David Sauers: Turning a Dreaded Moment into a Luxury Empire

What do you do when a simple family outing turns into a disaster? For David Sauers, that moment sparked the creation of Royal Restrooms, a luxury restroom company now operating in over 50 locations nationwide.

In this episode of Conversations with Rich Bennett, David shares the unforgettable story that inspired his business, how he left a successful banking career, and why execution matters more than perfection. From weddings and festivals to disaster relief and courthouse events, Royal Restrooms has redefined what people expect from mobile sanitation.

This is a candid, funny, and inspiring conversation for entrepreneurs, business owners, and anyone sitting on an idea they haven’t acted on yet.

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Chapters

• 0:00 Celebrating 10 Years of the Podcast
• 1:00 Introducing David Sauers & Royal Restrooms
• 4:45 The Porta Potty Moment That Started It All
• 8:50 From Banker to Business Owner
• 12:40 Unexpected Uses for Luxury Restrooms
• 16:53 Finding the Right Business Partner
• 19:44 Scaling Without Intending to Scale
• 21:56 Testing New Business Concepts
• 27:09 Sponsor: Eco-Cool HVAC
• 31:01 Franchise Opportunities Explained
• 40:18 Advice for Aspiring Entrepreneurs
• 45:27 A Feel-Good Customer Story
• 48:31 Misconceptions About Leadership
• 52:58 Final Thoughts

Transcript

Wendy & Rich 0:00
Hey everyone is Rich Bennett. Can you believe it? The show is turning 10 this year. I am so grateful for each and every one of you who've tuned in, shared an episode, or even joined the conversation over the years. You're the reason that this podcast has grown into what it is today. Together, we've shared laughs, tears, tears, and moments that truly matter. So I want to thank you for being part of this journey. Let's make the next 10 years even better. Coming to you from the Freedom Federal Credit Union Studios, Harford County Living presents Conversations with Rich Bennett. 

Rich Bennett 1:00
Today on Conversations with Rich Bennett, we're joined by someone who did what many of us would laugh off. He turned a dreaded portable toilet moment into a luxury brand business. David Sowers co-founder of Royal Restrooms, the company that now has more than 50 locations nationwide, redefining how the world thinks about mobile sanitation. David's journey began with a simple frustration. Taking his young daughter to a standard portapodian deciding there has got to be a better way, and I'm sure we've all experienced that before, whether it be taking a son, daughter, or even going there yourselves. So from there, he teamed up with his engineer partner and built a company that serves everything from high profile weddings to disaster relief operations, always with an eye toward quality, design, and customer experience. He may say he's not the most polished speaker, but David's authenticity willingness to learn from failure and attention to detail, bring an energy that will absolutely resonate. So David, I want to welcome you and man, I cannot wait to jump into this. This is...I know this is going to be fun. 

David Sauers 2:17
Hey, absolutely. Thank you Rich. I appreciate being on there, and I'm excited about what is on board today. 

Rich Bennett 2:25
Alright, so before we get into Royal Restrooms, I'd like to ask this question a lot. Back in high school, what was it that you wanted to do, even though they say we're supposed a career path in high school, we knew that always changes afterwards. But what was it you wanted to do when you got out of high school? 

David Sauers 2:45
Well, besides being a professional golfer, like most kids, you know, they want to be some kind of professional athlete. 

Rich Bennett 2:52
Well, you got that John Daley look! 

David Sauers 2:54
Yeah, and I got to play a little bit when I was after college. So I was able to relive part of dream in that aspect. But, 

Rich Bennett 3:07
Nice. 

David Sauers 3:07
yeah, it's crazy. I wanted to be a politician. Come 

Rich Bennett 3:14
get out of here, really. 

David Sauers 3:15
No. I went to college. I started with a political science degree and stayed that whole course. I was just fascinated by being in that sector, you know, helping the movement, the community, of organization and stuff, and it's... I wouldn't necessarily say that I'm the outspoken leader, that I'm the one to jump to the class to rally everybody. But I liked the ability to help control, and I guess, put something together that was for a greater good. 

Rich Bennett 3:55
Right. All right. Now, here comes the pun, and I knew there was going to be a lot of puns, but I didn't think it'd this early. So instead of being a politician and slinging shit, now you're doing the, you know, something where people are more comfortable leaving it. 

David Sauers 4:13
That's right. I mean... My, it's, it's but yeah, we basically collected 

Rich Bennett 4:21
it. Yeah. Yeah. So 

David Sauers 4:24
people deposited it with us. 

Rich Bennett 4:26
All right. So explain this when you took your daughter into that porta potty, and I'm sure we've all experienced it somehow. Well, I'm just walking through that moment of how it all came about. 

David Sauers 4:45
Well, I think we can all envision it in our heads. We all have this thought with, with anything. you're outside, especially with, with females, you know, when you are at an outdoor vent. So yeah, that's the one thing that you think about. Ooh, the thought, what's the bathroom gonna be like? What's the port at party gonna be like? I mean, even, even men are, you know, it's like, Ooh, I can only do it at home. I can only do it where I'm in 

Rich Bennett 5:13
Right. 

David Sauers 5:14
in my safe space. 

I mean, there's a lot of things going on, you know, we're just going to get back to the, the fun stuff. Well, that's exactly what happened with me. I just always accepted that. But when I took my daughter to the port at party that Shakespeare in the park festival, I had to look at it from a different perspective. I was born and I had both of my girls with me, one on my hip and the other one's potty-training. 

