Hayson Tasher, founder of Old Patrolman Guard Services (OLDPGS), knows exactly what happens when a client refuses to let professionals protect a property properly. Four years into building
Hayson Tasher, founder of Old Patrolman Guard Services (OLDPGS), knows exactly what happens when a client refuses to let professionals protect a property properly. Four years into building his California-based security firm, he walked away from a major contract and two years later collected back-to-back Business Hall of Fame awards from the City of Pasadena.
In the early days of OLDPGS, Tasher’s team was hired to secure two large buildings containing more than 100 apartment units and retail spaces. The contract called for hourly vehicle patrols and extensive video-surveillance monitoring covering two properties 1.5 miles apart, with only one guard on duty.
“That should never have been a one-guard post,” Tasher says bluntly. “The owner refused to pay for proper coverage.”
Instead of allowing marked patrol vehicles that announce a professional security presence, the owner demanded unmarked cars. Instead of listening to recommendations from licensed, certified professionals, he overruled every suggestion and fired two separate property-management companies while pointing fingers at everyone except himself.
For two years, OLDPGS delivered flawless hourly patrols and real-time video-surveillance response anyway. When the interference became unbearable, Tasher made the hardest call an entrepreneur can make: he walked away.
“Some clients think they know security better than the people who do it for a living,” he explains. “I’d rather lose the revenue than compromise safety.”
Unlike fly-by-night companies that slap up cheap cameras and call it a day, OLDPGS treats video surveillance as an active security discipline. Every system is monitored in real time, integrated with alarm response and uniformed patrol verification, and installed to meet California’s strict regulatory standards.
Tasher’s commitment to doing things correctly, from state-regulated uniforms to professional-grade surveillance, is why the same city that housed those two problem buildings honored OLDPGS with the prestigious Business Hall of Fame award in both 2022 and 2023.
While many security-company owners disappear into corner offices, Tasher refuses. “I’m still out there running details in uniform and reviewing surveillance footage myself,” he says. “You can’t lead a security company from behind a desk.”
That hands-on leadership drives every service OLDPGS provides: armed and unarmed uniformed guards, alarm response, professional video-surveillance installation and monitoring, and free security consultations that actually tell clients what they need, not just what they want to hear.
The future for Tasher is bigger than any single contract. He’s planning a chain of “Old Patrolman” retail locations carrying professional-grade tactical gear, flashlights, firearms, boots, and surveillance equipment built by people who use them on the street every day.
His message to the next generation of entrepreneurs is simple and hard-earned: “Opportunity is key, but never be afraid to walk away from the wrong one. I’ve learned the hard way that some business owners think they know it all when they actually don’t. Real professionals listen more than they talk.”
With the motto “Dedicated to a Safe and Secure Environment,” OLDPGS proves that refusing to cut corners even when it costs you a client is the fastest way to earn respect, awards, and long-term success.
