A serial entrepreneur is at it again.
Bruce Johnson, who delivered sugar to the Island, brought frozen yogurt to the downtown core and B.C. Ferries and established a fleet of solar-powered trash compactors among other endeavours, is now waving a steam-powered wand in the name of gum eradication.
The 71-year-old, who has been working non-stop since he had a newspaper route and fruit stand as a kid in a bid to always be his own boss, has started a gum-removal business under his Cultured Cow banner.
And he hopes it sticks.
“The gum remover came in the last four months after I found it online,” said Johnson, who is perhaps best known for the Cultured Cow restaurant that used to hold down the southeast corner of Blanshard and Fort streets.
The removal machine is a portable device worn as a backpack and fuelled by a mixture of butane and propane. The device has a long steel shaft that shoots steam infused with a solution that breaks down gum when applied using a steel brush at the end of the shaft.
Within a few seconds of application, the gum, which often sits as a black spot on pavement, sidewalks, cobblestones or flooring, melts into a watery residue that washes away.
“It doesn’t hurt anyone, doesn’t hurt the environment,” said Johnson. “And gum is pollution. It’s everywhere and it will stick to your shoes ... it’s nasty stuff.”
Have a quick look at sidewalks and you’ll see it. In some places it’s so prevalent it no longer stands out.
Little wonder as the gum industry is estimated to sell billions of dollars in gum every year.
According to statistics from Wrigley, the world’s largest gum manufacturer, there are 100,000 tonnes of gum chewed each year. That’s got to end up somewhere and, from the look of things, much of it hits the streets.
Johnson has been doing demonstrations of the machine for municipalities, office building managers and institutions, including work for a hospital and Victoria International Airport. “Right now I’m just trying to get it out there,” said Johnson.
His hope is to establish enough business to expand and hire workers who will hit the streets all over the Island with the mobile packs. “I think this could be big,” he said.
While he is promoting the gum cleaner, he is still on the lookout for new ventures. “I’m always looking. I always wanted to be working on my own. I wanted to be in control of my own destiny and I was never afraid of doing things.”
Cost for the gum-removal service depends on the size of the space and amount of gum on the ground — from a couple of hundred dollars for a stretch of sidewalk with a few black dots to $400 to $500 for something like a bus shelter “that could be a sea of gum.”