And she looks at it and she, you know, this is terrifying. I turn around, there's no lights on, it's dark, we're crammed in, she's got her hands all on the toilet. And what's the, the immediate thing is, Ooh, what a, like, stop, don't touch, don't, you know, but it becomes real. And I'm kind of frantic, I'm nervous about everything, like what do I do? How do I, what do I, how, you know, there's nowhere to clean up, there's nothing. So I have to pass CC outside to a stranger. And I'm basically holding Stella up over the bathroom, over the portable toilet. And I kind of kick open the door, just a little bit on my foot just to see. And the next thing I know is I have this warm sensation all over my leg. I'm holding her up, and now she is peeing all over me. 

Rich Bennett 7:05
Uh, 

David Sauers 7:06
yeah, not, not the way that you envision a golden-- 

Rich Bennett 7:10
Especially you had a festival. 

David Sauers 7:12
Yeah, right. So it's, I am just, I go from, you know, frustrated to upset and angry. There's nowhere-- 

Rich Bennett 7:24
She had to be upset as well. 

David Sauers 7:25
Oh, of course, you know. But there's nowhere to clean up, and I, and I stand outside, and I'm looking around, I'm looking at these tents, I'm looking at the lights and the trees, the chana-- Like, why do we have all this, all this, wow effect, all these things to delight and invite people in. Why are we delegated to something that is so out of our normal sets of behavior? You know, our normal circumstance. We do everything to bring people in, to have an enjoyable evening, and yet, you know, we don't care about one of the things that is. Is a crucial part of the event. So I let, I left the event upset, went home, and measured out our half bath to make sure that we could fit in as a family unit. 

Rich Bennett 8:21
Right. 

David Sauers 8:21
And just, why can't we put them on a trailer? You know, we have RVs, we have boats, there's, there's, there's bathrooms and trains, planes, you know, why, why can't we have one on a trailer? 

Rich Bennett 8:35
Yeah, I mean, by the night, it makes sense. 

David Sauers 8:37
And so that's really where it kind of originated from was just out of a problem, a bad experience, and I look for a solution. 

Rich Bennett 8:50
Wow, and how long ago was that? 

David Sauers 8:52
That was back in 2003, and the company started in 2004. So it's a little almost-- 

Rich Bennett 8:59
Damn, you didn't waste any time! 

David Sauers 9:01
22 years. 

Rich Bennett 9:02
You didn't waste any time. So with-- Before you started the company a year later, after that, which is amazing, what was it that you were actually doing at that time? 

David Sauers 9:12
I was a commercial-- commercial lender for a local bank. 

Rich Bennett 9:18
Okay, okay. So you started the company, how long before you started Royal Restrooms, before you were able to leave the, uh... 

David Sauers 9:27
Ha, ha, ha. Well, that goes back to, you know, the whole image, the whole stigmatism of what that industry says. Uh, unfortunately, my-- We started to gain a little bit of traction, a little bit of notoriety. Uh, we were, the business actually grew faster than we had anticipated. And my bank just said, "You're going to be in the porta-party business, or you're going to be a banker? You can't be both." You know, the image is what it-- And it says, "Wow." Okay, I've met all my goals. I've done everything that is required of me. I am a very good banker. I am so-- And wow, I guess-- I guess I'm going to-- I guess I'm going to go be a porta-party guy. 

Rich Bennett 10:16
Good, good, and hopefully that company is calling you to use your restrooms now. 

David Sauers 10:22
Absolutely. You know, isn't 

Rich Bennett 10:24
it? Yea, uh, I'm sorry, go ahead. 

David Sauers 10:26
No, no, no, please. 

Rich Bennett 10:28
Alright, so here's the sad thing. It crept me in from roll, but you're down in Georgia, right? 

David Sauers 10:33
Savannah, Georgia. 

Rich Bennett 10:35
Savannah, Georgia. So you guys have festivals all the time and when, I mean, people go there for destination weddings and everything. Was there another company like this? There? Are we the first one? 

David Sauers 10:47
No, we were, we were the first to market this type of product. Now, there were other companies out there, I think it was executive restrooms and Black Tie and of course, like, 

Rich Bennett 11:00
Right. 

David Sauers 11:00
cooler restrooms. But they had very large trailers, like, big 53-foot similes that... Were actually, 

Rich Bennett 11:09
It's hell, 

David Sauers 11:10
yes. But they were big for your golf tournaments, your 

Rich Bennett 11:14
right? 

David Sauers 11:14
tennis tournament. They were, they weren't built for something small and intimate and they were just so far outside of the reach from a 

Rich Bennett 11:27
Yeah. 

David Sauers 11:28
cost standpoint that it just... feasible to do anywhere else. Which I think that was the, has always been the big hurdle is, you know, being able to make it practical and cost efficient. Which is why the port, the traditional portable toilet is, is always been the king. 

Rich Bennett 11:48
The one thing I don't understand and you see this, well, no, I do understand it because you have a lot more weddings that are done outdoor. It seems like the barns are the big thing, but not all the farms have restrooms and if they do, it's very limited size. So was that your original goal originally mainly just for weddings or was it for... Or I was gonna say funeral, 

David Sauers 12:13
we 

Rich Bennett 12:14
Scott, 

David Sauers 12:14
do, we do 

Rich Bennett 12:14
but 

David Sauers 12:14
a lot of those as well. 

