Total Landscape Care Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/251533
landscaper of the year finalist estimating system, cutting about an hour off of ever quote. In addition, he purchased chop saws that reduced the time required to cut difficult curves on pavers to about a half hour from six to eight hours. That, in turn, saves a week or two of labor every year. "That purchase was a home run," he notes. Humble beginnings Hanauer graduated from the University of Wiscon- sin-Madison in 1990 with a bachelor's of science degree in landscape architecture, with a second major in horticulture. After graduation, he worked for a Chicago landscape-design company for six years, where he learned the importance of good design and executing quality installations. After moving back to Madison in 1996 and working briefly for a couple of landscaping firms, he decided to go into business for himself. So he bought a pickup truck in fall 1997 and started plowing snow. "Thankfully, it happened to be a big snow year," he says. For another four or five years, Hanauer effective- ly worked as a landscape consultant, doing design work for landscaping companies that had no land- scape architect on staff. Then, in an "aha" moment around 2002, he realized he was giving those firms leads for jobs he could be doing himself. "So, I decided to bite the bullet and buy some equip- ment," he recalls. "I wanted to completely control the services I provided and ensure the quality of the work." Today, Landscape Architecture concentrates primarily on high-end residential design/build projects, with a special emphasis on hardscaping. The company grosses about $800,000 annually, employs nine people and owns three New Holland skid steers, four dump trucks and two Stihl chop saws. Hanauer is a licensed landscape architect and a member of the American Society of Land- scape Architects. Beauty by design Of course, all of the business smarts in the world don't matter if a landscaper can't make yards look beautiful. Hanauer is adept at that, too, creat- ing landscapes that artfully blend plantings with hardscapes, yet still serve as functional extensions of customers' homes. "I try to think about how people will use their yards," he says, describing his design approach. "Landscaping has to make sense from a design standpoint and be functional, too." It helps, he notes, that unlike many landscap- ers, he markets his services to architects, not just homebuilders. That way, he can provide input up- front on things such as yard elevations to ensure proper drainage. "It borders on civil engineering," he says. "It's my marketing tool. I've found that if clients value the design of an architect, they recognize the value of a land architecture as well." Hanauer also emphasizes customer service, from little things – such as going out to nurseries, personally hand-tagging trees and shrubs and answering e-mails and phone call promptly – to 2 8 To t a l L a n d s c a p e C a r e . c o m F E B R U A R Y 2 014 A dark-bottomed pool creates a pond-like feel. The natural stone was mined on site. The pavers are Unilock Brussels Block.