“Here in Cleveland, we want to be the premier supplier of aggregate and trucking company and provide our customers with the best possible service every day,” said Rhoni Thompson, president of R.L. Cole Enterprise Inc, a company she started with her father. “It goes back to how my parents and grandparents raised me. I do my best no matter what. So I love to hear my customers say they’re happy and that we are the best.”
R.L. Cole works with major players in the construction industry, hauling aggregates such as limestone, gravel, mulch, salt, and sand. They also haul demolition debris from torn-down buildings and operate a clean fill site where they receive spoils from their multiple projects in Cuyahoga County.
Her parents started their own company when Thompson was twelve. A little later, Rhoni and her father began R.L. Cole. Everything that R.L. Cole has, they’ve earned through hard work.
“I remember a time when we had no trucks, nothing. Today, we have six trucks and an excavator that we operate at our clean fill site. We recently bought a warehouse. It’s crazy to think about the growth."
Thompson attributes some of her work ethic to her father. “My dad is 77, and we still work together. He’s worked so hard. He was a Sharecropper in Mississippi on a cotton farm until he was 13 years old. He went to school three months a year. He had 18 brothers and sisters. So when we talk about hard work and perseverance in this family, we’re talking about starting on a whole different footing.”
Thompson is no stranger to hardships of her own. As a single mother, she worked multiple jobs to make ends meet. Until 2018, Thompson had always held an additional day job in addition to working the family business. She grew up watching her parents frequently work all hours, including on Saturdays and Sundays, and she’s done the same.
“I’ve worked in every aspect of the business. I always done this,” Thompson said. “And things are changing, people are changing. Things have changed for the better in some ways with diversity, equity, and inclusion, but unfortunately, that’s brought some new challenges. We’ve been kicked off mid-project because a company has met their ‘quota’ for the project. And I still see some of the same struggles that my parents have seen, but they didn’t receive the support or guidance that exists today. I’ve made plenty of mistakes, but I’ve gotten better support than they had.”
Some of R.L. Cole’s support has come from ECDI and their Minority Contractor Resource Center (MCRC). Thompson connected with Carlos Mendez, MCRC’s Program Manager. Mendez helped enroll Thompson in the Turner School of Construction Management, a program where contractors learn firsthand from Turner Construction, an industry powerhouse. “Carlos’ commitment is on another level. He’s not even from here. He drove up from Columbus to these classes because he really cares about businesses like mine.”
Thompson gets excited talking about the future of R.L. Cole. “I’m learning so much. Of course, we’re growing, but I’m also learning smaller things, like how to support my team better,” Thompson said. “I want to go on for another 30 years. My grandson says to people, ‘I want to run my grandma’s business!’”
