Original text

Karl Schrass and his wife Anna Kramer founded Annapolis Compost in 2016 after moving to Maryland the prior year from Germany where separating organic waste collection was the norm. They couldn’t find a local vendor so they “started the business with just some of our neighbors in our apartment building…and I started out hauling the food scraps in the back of my Prius and on my bicycle,” Schrass told the Bay Weekly. The business grew steadily, offering weekly pick-up service (and variously sized airtight receptacles) to residents, offices, cafes, and events within the 21401, 21403, 21409, 21012, 21114 & 21146 zip codes. The collected food waste is composted and returned in part to customers or community gardens.

Karl reached out to SCORE in November 2020 when he made the leap to focusing his full-time efforts at Annapolis Compost and was eager to scale the business. He was assigned to SCORE Mentor Tom Hartman who took the time to learn about the business and recommended that Karl develop relationships with a local bank and accountant as initial steps. “Tom helped me recognize that my business had potential beyond the local market. His introductions to M&T enabled me to establish a relationship with a team of bankers that I will be able to draw upon in areas such as cash management, business credit, and merchant services as well as commercial banking services.”

Visit Annapolis Compost and turn your trash into treasure.