Buying equipment, starting business.

[cessnasovereign]

I was in an auto accident which totaled my 1999 Camaro, I was in the process of buying another Camaro with the $9,500 I got from the other guys insurance company when I decided to buy a truck and start a business! :usflag: :canadaflag:

I'm buying a 17 HP Toro 42 inch cut Z-turn mower for $2599.00
Plus a Honda push edger 4.5 HP, a Ryobi straight shaft weedeater and a Ryobi backpack leaf blower.. What else should I get?
I guess I'll also need a little push mower, rakes, maybe or shovel..

I already have a few clients lined up. I'm 20 years old so I don't have many bills so I can afford to slowly build the business if that's what it takes. But I'm confident, I've been selling motorcycle parts on eBay since I was 14. I was the richest kid in middle school. :laugh:
So I have a good "business" background and now how to sell a product. I made some great brochures explaining my services and about contracts. I'll try to get a file link so ya'll can see that soon.
I'm also buying a 5X8 trailer and I'll weld a box on the front to keep everything in, so it won't get stolen.

Opinions? Suggestions?
I heard the best way to get customers is by word of mouth. I have a friend who runs a heating and air company, pretty big company, and we're gonna swap business cards, so when he gives a bill to someone, my card will be attached and vise versa, to kinda advertise to each other. Which is good cause he probably see's 10+ customers a day.
I also come from a big family with alot of friends so I'm trying to get all our friends as clients plus offering discounts if they bring in clients. My base price for an average yard around here is $35, if they refer someone who uses me on a regular basis, I'll drop their price to $30 permanetly.

I'm also stating in the brochure, that I make my visits 3 to 4 times a month. "Either every 7 or every 10 days depending on the condition of your property." Meaning, for a really nice yard with good grass, every 7 days, for the average yard every 10.

Any tips would be greatly appeciated! Thanks!!!

[cessnasovereign]

Plus, what do ya'll think of making a road sign to put out behind my trailer while mowing a yard so people driving by will see who I am, plus a sign on the back of my gate for people in traffic behind me to see and I'm thinking about getting some corogated plastic signs to place and move around every week or two.

[cwlawley]

Welcome to Lawnsite and good luck with your new business. I think that you are going in the right direction, however, remember that "word of mouth" advertising has to come from exsisting customers in addition to family and friends. Try doorhangers or newspaper ads for a while to get a good base of customers and that should take you pretty far.

[daveintoledo]

while it is a nice mower for a homeowner, it wont last the season if you use it commercially..... please please please dont make this mistake......

you will want to look at the toro commercial line.... a new commercial z will be around 7 thousand ..... do you really need a z, can you get by with a commercial walk behind and a sulky... that new will be around 5 thousand...

[J&R Landscaping]

I would steer clear of that Toro z. Its a home-owner machine and it won't stand up to much commercial work. Also, What dealers are in your area and what brands do the sell? Do they stock a good sized parts invintory for those brands? How is their service department?
Sounds like you might be shopping at Home depot or something (if not, I applogize) I would talk to a few dealers and see what bthey recomend.
How big are the lawns you have and what size properties are you targeting? If you are targeting smaller properties, maybe go get a 36" walkbehind (espically if your yards have gates). Otherwise, look at a 48" walkbehind. Either way, new or used will hold up better and get better trade in or resale value than the homeowner machine.
If you want a small z, check out the Exmark Phazer.

[cessnasovereign]

Thanks for the tips. I just figured the Toro would be much easier, being that I could sit down and all. ;)

I did find a used walk behind for $2500
" This is a commercial walk behind mower with a '48 deck, jungle wheels attachment, dethatcher attachment, and bagging system attachment included. This equipment was over $6000 new, and has only been used on less than 10 yards for 3 seasons.

It is in fantastic shape, and has been well maintained. Also comes with 3 sets of blades."

How do these mowers work? How fast are they? To me it seems like a Z would be best since you're sitting, you wouldn't get tired and slow, vs. running behind a walk behind all day..

I can't really afford a $6K mower right now, maybe next year if it all goes good. The best I could do is maybe $3500 and the other option for a Z is a 22 HP 50 inch cut Cub Cadet for $2999 and yes they're at home depot. The local dealer only had reallllly expensive ones.

[cessnasovereign]

Oh and most of the houses are about 1/3 acre.

And as for gates, how would a walk behind be better?

[cessnasovereign]

Also, what do ya'll think of a little website for the flyers and brochures? I'd be using a free hosting service (expage.com) so the site would be www.expage.com/mydomain for example. Would that look too un-professional? I do have an AOL address with the company name on the fliers and would like to have a site where they can look at equipment and previous work photos.

[cessnasovereign]

Just bought a T-shirt from **** press with my logos on it!!!

[rfed32]

i would go with that used commerical mower u found, i would also make the sign for ur trailer i am going to do it i think its a good idea...t-shirt is a good idea, u might want to get a few made so u can have one clean nice one when u go to give proposals and stuff like that, i am in the prosses of gettin a golfshirt made with my name on it....good luck, word of mouth and flyers will get u long way....welcome to lawnsite

[J&R Landscaping]

Thanks for the tips. I just figured the Toro would be much easier, being that I could sit down and all. ;)

I did find a used walk behind for $2500
" This is a commercial walk behind mower with a '48 deck, jungle wheels attachment, dethatcher attachment, and bagging system attachment included. This equipment was over $6000 new, and has only been used on less than 10 yards for 3 seasons.

It is in fantastic shape, and has been well maintained. Also comes with 3 sets of blades."

How do these mowers work? How fast are they? To me it seems like a Z would be best since you're sitting, you wouldn't get tired and slow, vs. running behind a walk behind all day..

