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When operating a business, it can be hard to add on new services and move outside your comfort zone. But ABC Home & Commercial Services has managed that difficult feat, President Bobby Jenkins says. “We offer a large variety of [services] and we’ve become excellent in each and every one of them,” he says. Based in Austin, Texas, ABC specializes in home and commercial services, including pest control, lawn and handyman services, and HVAC, electrical and plumbing contracting. ABC started operations in 1949 as a specialist in pest control.

Jenkins’ father, Bob Jenkins, purchased the company in 1967. Throughout the years, ABC has added additional services. It was a challenge, but the company coped by hiring more employees with the right expertise, Bobby Jenkins says. “We know how to attract good, friendly, articulate and knowledgeable folks [who] are experts,” he says.

Although the majority of ABC Home & Commercial’s work still consists of pest control services, “Our lawn division and construction services division are growing rapidly,” he reports. 

Raised at ABC

A longtime veteran of ABC and a native of San Antonio, Jenkins says he spent many of his younger years at ABC. “I grew up cleaning the office [as] a janitor,” he recalls. Jenkins later began serving its clients as he attended college.

In 1983, ABC promoted Jenkins to managing its office in Austin. At that time, “[It] had eight employees,” he says, noting that he now manages 530 people.

Additionally, Jenkins and his brothers have split up ABC. While Jenkins himself owns ABC’s offices in Austin, San Antonio and College Station, Texas, his brother Raleigh Jenkins owns its office in Houston.

Another brother, Dennis Jenkins, owns the office in Dallas, while all three jointly own offices in Orlando and Tampa, Fla. However, when it comes to the ABC Texas operations, they are “separate corporations,” Bobby Jenkins says. “We don’t cross into each other’s territory.”

The three do maintain friendly relations, Jenkins asserts. “My brothers are my best friends,” he says. “We share information [but] we don’t share money. [That] allows us to do what we want to.”

After all these years, Jenkins says he still enjoys serving ABC’s customers and working with its staff. “I hope that type of attitude rubs off on the people that work here,” he says.

“I’ve got managers that have been here more than 30 years,” he continues, noting he believes in collaborating with his managers to solve problems. “At the end of the day, we’re going to come up with a far better solution than if I [immediately] said, ‘Oh, this is what we ought to do.’”

The Community Connection

Recently, many of ABC’s competitors have increased their range of services, like ABC itself did years ago. “I think [we’re] seeing more companies recognize the value of diversification,” Jenkins says.

However, the company has stayed competitive through its connection to customers. This is managed by not only providing strong service, but also by creating links with its local communities. “[We] recognize the value of being local and being involved in the marketplace,” he says.

ABC participates in several local charities, but in ways that go beyond merely writing a check, Jenkins asserts. “We’re the ones who are out there working the fundraisers,” says Jenkins, who was a co-chair for the Austin Heart Walk, a five-mile walk that raised $580,000 locally for the American Heart Association.

“We also do the American Diabetes Association Tour De Cure,” he continues, explaining that the company’s workers set up rest stops on all of the tour’s cycling routes. “I think people want to do business with folks that they think are committed to the [regional] marketplace.”

Valued Relationships

ABC not only takes the relationship with its customers seriously, but also its vendors. “We choose our vendors very, very carefully,” Jenkins says. “I put a lot of stock in long-term relationships with [them].”

One is Sign & Graphix, which has pleased Jenkins time and time again. Today, ABC owns more than 300 vehicles that Sign & Graphix has signed for it, Jenkins explains.

Growth Focused

Jenkins says he sees a strong future for ABC, largely due to its location. “I’m very fortunate that my offices are located in Texas and specifically in Central Texas,” he says. “Our economy is probably better here than anywhere in the country, and this market is going to continue to grow for many years to come.”

At the age of 53, he also does not plan on retiring any time soon. “I’m going to keep working for a long, long time,” he says. “I’m continuing to focus on how we do grow.

“We plan on growing by continuing to provide excellent service in all of our service lines, continuing to invest in our aggressive marketing campaign, and looking for additional service lines that we believe would be of value to our customers,” he states.