Battery Giant Celebrates First Location in Pittsburgh with Recycling Event

Battery Giant of Pittsburgh is celebrating its new location in Cranberry by putting together a regional recycling event.

“We wanted to be involved in the community and the timing was just perfect,” said store owner Jim Logan.

The store, located at 10 St. Francis Way and Route 19 near UPMC Passavant, held a ribbon cutting ceremony Thursday with The Chamber of Commerce Inc. and representatives of Sen. Pat Toomey and Sen. Randy Vulakovich’s office.

The location, which is part of a national franchise, is the first Battery Giant to debut in the Pittsburgh area.

To mark its opening, the store will hold a community charity battery-recycling event Saturday, April 13 to benefit the Cranberry Kids Castle playground, which is set to replace the wooden Playtime Palace at Community Park.

Batteries will be collected at the event and Battery Giant also will accept batteries between 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the store through April 13.

For every pound of batteries collected, Battery Giant will donate 20 cents to the Kids Castle project. The expectation is to raise more than $1,000, Logan said.

Depending on what’s brought in, donations could pile up quickly.

Logan pointed out a battery from an emergency light may weigh up to 5 pounds, while a battery from a commercial vehicle could total up to 50 pounds.

Logan said participants also may register to win a number of door prizes, including a Razor scooter, a battery powered floor sweeper and a Black & Decker cordless drill in the week leading up to the event.

Described as a one-stop shop for all your battery needs, Battery Giant of Pittsburgh sells and recycles batteries for just about every use, including exit signs, computers, cell phones, laptops, watches, wheelchairs, cars, buses, motorcycles and more. The store also does local deliveries and pickups.

Logan, an entrepreneur and engineer who grew up in Mars, said he decided to open a Battery Giant franchise because he enjoys diagnosing the problems customers may have with batteries and steering them towards the right replacements.

“Batteries are very much a solution business,” he said. “That type of solution, of helping people all day, is a lot of fun.”

Are you planning to attend the recycling event? Tell us in the comment section below.

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