I can't really afford a $6K mower right now, maybe next year if it all goes good. The best I could do is maybe $3500 and the other option for a Z is a 22 HP 50 inch cut Cub Cadet for $2999 and yes they're at home depot. The local dealer only had reallllly expensive ones.

First off, That walkbehind deal sounds great! It has the jungle wheel rider on it so you can stand on it and just steer the mower. What brand is the mower? What drive system does it have and what size engine does it have?

The mowers at your dealer are going to be more expensive but they will out last any home depot riding mower! They are expensive because they are made to work 8-10 hours a day, 5-6 days a week. They are COMMERCIAL mowers. You might not be able to afford 1 just starting out but don't think a home depot rider will do the same job with the same durabillity!

[J&R Landscaping]

Oh and most of the houses are about 1/3 acre.

And as for gates, how would a walk behind be better?

Most gates only open 36" or so. You will not be able to fit a full size z or a bigger walk behind thru that small of a gate.

Good luck!! Welcome to LS

[toac]

$9500!!!!! - i would retire, sell my house....buy a trailer and sit on the porch with my stained wife beater drinking king cobra forties all day

[cessnasovereign]

$9500!!!!! - i would retire, sell my house....buy a trailer and sit on the porch with my stained wife beater drinking king cobra forties all day

I never claimed it was alot of money. All I said, is $9500 is enough to get me started in a lawn maintenance business.

[toac]

i wasn't trying to be an a$$ - just joking around

[cessnasovereign]

First off, That walkbehind deal sounds great! It has the jungle wheel rider on it so you can stand on it and just steer the mower. What brand is the mower? What drive system does it have and what size engine does it have?

The mowers at your dealer are going to be more expensive but they will out last any home depot riding mower! They are expensive because they are made to work 8-10 hours a day, 5-6 days a week. They are COMMERCIAL mowers. You might not be able to afford 1 just starting out but don't think a home depot rider will do the same job with the same durabillity!

It's a John Deere GS45 model. What do you think? Should I buy this instead? He said he used it for 3 seasons for 8-10 yards each season. Looks clean in the pictures..
And I didn't know what the jungle wheel was, I guess that's better than walking all day!! How do you steer one of these? Also how much does a "sulky" cost? I really like to sit cause I sometimes have back pain from an auto accident.:)

[cessnasovereign]

i wasn't trying to be an a$$ - just joking around

:drinkup: :drinkup:

[toac]

i'm in the same position you are (just starting out - 2nd year). i've decided on a 36" for the fact that J&R stated "Most gates only open 36" or so". Where I'm working about 90% of the yards have fences that only open between 37-42 inches. I don't want to be cutting the back yards with a 21". As time goes along I will upgrade my equipment as I will hopefully upgrade my customers.

Good Luck

[cessnasovereign]

i'm in the same position you are (just starting out - 2nd year). i've decided on a 36" for the fact that J&R stated "Most gates only open 36" or so". Where I'm working about 90% of the yards have fences that only open between 37-42 inches. I don't want to be cutting the back yards with a 21". As time goes along I will upgrade my equipment as I will hopefully upgrade my customers.

Good Luck

May I ask how many clients you have?

Yeah I'm worried about the gates too.. :cry:

[toac]

I started last July and am currently up to 11 mowing customers. Hope to have 20 by the end of this month! (2000 doorhangers going out this weekend)

[cessnasovereign]

I started last July and am currently up to 11 mowing customers. Hope to have 20 by the end of this month! (2000 doorhangers going out this weekend)


Cool.. What kind of advertising have you done in the past? Do you have a regular full time job?

I'm actually hoping do get 20 within a month. :dizzy: Maybe that's crazy?

Also, for you bigger guys, many many residential accounts want year round service? I live in the south so we don't have much snow but grass doesn't grow much in the winter in NC.

[toac]

20 in one month is very possible, especially in the beginning of the season. i hand out flyers and doorhangers....it hate it, but it gets the job done. i've also has success making a flyer with little tabs on the bottom with my phone number and hung them up at the grocery or local hardware store, that got me 5 clients (2 from flyer, 5 from referraly). I also have truck magnets. Haven't had any customers from my magnets yet. all in all i've stuck mainly to flyers for now because it seems to work. it's probably the cheapest way to advertise.

I'm currently at my full time job right now...lawnsite is a great way to pass the time. I was planning in 3-5 years to be able to quit my full time job and do lawn maintenance and landscaping full time.

[cessnasovereign]

20 in one month is very possible, especially in the beginning of the season. i hand out flyers and doorhangers....it hate it, but it gets the job done. i've also has success making a flyer with little tabs on the bottom with my phone number and hung them up at the grocery or local hardware store, that got me 5 clients (2 from flyer, 5 from referraly). I also have truck magnets. Haven't had any customers from my magnets yet. all in all i've stuck mainly to flyers for now because it seems to work. it's probably the cheapest way to advertise.

I'm currently at my full time job right now...lawnsite is a great way to pass the time. I was planning in 3-5 years to be able to quit my full time job and do lawn maintenance and landscaping full time.

That's cool. Well I definetly hope to get 20 in the first month, and I'll try my hardest! I currently work for a funeral home :angel: and I'm sick for the scheduling (never know exactly when you'll be working), being on call (having to go out at all hours of the night), and the general just working for someone. Since I was a kid I've always wanted to own a business, now is my chance. So I'm excited and hopefully can put in my two week notice in a couple weeks!! :cool2: :waving: :drinkup: :clapping:


But I have a few customers from friends and hopefully can get alot of referrals with my referral program. I'm planning on going door to door in some neighborhood and passing out fliers in others, but just hoping to get word of mouth clients mainly..

[cessnasovereign]

So, does everyone agree that I shouldn't get that 42 inch cut Timecutter Toro Z? :( It looks so nice and comfy! haha

Should I get the used JD for $2500 instead?