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Richard Sperber, the founder and executive chairman at Sperber Landscape Cos., has left the company that bears his name.
Sperber confirmed his departure during an appearance on the “Trades Talk” podcast hosted by Justin White, the CEO of K&D Landscaping in Watsonville, Calif., and a regular Landscape Management columnist.
“There’s a lot of positive stuff about working with private equity and building a business, and there’s a lot of negative stuff,” Sperber told White about leaving the company, No. 11 on the 2025 LM150 list of the largest revenue-generating companies in the industry. “I have a certain way I believe we should run a business and the values I hold, and I’m not willing to compromise those things.
“Sometimes, they think younger leadership is more interesting. So, they’re going to transition into some new people, and it’ll be interesting to see what happens.”
Sperber has been an influential figure in the landscape industry for nearly 30 years. His father founded Valley Crest Landscape Cos. in 1949, and he took leadership of the company in 2001, growing it to more than 100 locations worldwide. In 2014, the company merged with The Brickman Group to form BrightView — now the world’s largest landscape company. After a short time away from the industry following that merger, he founded Sperber Landscape Cos. in 2019.
Sperber told White that his departure from Sperber Landscape Cos. isn’t a signal of his retirement from the business.
“Unfortunately, my journey is over there, but I’m ready to start some new ones,” he said. “I still think I have a little juice left, so why not? I love the industry. It’s what I do, it’s what I know. So, I’m just looking forward to my next journey.”
