Local company to expand in Columbus, creating new jobs

Jonathan and Amaris Robinson are proud owners of the third generation family-owned business.

COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – In the 1920s, Tolbert Burford got his start in the electric motor repair business in Memphis. He later moved to Columbus and saw a need for the business. In 1959, Burford Electric Service was born.

Jonathan and Amaris Robinson are proud owners of the third generation family-owned business.

“We like to say we keep the light on, you know, we serve critical infrastructure,” Amaris said.

Burford Electric serves clients locally and nationally.

“When COVID hit, we never shut down for a day, we couldn’t,” Jonathan said. “We had letters from our customers like southern companies saying, ‘You cannot quit working because it will turn the lights off.’ Electricity going to hospitals is critical for people staying alive even.”

And the company continues to grow. They hope to add up to 15 new jobs over the next 3 to 4 years.

“Frankly, we’re just running out of floor space,” Jonathan said. “The assets that we work on here, get larger and larger. We’re currently bringing in assets that weigh up to 100 thousand pounds. So, when you work on something like that, you need a lot of space to work on it.”

There are plans to add 15-thousand additional square feet, and 120-thousand pounds of lifting capability.

Meryl Fisackerly with the Golden Triangle Development LINK says the region has seen a lot of industrial growth, and Burford is a testament to that.

“Their need to grow is a response to be able to better serve their customers which are those larger industries,” Fisackerly said. “You know, without these, and the services and the things they do to support those larger buisnesses, those buisnesses wouldnt be able to operate the way they do.”

And the couple knows firsthand the impact local operations have on the country’s economy.

“When a small buisness thrives and expands, it creates oppurtunities for other businesses in the community to thrive and expand as well,” Amaris said. “The neat thing about small buisnesses, is they come back, the jobs, the revenue, goes right back into the community.”

And the Robinsons say their overall goal is to continue the standard of quality and excellence their family began 65 years ago.

“It’s very important to us how we handle our customers, how we handle our employees, that even as we grow, as we get larger, that we never lose touch with our employees, (never) lose touch with our customers, that we hold that standard,” Jonathan said. “Honestly, we’re just gonna see where the Lord takes the whole thing.”

The Robinsons say a lot of the training takes place in-house, and the company could not have had the success they’ve had without their team.

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