Now, JDog Brands is actively seeking qualified franchisees like the Williams to open franchise territories in markets across the country, starting with Cincinnati, New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

The total investment necessary to begin operation of a JDog Junk Removal & Hauling ranges from $30,000 to $110,000, including a $35,000 franchise fee. For more information on franchising with JDog Brands, visit: *