Rich Bennett 12:17
Oh, get the hell out of here. 

David Sauers 12:18
No. 

Rich Bennett 12:19
Are you serious? 

Yeah. Really? Wow. Okay, I thought my sister was the only one because she's, she's not in the restroom business, she's in the event planning business. And she says anything from womb to tomb. But, you know, where are the restrooms out of funeral? 

David Sauers 12:40
Yes, absolutely. I mean, you know, that's supposed to be a celebration of life and a lot of 

Rich Bennett 12:47
Yeah. 

David Sauers 12:47
people, a lot of people, especially when there are living on a septic tank, you have that gathering of people. 

Rich Bennett 12:57
Yeah. 

David Sauers 12:57
We're just, our bathrooms go anywhere that are, you know, needed. I mean, we supplement apartment complexes, we supplement sporting events, go anything that you can think of that you need a nice facility to, to help streamline your, whatever function you're at. 

Rich Bennett 13:24
Alright, when you said funerals, I'm thinking that your restrooms were set up in the 

David Sauers 13:28
Sometimes 

Rich Bennett 13:28
cemetery. 

David Sauers 13:28
they are? 

Rich Bennett 13:29
First, oh, come on. 

David Sauers 13:31
Sometimes they, they, they happen. 

Rich Bennett 13:34
Wow. Okay, for, because that one just blows me away. Besides that, what's probably the 

something where your restrooms are at where you were just like, it was unexpected. Nobody would have thought 

David Sauers 13:52
of it. 

Rich Bennett 13:52
I would, I mean, right away for me, it would have been the funerals. 

David Sauers 13:57
There are all sorts of things that, that happen and that they are used for. I guess one of the more different things that we've done recently that kind of strikes, and this is really only because of the, the Murdoch files over in, that's on Netflix now, that documentary. But, yeah, we had restrooms out there at the courthouse front and center at the, at the courthouse when the Murdoch trials were going on. 

Rich Bennett 14:31
Oh, wow. Alright, so, I still want to go back to the beginning in 2003. When you came up with this idea, who was it that you approached first? Was it your wife, business, your company where you were working, and what was it that they said to you when you told them this idea? 

David Sauers 14:53
So, my, my wife was really the one who I had talked about it with and that. 

Rich Bennett 14:59
Okay. 

David Sauers 15:00
That, you know, it's one of those things that people talk about a lot of different things. You know, we all have great ideas, but we seldom act on it. Every entrepreneur has got probably a little black book of things that they wish that they've done. And, I think that everybody can say, you know what, I thought about that three years ago and now here it is, or I see it on TV. I was, uh, on made for TV or some kind of gimmick that would make things easier. 

Uh, I was the same. I had my life. I was comfortable in my life. I was successful at what we were doing. So this wasn't something that was some huge brain storm or a child that we need to do. It just continued to resonate. Uh, I came up with that idea, thought about it. Wasn't sure exactly how it would all work. I had to put it behind it, but we still went to festivals. We still went to outdoor events, and then every time it was like. Wow, this is, you know, I really need to do this. I really should do this. And it wasn't until my business partner, Robert, glistened, that we were at a party at his house, and he had one of the big blow-up screens in the back, and we were watching a football game. We walked inside. We had all been drinking, and he's got seven or eight people outside of his bathroom in a line. And we walked around. We were like, "All right, forget that." We walked around to the side and peed on the side of his house. And I'm like, "You know what? This would be great for my bathroom idea." And I started talking to him about the bathroom at that point, and we went down and sat down on his dock until four o'clock in the morning, and brainstormed and mapped out all this, and some drunken stupor, you know, that we're going to, it's basically like, "We're creating this on napkins here." 

Rich Bennett 16:53
Robert 

David Sauers 16:56
was one of the true catalysts that was like, "We can do this." He was really the first one that said, "Hey, we can make something happen to this, and we can do it." And so, we each leaned on each other, we both supported each other, and that's how we came up with royal restrooms. It was both of us putting our heads together, leaning on each other, supporting each other, and being able to make something happen that we both believed in. So even though it came out of that experience, it would have probably never happened without Robert. And it's that support that every business needs, you've got to have the real foundations and truth behind what is necessary to build a business. You don't need somebody to tell you what you want to hear. You need somebody that's going to be your partner and build something together. 

Rich Bennett 17:56
How'd you guys come up with the name? 

David Sauers 17:59
We beat out a bunch of different names. I had royal restrooms and regal restrooms were the two front runners. 

Regal was, I think, made us think of the Cinemas, the regal cinema, the 

Rich Bennett 18:17
Oh 

David Sauers 18:17
movie theater. 

Rich Bennett 18:18
yeah! 

David Sauers 18:19
So we went with royal restrooms, we thought it was catchy, it was similar, we were able to buy the domains we thought the people would remember that from an elevated experience. 

Rich Bennett 18:33
Oh it makes sense too because you think about it, doesn't a royal flush beat everything? 

David Sauers 18:39
Yes. 

Rich Bennett 18:40
I had to get another pun in there man. I had to. So did you ever think, because you, I mean, going to school you wanted to be a politician, then you're working at a bank, did you ever think you would be an entrepreneur? 

