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Wanting to start a very focused company, need niche ideas.

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southerncomfortlc

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Discussion starter · #1 ·
Hey all, I am planning on getting back into landscaping next year, and I am looking for an interesting niche to possibly pursue. As we all know everyone and there Brother's Mother has a LCO, so i am looking to offer a unique service. I will also be mowing grass, but I am limiting myself to small properties, in areas where i can build a tight, dense route. I will also be doing mulch, seeding, sod etc, also. I am offering these more traditional services as I have a solid understanding of them, and I know i can make money on them initially. Eventually I would like what ever niche I find to be my main thing.
Thanks
 
#2 ·
southerncomfortlc said:
Hey all, I am planning on getting back into landscaping next year, and I am looking for an interesting niche to possibly pursue. As we all know everyone and there Brother's Mother has a LCO, so i am looking to offer a unique service. I will also be mowing grass, but I am limiting myself to small properties, in areas where i can build a tight, dense route. I will also be doing mulch, seeding, sod etc, also. I am offering these more traditional services as I have a solid understanding of them, and I know i can make money on them initially. Eventually I would like what ever niche I find to be my main thing.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Dont do that.

That's not niche, or specialized service… that's what every one else is doing.

IF you mow and mulch, you won't have any time to do specialized services.

Decks/Patios, Putting greens, outdoor kitchens, water features, outdoor lighting, and even gazebos.
Possibly branch out and do plantings.
If someone asks for sod or lawn as part of a larger project then do that, but don't be a "lawn installer"
stay away from needing a lot of equipment.
Get materials delivered to job site by suppliers, rent heavy equipment on a job by job basis.

don't even dream of buying a lawn mower.

start small,

Sell 5 jobs next year.
7-10 the following year.

Top yourself out at 10-12 projects a season.
eventually plan to have winters off.
Never get big, never have a lot of employees, don't take on work you and a few non key laborers can't do.

Sub yourself out to non-niche landscapers, you will get plenty of specialized work from them, especially if you give them your lawn/mulch referrals.

focus on projects, not repeat work, build slow.
 
Discussion starter · #4 ·
TPendagast said:
Dont do that.

That's not niche, or specialized serviceÂ… that's what every one else is doing.

IF you mow and mulch, you won't have any time to do specialized services.

Decks/Patios, Putting greens, outdoor kitchens, water features, outdoor lighting, and even gazebos.
Possibly branch out and do plantings.
If someone asks for sod or lawn as part of a larger project then do that, but don't be a "lawn installer"
stay away from needing a lot of equipment.
Get materials delivered to job site by suppliers, rent heavy equipment on a job by job basis.

don't even dream of buying a lawn mower.

start small,

Sell 5 jobs next year.
7-10 the following year.

Top yourself out at 10-12 projects a season.
eventually plan to have winters off.
Never get big, never have a lot of employees, don't take on work you and a few non key laborers can't do.

Sub yourself out to non-niche landscapers, you will get plenty of specialized work from them, especially if you give them your lawn/mulch referrals.

focus on projects, not repeat work, build slow.
Click to expand...
Why such a limit on size?
 
Discussion starter · #6 ·
Kawizx62003 said:
Yeah not sound business advice. Be careful who you take advice from on here.
Click to expand...
I figure I will try to take on only small .5 acre and under mowing accounts. I have found there is a price bottom, and a price max, that people will pay. Around here people will not flinch at $40 a week for a postage stamp lot that takes me 25 minutes to mow. On the other hand 1.2 acres is tough to get for anything more then $65. My mowing would be a small operation just to bring in a predictable cash flow. My specialty would be something that I could work at, and steadily grow.
 
#8 ·
Hey all, I am planning on getting back into landscaping next year, and I am looking for an interesting niche to possibly pursue. /QUOTE]

Install roof top gardens on SUV's.
 
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#10 ·
southerncomfortlc said:
Why such a limit on size?
Click to expand...
You limit size because
1) it lets you focus more on profit/loss ratio
and
2) lets you keep/focus/train the better employees
and
3) you have less headaches and rush to gain more work.

In the beginning you'll be small because you don't have a choice, but then when you gain steam you cherry pick the best projects and customers and keep your net high and your liabilities low.

all the design build guys who get big, eventually lament, saying the wish they had stuck to 1 to 2 crews.

A focused, niche style company isn't going to thrive, with high net income when it's large. you will just falter a lot with poor employee performance, because not everyone (hardly anyone) really has the craftsmanship (or cares enough) to pull off the high detail.

