LM: What does it take to make it in the industry?
“I’ll be straight up: You need to enjoy managing some level of what I call chaos. That’s a negative word, but we deal with weather, we deal with small tools and equipment, we deal with employees, we deal with customers. If you don’t enjoy moving those pieces around on the chessboard, if you don’t enjoy waking up and saying, ‘I’m going to control what I can control,’ if you can’t manage those unexpected things, then you know what? You probably shouldn’t own any kind of a business — stay in that cubicle,” said Ken Hutcheson, president, U.S. Lawns.
LM: Where do you foresee the future of private equity investment in the lawn care market?
“I’ve been following it since private equity jumped into the pest control world almost 10 years ago. We see that there’s three or four primary private equity players moving into the green space, and that’s going to consolidate down to three. And that consolidation is already beginning. Eventually, there will probably be two or three primary private equity folks that are going to continue to consolidate. I think it’s a great thing for our industry because it’s bringing in so much talent, and we’re seeing a lot of these companies really become better businesses that do lawn care versus really good lawn care companies that are growing at business. I think the business acumen is growing,”
said Rob Palmer, president, Lawn Squad (part of private equity-backed Authority Brands).
LM: How do you feel about the future of the lawn care business?
“I’ll dissect that a little bit for the Grounds Guys that has been, over the last few years, one of our fastest growing businesses here. We love the upside. We love people thinking about investing in their homes, thinking about having the outdoor space be more than just a place where you walk through. It’s a place where you want to live, right? You want to beautify that area. The Grounds Guys want to be a part of that. We’re really finding great profitable services to go after in that space. And we think that’s a major growth area. The growth in that space in general is relatively untapped,” said Josh Sevick, group president, Neighborly, The Grounds Guys and Lawn Pride.
LM: What is the best advice you’ve been given that you always try to abide by?
“Listen so you can have thoughtful inputs, whether it be an issue, idea or a thought. If you don’t listen, you start working on the wrong problems. This is something I’ve always held true all through my career: master the art of listening and hearing what is being said,” Jennifer Lemcke, CEO, Weed Man.
LM: What is your favorite magazine in the industry?
“That’s easy. I know personally, when I first started the business and got into this thing, I relied heavily on Landscape Management magazine for everything from the how-tos to the different columns that are in there: weed identification, insect identification, marketing and advertising. You guys really have done well over the years with educating and teaching and training the industry and the owner. I applaud you,” said Josh Wise, CEO, GrassRoots Turf.