David Sauers 18:58
I actually did think that I would probably be an entrepreneur at some point. I always had that spirit growing up. Both my grandparents were small business owners and growing up my father went back to medical school when I was in sixth, seventh grade. So we didn't have a whole lot. We lived in a 2 bedroom apartment going through high school with five of us in there. So I had to, I had to figure out ways to make money if I wanted to keep up with my friends and to do the things that my friends did. So I was always trying to find a way to be a little more creative, to get more out of a regular job. 

Rich Bennett 19:44
Well, since you started this in 2004, correct me on for, I mean number one, the business has blown up because you're in, I mean, your nationwide now in most of the states, which, and actually, did you think I was going to happen so fast? 

David Sauers 19:58
No, absolutely not. I mean, we, people thought we were crazy when we started this, 

Rich Bennett 20:04
Yeah. 

David Sauers 20:04
they, they, most of them look down upon what it was, they said that you're never going to get, make money out of something for charging so much, which is why we targeted weddings because we thought that was the one place that we could actually prospering. But no, we never thought that, and we never had a vision for this, it to be as large as it is, or as grand as it is, or even to change the industry like we did. We did not realize that we were going to have that big of an impact. 

Rich Bennett 20:56
So are the bridal suites where the bride gets ready. Do you? You don't have trailers that are bridal suite as well, do you? 

David Sauers 21:04
We have something called quick space, which is a small portable room that we use for offices, that we use for changing stations, we use it for any kind of temporary setting. They'd been, it's just a small office where they, it's a, it's an open space that has a small toilet in there and then it has a little counter with sink. We're testing those 

Rich Bennett 21:33
perfect for a bridal 

David Sauers 21:34
suite. It is. We've, we've actually used it one time for a bridal suite, but we've used it where we, we're test in different products in different markets to see how they can, how we can best utilize them. 

Rich Bennett 21:48
Well, it grabbed me from wrong, but you didn't just stop with royal restrooms, you've created some other things as well, right? 

David Sauers 21:56
I have, I've created Savannah Barcarts, Erie Transit trailers, which builds some of these trailers. We've got pitch perfect TVs, and one that is more of a hobby is Krugerbush campers, and that is something totally different from the other businesses that I've started. But all of those businesses are supposed to be kind of feeder test markets for royal restrooms. 

Rich Bennett 22:25
Okay, you got to explain this push camper thing. 

David Sauers 22:28
So, right before COVID, we were at a Ducks Unlimited banquet, and my daughters wanted to go hunt in Africa, and so we bought a, or we bid on a trip to Africa to go on Safari. Well, COVID hit, it kept getting prolonged and prolonged, and so I end up just saying, you know what? When we finally do go over to Africa, we're going to, we're going to stay and we're going to see some other things. So, four years later, we went and spent about five, almost six weeks over in Africa, and we went through South Africa, Zimbabwe, Botswana, and Zambia. And we, we did the safaris, we hunted, we toured all these different sites, drove all up and down the countryside. And one of the things that we did was in Kruger National Park, and going through the, I guess the, the Serengeti, out there. 

We were in campers, and the campers were not in the traditional sense, like what we think of RVs, you know, over here in America, 

Rich Bennett 23:44
Right. 

David Sauers 23:44
we hopped into RV, and we go to this predetermined padded campsite, and camp out in RV. Over there. It was a tool. You didn't know what the terrain was going to be like, you did not eat inside because an animal may come and eat you. So, all your cooking was done outside, but everything was positioned and built more marine based, more like a boat. 

Rich Bennett 24:12
Wow. 

David Sauers 24:12
You can traverse the terrain, go over any of the obstacles, be self-sufficient with solar power, but so the campers that I, that I came back and built and we designed are more overland style. They're 20 something inches off the ground clearance wise, they're all self-sufficient with solar power, but they're all marine based built. So, in other words, they're not going to fall apart after a year. It's almost like it's say, 

how do you say, the campers will be here well past their prime, I guess. You know, most RVs are built quick, they tear up, and you go to the next one. This is something that you keep. It's something that you use. It's the purpose of it is to get you where you would not otherwise be. So, it is like we like to think of as your suitcase for exploration rather than your typical outdoor RV adventure. 

Rich Bennett 25:20
Is it similar? I don't know if you ever watch duck dynasty. 

David Sauers 25:24
I, I have. 

Rich Bennett 25:25
Alright, the new version revisited or whatever. 

David Sauers 25:28
I haven't seen that. 

Rich Bennett 25:29
There was an episode where will he? took the girls the girls and our survival trip and he had I guess it was similar to what you're talking about I mean the things huge right. 

David Sauers 25:40
At most of them well we've got we've got four different models uh that 

Rich Bennett 25:45
okay 

David Sauers 25:46
so like uh ours are we've taken hours through a couple jeep trail rated. So you can imagine that you know they're they're heavy duty they're they're built to withstand the bumps and the bruises and all of that. It's not necessarily built for pleasure inside you want to be outside it's the tool to get you where you want to be. 

Rich Bennett 26:11
Oh I I can't. I'm looking I guess that's the website Kruger Bush 

David Sauers 26:18
That's 

Rich Bennett 26:18
Campers. 

David Sauers 26:19
it? 

Rich Bennett 26:20
Those things are bad ass. 

David Sauers 26:22
Yeah they are. 

Rich Bennett 26:23
They oh my god I would not want to come back home 

David Sauers 26:30
and 

Rich Bennett 26:30
playing in simple. 

