Total Landscape Care Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/85701
field report BY LAUREN HEARTSILL DOWDLE SURVIVOR STORY W ith the recession forc- ing professionals to re-evaluate their busi- ness practices, one New Jersey landscaper went back to his law- enforcement roots and watched as his profits grew. "It's the best year we've ever had," says Patrick Donovan of Classic Landscaping in Edison, New Jersey, who has 28 years of industry experience. He started landscaping during his off hours as a police officer before focusing on it full time. "We did things that were out of the ordinary." This included working 10- hour days, four days a week – the same schedule he kept during his previous job. "It gives us an extra day for equipment maintenance, and sometimes we don't even need to bring the employees in on the fifth day." They also cut costs by plan- ning their routes and working Education, safety are top priority on jobs in a straight line, instead of going back and forth between sites. They bought new mowers in 2011, which increased their efficiency. He was also flexible with his maintenance accounts that were having trouble paying, mow- ing three times a month instead of four. "If you can work with clients, they will stick with you when the economy recovers," Donovan says. He also shops around for insurance, buys fuel often "because we know it's going up tomorrow," indicates fuel sub- charges in his contracts and runs vehicles with a light load. Classic Landscaping is a family business composed of Donovan and his four sons. "WE DID THINGS THAT WERE OUT OF THE ORDINARY." Although he currently is looking for new employees, he's having a difficult time, even with the high unemployment rate. "People want a job, but they don't want Patrick Donovan altered his schedule and saw growth. to work," he says. He looks for workers who are cross-trained on various pieces of equipment, such as skid steers, backhoes, mow- ers and excavators, to increase productivity. They maintain large corporate, commercial and industrial accounts, as well as 12 TOTAL LANDSCAPE CARE / April 2012