NOMINATED BY DAVID SPOONER, NMDC
In Maine, one of the important but often overlooked businesses in town is the redemption center. It’s where students and sports teams raise money for their programs, and where huge amounts of cans and bottles are taken out of the waste stream. They can also be great opportunities for entrepreneurs who can innovate and broaden the business beyond just bottle redemption. With his vision for the local redemption center, Jon Holabird met with the Small Business Development Center in 2021 to draft a business plan and start the process of buying the business.
Within the first two years of his ownership, Jon was able to expand the business and diversify its revenue with the purchase of an adjoining lot for short term rentals, facilitated with a Microloan from NMDC. The effort to diversify and broaden revenue has paid off, with significant growth in sales in every year of Jon’s ownership. This has also allowed him to expand employment at Rick’s Redemption from the original two employees to the current four. Increasing the impact of these jobs on his community, Jon works with local shelters and recovery centers to provide employment to people who just need an opportunity and an understanding employer.
Jon’s efforts are shaped by his own experiences, as like many Americans, he has made mistakes in the past that prompted him to turn his life around. Knowing how difficult life can be for people with substance abuse problems, and how sometimes it just takes support and understanding, Jon works to address these issues in his community. He has served as the chair of Recovery Aroostook, which works across Northern Maine to provide resources to people struggling with addiction and recovery, sits on the board of Pines Health Center, and organizes a fundraising 5k in memory of local victims of addiction. These efforts emphasize that redemption is about more than just recycling cans and bottles.
In recognition of his business success as a microenterprise in Northern Maine, and centering his business on service to the community, the SBA is thrilled to name Rick’s Redemption, owned by Jon Holabird, as the 2026 MicroEnterprise of the Year for Maine.