David Sauers 26:31
You know that that's the thing I I have a hard time resetting and letting go of business as most entrepreneurs do and most business owners. Because when we're here in town we always feel like we have to be on the phone or we always have to solve some kind of problem or respond to something. When I'm out there a lot of times I don't have great cell service so I've got to pack it up and I've got to recharge and I've got to find my. I've got to find that replenishment to be creative and to be the person that I am otherwise I get burned out and I'm not productive 

Rich Bennett 27:05
Yeah. 

David Sauers 27:05
I'm not I'm not the best that I need to be. 

Rich Bennett 27:09
You're listening to the conversations with rich Bennett will be right back. 

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David Sauers 28:35
LED screen LED. Yes. 

Rich Bennett 28:36
Like one LED because well you mentioned at your friends place where he had the blow up screen. 

David Sauers 28:42
You 

Rich Bennett 28:43
watch a football. Those things are nice but the problem is number one they're blow up, which means you know how anything inflatable can go. Plus you got to store it but this thing that you're testing is on a trailer that people can actually rent 

David Sauers 28:58
Yes. 

Rich Bennett 28:59
right. 

David Sauers 28:59
So you can watch 

Rich Bennett 29:00
How 

David Sauers 29:00
it. 

Rich Bennett 29:00
big are these screens. 

David Sauers 29:02
They're a 10 foot so it's basically a 10 

Rich Bennett 29:04
Wow. 

David Sauers 29:04
foot. It's a 10 foot screen. It's all high definition. We we pull them up to your house. We've done a lot of movies for neighborhoods for 

Rich Bennett 29:15
Right. 

David Sauers 29:16
club parties, neighborhood associations. That's really where we've targeted stuff like this weekend. We've got homecoming at Savannah State. We've got a few of them going out there last weekend. We had some going out to the new key implant. They had like a family day out there. So these things you're able to watch them during the day in the sun. They're waterproof. 

Rich Bennett 29:39
Oh. 

David Sauers 29:41
They they they're on hydraulics. So it'll go about eight feet in the air. 

So it's 

Rich Bennett 29:48
it's wow. 

David Sauers 29:48
It's something that you can, you know, we take him to backyard parties. It's it's something that I think just brings that wow effect. You know, 

Rich Bennett 30:01
Yeah. 

David Sauers 30:01
it makes it more. And with the bathrooms, you know, this kind of goes hand in hand with that. It's the same as with the same as with the Savannah barcards, the little boutique bar trailers that we've got. We don't serve the alcohol. We just bring the facility. So all these points just elevate and and capture more of of making an event more grand, but more exciting. And, you know, that that is kind of our add on. You know, that's our that's our upcharge. That's our that's our way to stay ahead of our competition. And, you know, just continue to be relevant. 

Rich Bennett 30:40
It's smart business. That's what it is. Very smart business. So with you being located in other states, are those franchises 

David Sauers 30:49
Yes. 

Rich Bennett 30:49
or they are? All right. So if somebody wants to start the room franchise, say here in Maryland, because you guys aren't out here, how do they go about doing that? 

David Sauers 31:01
So first thing, go to our website, RoyalRestrooms.com. You'll find some franchise information out there. We have never put a whole lot into rapid expansion, so you won't see this whole elaborate sales pitch. It's primarily in-house. Amy Tarder is our main person right now that is kind of managing that side until it gets to the point where it comes to me, where I get to kind of meet and talk about the 

the more in-depth operations and to see how well of a fit they would fit in with the rest of our offices. 

Rich Bennett 31:41
Okay. So all these things that you've been testing, with people when you go to the website, you can see the stuff that he's been testing out. The barcars are a big thing here. Or I should say drink carts because there are some people that use them for either alcohol, they'll do mocktails. I've even seen coffee bars. Done on some of these. 

David Sauers 32:07
Yes. So I mean a lot of them, we've taken them to, you know, school, like field days, we've taken them to, we took it to a church gathering the other day where they just served coffee out of. They just serve lemonade out of. Some of them served ice cream. It's just something fun and different and unique, 

Rich Bennett 32:28
Yeah. 

David Sauers 32:28
and it's not just a tent. You know, you can lock it up, you don't have to fold it, you bring it. Everything is, everything is situated right there for you. 

Rich Bennett 32:38
Something else you have which I think is awesome because I love the old wind streams, like the vintage, the vintage restrooms. 

David Sauers 32:46
Yes. 

Rich Bennett 32:47
And are those actually old wind streams 

David Sauers 32:49
that 

Rich Bennett 32:49
or is 

David Sauers 32:49
no? That's something that we create. For years, all of the wedding, you know, for, well, for years, we've always struggled to get photos, pictures from, 

Rich Bennett 33:03
yeah. 

David Sauers 33:03
Just everywhere. With as many things that we've done, you would think that we would have this whole drop box storage library full of photos, but we don't have a whole lot of good photos. And a lot of the reason is, right. Well, we've got a big white cargo box sitting at somebody's wedding. It's usually pushed to the side because it's not so photogenic. And for the longest time, we kept trying to make them better on the inside. You know, we started, we 

Rich Bennett 33:31
right, 

David Sauers 33:31
were upgrading countertops, we're upgrading walls, we're doing the decor, but the outside was still this big white cargo box. Stopping. 