It's an extreme contrast to something like mowing lawns, doing lawn installs or plopping down millions of yards of mulch.

Plus when you stay smaller you get the work with the other contractors instead of competing directly against them, increasing your flow of referrals and ability to cherry pick more work.

thats the difference between taking everything out there (which is to a niche, focus style of doing business) and doing only the good work.
 
#12 ·
Jaybrown said:
If you can afford to do the above Do what you love and it won't feel like work
Click to expand...
can't afford to do what?

Starting off on small installs is much less investment than buying a full mowing set up.

Many contractors who build full houses only own a hand tools and a pick up truck.

Rent as needed.

Job one may be a deck, no heavy equipment needed.
Job two could be a water feature, and then you rent the excavator, the job pays for the equipment because it;s included in the price.

There is no "afford" when you don't own it.

Ive seen guys do the Gazebo/deck/patio thing will a nissan frontierÂ… its quite common actually in southern utah.
 
#15 ·
jrs.landscaping said:
Rain gardens/bioswales, I think there will be a growing niche in this as people become more eco/water friendly.
Posted via Mobile Device
Click to expand...
Amusingly, every new L/A with less than four years out of college designs in a rain garden /bio swale, and in practice they all get ignored.

They are needlessly expensive, need to be maintained (high maintenance) and have a tendency to collect trash.

So they just "become" a rock bed instead.

Im not so sure there is enough work in rain gardens to keep employed.
But you could do it as part of your normal landscaping installs when they come up.
 
#16 ·
T,
Where were you when I got started in 05' ? Lol

I'm a prime example of trying to do too much and felt the wrath of spreading myself too thin. I've scaled back down to solo and have focused on a niche that I enjoy and grow gradually doing. It may not be landscaping or fences etc. my focus is on Eco-friendly clearing of underbrush and reclaiming overgrown properties using a mulcher/brush cutter on a CTL and my tractor.
Posted via Mobile Device
 
#17 ·
TPendagast said:
Amusingly, every new L/A with less than four years out of college designs in a rain garden /bio swale, and in practice they all get ignored.

They are needlessly expensive, need to be maintained (high maintenance) and have a tendency to collect trash.

So they just "become" a rock bed instead.

Im not so sure there is enough work in rain gardens to keep employed.
But you could do it as part of your normal landscaping installs when they come up.
Click to expand...
Completely agree, if you could sell the customer on maintenance as well it may even out. I think it could make a decent add on to softscaping.
Posted via Mobile Device
 
Discussion starter · #18 ·
TPendagast said:
yeah, fence installs is growing a lot in many markets.

You can often find a decent deck/patio upsell with the fence lead too (as well as other landscaping)
Click to expand...
This might be the perfect direction for me to go. I have quite a bit of experience in wood working / construction.
 
#19 ·
TPendagast said:
Dont do that.

That's not niche, or specialized serviceÂ… that's what every one else is doing.

IF you mow and mulch, you won't have any time to do specialized services.

Decks/Patios, Putting greens, outdoor kitchens, water features, outdoor lighting, and even gazebos.
Possibly branch out and do plantings.
If someone asks for sod or lawn as part of a larger project then do that, but don't be a "lawn installer"
stay away from needing a lot of equipment.
Get materials delivered to job site by suppliers, rent heavy equipment on a job by job basis.

don't even dream of buying a lawn mower.

start small,

Sell 5 jobs next year.
7-10 the following year.

Top yourself out at 10-12 projects a season.
eventually plan to have winters off.
Never get big, never have a lot of employees, don't take on work you and a few non key laborers can't do.

Sub yourself out to non-niche landscapers, you will get plenty of specialized work from them, especially if you give them your lawn/mulch referrals.

focus on projects, not repeat work, build slow.
Click to expand...
We could be brothers from different mothers. I couldn't have said it any better.
Posted via Mobile Device
 
#20 ·
Ditta&Sons said:
fence installation for new subdivisions
Click to expand...
Maybe in some markets that's profitable....here notso much...builders go with the larger companies which provide lots of service, for low margins...prices went down after 2008.....and working for builders is not the way I'd go...they can be slow payers and make you work to get paid and then beat you up on price.

I've got a good friend which works for the big fence company here and I hear about it all the time.
Margins on decks and sunshades are, really good though...work for owners, not builders
 
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southerncomfortlc
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