Putnam Valley’s Tompkins Excavating Celebrates 30-Year Anniversary
Tompkins Excavating, an award-winning large-scale excavation company with a longstanding commitment to Westchester and Putnam counties, recently celebrated its 30th anniversary.
The woman-owned, family-operated company has developed a reputation for delivering a diversified portfolio of detail-oriented, quality work and maintaining a strong commitment to giving back to the community.
“Being in business for 30 years and keeping everything well-managed is a challenge, but working alongside family and being involved with the community makes it satisfying to go to work every day,” said Stacey Tompkins, president of Tompkins Excavating. “As absolute perfectionists who never cut corners, we value our commitment to employees, customers and the community.”
Company founder Mark Tompkins started cutting lawns during his high school years and his business eventually evolved into a full-service excavating company. By 1986, he incorporated the company as Tompkins Landscaping Corporation and when his wife, Stacey, joined the business in 1990, she helped shift the company’s focus toward landscape construction and excavation work.
The company’s turning point arrived in the mid-1990s, when Tompkins landed its largest to date commercial excavation project: site work for the BJ’s Wholesale Club in Yorktown Heights.
“When we started, the residential component comprised 95 percent of our work and now our goal is to perform 85 percent commercial work,” said Stacey Tompkins. “We are close to reaching that goal and have experienced an amazing evolution from cutting lawns to landscape construction to larger-scale excavation projects.”
When Stacey started at Tompkins Excavating, she brought leadership skills from a career in the food service industry. After taking responsibility for human resources, she instituted professional practices like establishing hiring guidelines and employment rules, along with competitive compensation and benefit packages.
Today, the whole family is involved with the business. Stacey serves as President and Mark is Vice President. Their sons, Kevin (a civil engineering student at Northeastern University), Justin (who studies business at the University of Connecticut) and Michael (a high school freshman) are actively involved in the future direction of the company.
Some recent work includes a five-lot subdivision in Cortlandt Manor, infrastructure work for a condominium complex in Brewster and its largest commercial contract to date, Main Street Commons in Peekskill. Anchor tenants at the project will include an Auto Zone and Family Dollar stores.
In the past six years, gross revenue of Tompkins Excavating has more than doubled. Continually increasing the fleet of new equipment, relocating the offices to a bigger space and implementing comprehensive employee training programs has led to increased employee retention. Since 2010, the employee count grew from six to 12 people.
Beginning in 2012, the company changed its name to Tompkins Excavating to better reflect their portfolio of business. At the same time, they escalated their targeted marketing, networking and social media efforts. The lead volume has increased by 60 percent and the company typically increases annual profits by three to seven percent per year.
“Tompkins Excavating presents a textbook role model for small business success,” said Deb Milone, executive director of the Hudson Valley Gateway Chamber of Commerce. “Their success is rooted in family values and high-quality craftsmanship, which is reflected in each and every project they undertake. The company’s commitment to the community also presents a great example for other small businesses.”
In May 2014, Stacey completed the Academy for Entrepreneurial Excellence program at Westchester Community College. Last year, she earned septic installation licenses in Westchester and Putnam counties. For the last 20 years, Stacey has also been a licensed real estate broker.
This year, Westfair Communications bestowed Tompkins Excavating with its annual Family-Owned Business Award and the Putnam Valley Education Foundation honored Stacey and Mark the firm for their community service contributions over the past 15 years. In 2015, Tompkins Excavating received the Habitat for Humanity Cornerstone Award for volunteer work performed on a Habitat home and in 2013, the Putnam County Chambers of Commerce honored her with a Mature Trailblazer Success award.
Over the years, Tompkins Excavating has helped support various charities and organizations, including Putnam Valley Central School District, Armonk Outdoor Art Show, Jan Peek House Shelter for the Homeless, Community Cares of Mahopac, Support Connection, Community Center of Northern Westchester, Project Yellow Light and the Lustgarden Foundation.
“As our business has expanded, we have exponentially increased our charitable giving,” said Mark Tompkins. “It’s important to us to give back, and we support our local charities and non-profits as a valuable investment in the people of the communities in which we live and work.”
Since 2011, Stacey has served as an Executive Committee Member and was recently selected to sit on the Board of Directors of the Hudson Valley Gateway Chamber of Commerce. She also has been a committee member for Annual GROW Conference since 2014. A board member of the 2016 Gateway to Entrepreneurship (G2E) program at Westchester Community College, and is active with the Business Council of Westchester, Building and Realty Institute and (BOMA) Building Owners and Managers Association (Westchester Chapter).
About Tompkins Excavating:
Tompkins Excavating began as a lawn mowing service and steadily grew into a full-service commercial and residential excavation company. This woman-owned, family-run company has faithfully offered commercial-grade quality construction services in Westchester and Putnam Counties for the past 30 years. For more information, visit their website at TompkinsExcavating.com.