So we finally got, I finally had the opportunity to redesign some of those trailers and that's what I came up with was that polished mirror because one, it's that timeless piece. It looks aesthetically appealing. It's something that has been kind of the trend anyways from your beverage carts and your photo carts and people are doing those retro, different air stream type models. 

Rich Bennett 34:09
Yeah. 

David Sauers 34:10
But we were able to make that into a restroom and we continued to tweak that, but the great thing about it is is when you put it out there, it is it picks up the mirrors, the surroundings. So you don't actually realize that it's right there. So the clothes, even though as close as you have it, you don't even pick it up in a picture now because it mirrors everything else around it. So you don't notice it. It's not some big source spots. So we've started to get more and more pictures. The brides love them. The event planners love them because it is, I mean, it is a showpiece. The inside now, the new ones that we've made, they're all bronzed inside. So you go in and you're like, oh wow. I'm really sitting like this is magnificent. This is, 

Rich Bennett 35:00
wow, this 

David Sauers 35:00
is, I've never been anything like this before my life. 

Rich Bennett 35:05
Oh God, you guys got to get here, Marilyn. I'm telling you man, there's nothing like that up here. 

David Sauers 35:11
We would love to be. 

Rich Bennett 35:12
I know you're in pet. I know you're in Pennsylvania and I believe Virginia. 

David Sauers 35:15
Yes. 

Rich Bennett 35:16
If I'm not mistaken, but yeah, somebody, somebody start, start one up here. So are there any because it seems you just had ideas that are constantly popping in your head? Any ideas that you wanted to work on that didn't really pan out the way you were hoping? 

David Sauers 35:35
Well, I think, Oh, you know, all of these ideas, all of these different things that I've tried, I would not say that any of them have, near come to the success that Royal Restrooms has had. 

Rich Bennett 35:49
right. 

Right. 

David Sauers 36:08
But, to be honest, there's not a whole lot of places to go overlanding on the East Coast, that's more West Coast 

Rich Bennett 36:21
Right. 

David Sauers 36:21
things. So, a lot of our sales on that company have only been to some of your hunters, some of your more off-grid type people. 

Rich Bennett 36:30
Mhm. 

David Sauers 36:30
But, 

you know, I think, you. I don't really call anything a failure, I call it a learning curve, you know. 

Rich Bennett 36:44
thank 

David Sauers 36:44
So, even though I have not had the success in the others, I don't consider those failures, I just haven't hit that plateau of, hey, I've made it with this one as well. But, even with the beverage carts, you know, it's, we get a lot of attention up front, and then it backs off. You know, we kind of quit selling that side of it, or, um, because we get preoccupied with other things. So, my time has divided a lot, and I think that if I had, if I could devote more time to each one, and focus more on it, I think that each one of those businesses could be a whole lot more successful. But, my focus is still mainly on royal restrooms. That's what I do, that's what I'm good at, and that's where my responsibility lies with my offices, and, you know, the culture is a whole. 

So, you know, these are slow growth prospects. With the beverage trailers, they're in Colorado, Utah, Alabama, Texas, and Georgia, you know, I'd love to have them in all of my offices, and pitch 

Rich Bennett 38:00
Yeah. 

David Sauers 38:00
this app. It truly can be an easy add on, just as with the TVs. Right now, they're only in Alabama and Georgia. 

Rich Bennett 38:12
Oh, wow. 

David Sauers 38:13
So, it's something that is still being tested and marketed. Our refrigeration trailers, we primarily have those just in Texas. 

Rich Bennett 38:25
Now, what are those? The refrigeration 

David Sauers 38:28
Well, 

Rich Bennett 38:28
trailers. 

David Sauers 38:29
as I mentioned before, we do, there are a number of things that we do with restrooms. And, when you think of large-scale events, usually you would need some type of refrigerated service, for the food, flowers, you know, like that. But, we also do business remodels, so when your Texas Roadhouse remodels their kitchen, or their refrigeration goes down, these are trailers that we can supply there, and a lot of times when they're doing these renovations, they're remodeling the bathrooms. So, we put the bathrooms out there, but we have, you know, it's more of a, we have everything that you're looking for. You don't have to go through, 

Rich Bennett 39:12
right, 

David Sauers 39:13
entities to try to find and source goods. 

Rich Bennett 39:17
It's something else, especially if the restrooms, because this is something you don't see a lot either. They are ADA compliant, right? I mean, you have restrooms that are ADA 

David Sauers 39:27
compliant. Absolutely. We even have shower trailers that are ADA compliant. 

Rich Bennett 39:32
Nice. And, what about the, oh God, I'm going to get the name wrong. It's been a while since I had kids, the changing tables. 

David Sauers 39:40
Yes, so all of our handicapped, all of our handicapped units, we supply is kind of a family access, mobile room, and so they all have baby changing stations in there as well. 

Rich Bennett 39:55
So to me, anybody wants to start a franchise, it just makes sense that they contact you 

David Sauers 39:59
Oh, 

Rich Bennett 39:59
guys. 

David Sauers 40:00
hey, we're there to support it. 

Rich Bennett 40:01
Or you, if you're a third hour, you are. 

David Sauers 40:04
Exactly. 

Rich Bennett 40:07
Wow. So for anybody that's got anybody listening that has that crazy idea that they're just sitting on. What's your advice for taking that first step? 

