Meet David Shemper, the founder

In the beginning, there is an idea. From the deep-rooted instinct to first survive and then to (hopefully) prosper, the idea begins to take shape. Slowly at first, it may take generations (it often does), but eventually if the underlying messages are consistent, if we stay the course, then the dream long deferred can eventually explode!

I see myself in a long line of entrepreneurs—at least four generations that we know of on just one side of my family. The early ones immigrated here long ago in order to survive difficult circumstances, and did what they had to do to make better lives for themselves and their families. I believe that from one generation to the next we have a greater opportunity to create more contentment, connectedness and meaningfulness for ourselves and in the communities we find ourselves a part of. We can shift periods of individual and collective stagnation into creative vitality for ourselves and our communities. While working in a corner of the country for a corporate-driven company, when simply “getting a paycheck” was no longer motivation enough for me, did it finally hit me (like a ton of bricks!!): I am an entrepreneur and I am no longer building something of my own design!

The word “entrepreneur” is derived from the French "entreprendre," which means "to undertake" or "to embark on.” The term originally referred to someone who manages a business venture and makes financial risks with hopes of future profit. Over time, entrepreneurship has evolved to mean for me something else: collaboration, innovation, creativity and the ability to identify and capitalize on opportunities in various fields. It’s this newer spirit of entrepreneurship—and my abiding hope that we all bring more love and light into the spaces around us—that sparked my desire to bring more life to Hattiesburg’s nucleus in the form of this current project: the preservation and renovation of an historic building and the opportunity for many a Prospect On Main to be found.

Photo by Nick & Rachel Ciraldo

  • Developer/Steward

    David Shemper is a lifelong resident of Hattiesburg, Mississippi and a product of both private and public school educations. Upon graduation from Hattiesburg High School in 1997, he attended Northwestern University in Evanston, IL where he graduated in 2001 with a Bachelor of Arts degree majoring in Sociology with a minor in Leadership Studies.  While in college, David spent time working with A.G. Edwards in Skokie, IL, on the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange with Archer Daniels Midland in addition to working as a researcher on various studies in Chicago public schools and in Chicago public housing with the Coalition to Protect Public Housing.

    After graduation he returned to Hattiesburg where he joined his family in management of first Ben Shemper & Sons, Inc. (at the time one of the oldest family-owned scrap metal processors in the Southeast) and later in ownership of another of their sister-businesses in South Mississippi Recycling.  South Mississippi Recycling would eventually be folded into Ben Shemper & Sons, Inc. and after coordinating the sale of the 102-year old Shemper, Inc. on behalf of his two uncles and father to a company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, David stayed on with the new owners as the General Manager of the 70-employee local business.  As the new owners grew their investment in Mississippi & Alabama to an eventual four facilities, David took on broader responsibilities in the role of Regional Marketing Manager reporting to a Senior Vice President in the corporate office.

    In November 2017, after 10 1/2 years with the company that bought his family’s business, David went out on his own and began HCS Trading, LLC. as a broker of scrap metal to steel mills, primary and secondary aluminum mills, stainless steel processors, and other consumers of recycled materials throughout the country.  Growing existing relationships developed over the course of three generations before him in addition to building new relationships during his now almost 25 years full-time in the scrap metal industry, with the support of his trading partners all over the world, David has built a successful business in a relatively short period of time.

    When he is not spending time at home or traveling with his wife Teejay (neé Riley), his son Aidan, and his daughter Livia, David often finds himself in service on one board or another. He has previously devoted his time as a Board Member of the Gulf Coast Chapter of the Institute of Scrap Metal Industries (ISRI) with roots dating back to the early 1900s, and also served locally as a Board Member of the Canebrake Homeowners’ Association, Treasurer of Congregation B’nai Israel, Board Member of the Twin Forks Community Development Corporation, and as Treasurer of the Mississippi Recyclers Association that he helped found in 2008. Currently David serves as a Board Member for the Downtown Hattiesburg Association, the Hattiesburg Concert Association, and the Fund for a Green Mississippi.