Andrew Ehrlich ’22 pioneers forestry business in East Texas

Growing up, I always had an interest in being an entrepreneur and owning my own business. When I began at Texas A&M, I was originally an Agribusiness major. However, I became interested in the entrepreneurship minor offered through the Agribusiness Entrepreneurship Program. As I finished out my freshman year, I decided to switch to Agricultural Economics and take the Rural Entrepreneurship path. 

Entrepreneurship, to me, means having the ability to forge my own path and have my future and success in my own hands.

My grandfather is a farmer, so growing up, I was exposed to the sacrifices and hardships that are faced by entrepreneurs. Additionally, when I was in high school, I ran a small lawn and landscape business associated with mowing yards. From this, I was exposed to being my own boss and dealing with revenues and expenses.

I have learned that being an entrepreneur is much more than opening a business and making money. Being an entrepreneur requires the ability to interact with others, be a basic accountant, represent the business in a positive light, and be a manager. Entrepreneurs are faced with the challenge of selling themselves to everyone who will listen in order to succeed, which requires dedication and involvement.

The most important takeaway for me came from the Mentoring Forums. Meeting with other business professionals and people in the community and engaging in constructive conversations really helped to identify the good areas of my project. On the other hand, it also pointed out the flaws and ways I could better prepare the business if it were to come to fruition.

I have always had an interest in heavy machinery, and when COVID-19 sent us all home in the Spring of 2020, I started working for a utility maintenance company operating heavy machinery. Through my work with this company, I had the opportunity to learn about the business structure and operations which has helped in the development of my project.

Ehrlich Vegetation Services is unique in that it aims to target customers that fall between the spectrum of preexisting businesses. The business is small enough to meet the needs of customers that are too large for some single machine businesses, while also big enough to meet the needs of larger customers that are too small for very large businesses. This niche, coupled with quality and consistency, is what will set this business apart from the rest.

Over the duration of this project, I have learned that setting up a business, even on paper, can be incredibly demanding. With a business of this size, there are many assets, insurance policies, business structures, and business support items that must be accounted for to ensure the numbers developed throughout the project are accurate. These challenges have forced me to go back and redo certain parts of the project in order to develop accurate numbers and create a well-rounded project.

As I work through the full analyses of the business, I have learned that no matter how hard or time consuming a task may be, it is important to take the time to work through these challenges because the smallest mistake can have large repercussions.

In the past, I have been a procrastinator, and in some ways, I still am. However, this class and project has taught me to not wait until the last minute to complete something, but rather to take the time to work through problems instead of waiting until the last minute and hoping for the best.

I have learned that I can do things that, in the past, I have not given myself credit for being good at. This class has taught me that I do have a mind for business, and I have learned a lot more at Texas A&M than I originally knew.