David Sauers 40:18
Put it into motion. You don't need a business plan. You don't need to just sit there and dwell on it and think that, you know, I don't have time or it's not right. Put it out there. It's okay. You don't, it doesn't have to be perfect, but it's that, you know, it's that mindset. When you put something out, when you, when you say it out loud, when you put it on paper. Uhm, that you're, you're telling the world that this is something that you want to do. And things start happening to make that happen for you, for you to realize your vision. You know, whether it's, it's, it's god or just your mind starts to work to put things in line so that you can achieve your goals. 

And then, the first set of why should we not do it? We need to, we need to do it. So my, my, my main point is don't allow yourself to be the obstacle, you know, put, go for it. Do it. It doesn't have to be perfect. It's fine. Go for it. 

Rich Bennett 41:32
Good. Yeah. And, at earlier, you're going to learn from those mistakes anyways. 

David Sauers 41:36
You know, it's, 

Rich Bennett 41:38
it's, it's how you make things better. 

David Sauers 41:39
Yeah. It's, it's just like you tested when you were in grade school with, you know, hot pops, you test them, you find out what to do and you pivot and you make changes. The, the rest of the road will outline itself for you. 

Rich Bennett 41:57
All right. So when you, when you designed the, the first royal restrooms trailer, was it your daughters, the first one to test it out? 

David Sauers 42:09
Actually, they were. 

Rich Bennett 42:11
I, I figured as much because if it wasn't for her, 

David Sauers 42:15
you 

Rich Bennett 42:16
probably wouldn't been doing this. And what, what was her, what was her reaction to it? 

David Sauers 42:20
I, you know, she just, she's like, well, first, how do I flush it? But, too. Yeah. This is, this is great. Even my son, who is eight now, whenever we get, like, it is, he'll be run around in the, in the back here at the office. And instead of going to the bathroom, he'll just open a door and go pee in a, in a toilet. 

You know, you go back and you look at it and you see the little dribble everywhere in your eye, all right. Dave, come on. What? You know, like, you know where the bathrooms are that we use. Like, but he just still goes and, and pees and whatever stall is most convenient to him. Which I guess I should say is better than him pee and outside on something else. 

Rich Bennett 43:07
Right. Yeah. Well, yeah, that's true. I mean, I'm glad you designed this because the thing is talking about your son there. Guys have no problem going outside, finding a treat, but for women is completely different. And let's face it, whenever you go to these festivals and all you see are porta-pots lined up, you can be disgusting. 

David Sauers 43:34
Yeah, 

Rich Bennett 43:35
I mean, truly disgusting. And at night, forget about it. You're lucky if you could even see where you're going to the bathroom inside one of those things. 

David Sauers 43:44
I know. Well, you know, talking about the kids and funny things that they did and go into the bathroom and want to test them out. My children have always been involved with everything, you know, that's one of the joys of being an entrepreneur and you're able to take your kids with you. They're able to see these things. And a lot of times we did these festivals, my kids would be with me if I needed to fix something. And if I was working around back, what I'm telling them to make sure that they stand out front, make sure the bathrooms stay clean. Just, here's your spot. This lady told me not too long ago that she, this was the first time that she was ever using one of the trailers, one of the restrooms. And she was standing in line and there's a lot of people out there. I think it was some, it was like a, a, a, a breast cancer walk or something. And Stella said, you can poopoo in there. You can sit down. It's a real toilet. And she is talking to this one and she is trying not to 

announce her. She's like, what do you have to go poopoo? You can, see, you can poopoo in there. You can poopoo in there. The lady goes in, she walks out and Stella is like, did you poopoo? I told you you can sit down on that, on, on the toilet. It's a real toilet. You can poop, did you poopoo? She said that she was so mortified, but she said that that was the nicest experience that she has ever had. And also at one time, being the most embarrassed she was. 

Rich Bennett 45:27
I like that though, you can go poopoo, you 

David Sauers 45:29
poopoo. 

Rich Bennett 45:30
can go The funny thing is I always like to ask my guest for a feel good story from somebody that they've helped out or a customer. Well, you just gave it to me there. It's a feel good and funny and embarrassing at the same time. 

David Sauers 45:44
All right, yeah. All right. We've got, we've got tons of those. 

Rich Bennett 45:48
Oh, I bet, I bet. All right. So David, before I get to my last question, is there anything you would like to add besides the website again? 

David Sauers 45:57
So we're on all the social links under Royal Restrooms, you can find us. We're in close to 50 different locations in, I think, 20 different states. Reach out to us. Our local owners do an extraordinary job. And they're there to make sure that we do things properly and right. So many people have gotten into this business and it's a great business. But we've been here for 22 years. We know what we're doing. And this is something that doesn't, you want it to be done right. This is something where history matters and service 

Rich Bennett 46:38
Yeah. 

David Sauers 46:38
matters. You know, not just the price. It is making sure that that event goes off without a hitch. We, this is the thing that you don't want people to remember but you don't want them to have a bad experience. You want them to have a great experience. 

Rich Bennett 46:57
And the thing is if you're business, you're just you're, you keep improving upon it. Add in all the different trailers and everything. And I mean, to me, if I have a franchise of Royal Restrooms, I'm going to give me all the trailers because an outside festival. I'm going to tell the people, hey, I can supply you with every, well, almost everything not a dance for, but I can supply you with most of the major things you're going to need. And it's with weddings, it could be a hassle. I need the festivals. It can be a hassle dealing with more than one company to get all those things. It's nice to deal with one company. And Royal Restrooms is the company that people should be dealing with. 

David Sauers 47:44
Yeah, well, thank you. 

Rich Bennett 47:45
I'm paying in simple. All right. So give me this is the last question. I don't know what it's going to be. So you're going to have to pick. Yeah. I like doing this. It's different. Pick a number between one and 100's. 

David Sauers 47:58
We're gonna go with 12. 

Rich Bennett 48:02
What number 12? Why 12? Oh, 

David Sauers 48:07
I, yeah, birthdays 12, 12. It's always kind of been. 

Rich Bennett 48:11
Okay. 

David Sauers 48:12
A good number 

Rich Bennett 48:15
There you go. I can't get playing bad. My wife and daughter were born on October 12. 

David Sauers 48:19
for me. 

Rich Bennett 48:19
So, all right. What's a misconception? People often have about you. And what's the reality? 

David Sauers 48:31
I 

think that the misconception most about me is I am standoffish. My face says don't approach me or don't talk to me sometimes. 

Rich Bennett 48:49
really 

David Sauers 48:49
Well, I feel like that my wife tells me a lot of times that I've got this, you know, just kind of staunch look that just says, you know, I'm involved in something else in my head. And it's just my face. You know, like 

Rich Bennett 49:09
I 

David Sauers 49:09
can't, I can't help it. But yeah, people I used to be so outgoing and so social. And now I go places. We even go, you know, and it's the nod. It's the handshake. But there's no, it's, it's almost like I can't get normal conversation anymore. And 

Rich Bennett 49:33
wow. 

David Sauers 49:34
Sometimes some of the things that I say, I say jokingly, and people are kind of like, oh, wow, you know, like they don't know how to take it sometimes. 

Rich Bennett 49:45
Right. 

David Sauers 49:46
But, you know, I really enjoy being social. I'm this being very social, but it's almost like I've I've turned that into something that I need to be, whereas I used to just enjoy it. So I think maybe I'm always trying to, when I go to these wedding shows and different things that I am very outgoing, but then when I go, just like my kid soccer game. You know, it is hard to engage with the other gentleman that are there with the other, you know, it's it's almost I don't know, I don't know what I don't know what vibe I'm throwing out, but it's it hurts my feelings. Like I'm like sad. I'm like, you know, like this is hard work now to socialize when it used to not be. And I don't understand what I've done different or how I've changed or maybe it's just how people, you know, think about maybe, uh, royal restrooms or that I don't know, I don't know what vibe I'm throwing out like I've even started to go to, um, To take improv classes just 

Rich Bennett 51:07
oh. 

David Sauers 51:08
to, just to, you know, open up that thought process because my brain goes to whatever you say has to be right rather than the first thing that is said. 

Professors are just, like, just blood, oh, yeah, I don't 

Rich Bennett 51:36
know. But David, you don't need to do anything. It's the other people they need to open up their eyes and realize they can approach you and talk to you and there's nothing wrong. That's what it is. 

David Sauers 51:50
Well, thank you for that. I appreciate that, so, you know, I will stand in my corner and wait for people to approach me. 

Rich Bennett 51:59
Hey, look, if I ever come down to Savannah, Georgia, I'm- I'm walking right on- 

David Sauers 52:02
Hey, and we'll 

Rich Bennett 52:04
Not 

David Sauers 52:04
have a 

Rich Bennett 52:04
a 

David Sauers 52:04
great- 

Rich Bennett 52:04
problem. 

David, I wanna thank you so much, man. It's been an honor and a pleasure. I can't wait to talk to you again. And those of you listening, especially those of you right here in Maryland, somebody, God, start a royal restroom's business here. It's needed, it's needed. 

David Sauers 52:24
We need to be back up in the northeast. We had an office up there like ten years ago out in Fairfield, Connecticut. But there are so many locations, there are so many requests that we get that we are just unable to service. You know, just our mere presence online authority, we get requests that we are unable to do. So, yeah, we need an office up there. We need several offices up there. 

Rich Bennett 52:53
I have a funny feeling you're gonna get some. 

David Sauers 52:55
I hope so. Rich, I'll owe it all to you, buddy. 

Rich Bennett 52:58
Thank you for listening to the conversations with Rich Bennett. I hope you enjoyed today's episode and learned something from it as I did. If you'd like to hear more conversations like this, be sure to subscribe to the podcast so you never miss an episode. And if you have a moment, I'd love it if you could leave a review. It helps us reach more listeners and share more incredible stories. Don't forget to connect with us on social media, or visit our website at Conversations With Rich Bennett.com for updates, giveaways, and more. Until next time, take care. Be kind and keep the conversations going. It takes a lot to put a podcast together, together. And my sponsors help add a lot. But I also have some supporters that actually help me when it comes to the editing software, the hosting and so forth. There's a lot that goes into putting this together. So I want to thank them. And if you can, please, please visit their websites, visit their businesses, support them, however you can. So please visit the following Full full circle boards. Nobody does charcuterie like full circle boards, visit them at fullcircleboards.com. Sincerely, so you're photography. Live in the moment. They'll capture it. Visit them at sensitivelysoilier.com. The Jopitan Lines Club, serving the community since 1965. Visit them at JopitanLinesClub. org. And don't forget the "E" at the end of Jopitan because they're extraordinary.