what pidgeonhole do you site your business in ??

M.I.B Services pidgeonhole themselves as landscape maintenance contractors for the simple reason 99% of our work is commercial. However many of my customers still refer to us as a gardening company.

I always try to stress that we are not gardeners, we are landscape maintenance contractors. The reason I choose this mantle is simple, I hold proper gardeners in high regard. I class a proper gardener as someone who has indepth knowledge of plants and all things horticultural, Percy Thrower springs instantly to mind as a proper gardener.

The reason I make this point to my customers is, from my experience anyway, that customers expect me to have full and indepth knowledge about all plants, I don't. I do however have a very good knowledge of the plants that I class as general amenity plants, plants which I work on, on a daily basis.

Theres many names used to describe the "landscape" industry, landscape gardener, gardener, landscaper, groundsman, grass cutter, slabber, fencer to name just a few.

What pidgeon hole would you site your comapny in, or would you choose a few because of the multi deciplins you work in ?

'Grounds Maintenance & Landscape Services' - I began in horticulture and would refer to myself as a self taught plantsman before beginning a degree in Landscape Management which actually resulted in a move backwards; I feel that during the course of it I forgot more than I ever learned! During a year out of my studies I worked in supervisory roles in forestry and landscape maintenance contracts working for a couple of different companies.

This experience combined with my learned knowledge accounted for us venturing into woodland & tree work in my own business, which I enjoy more than anything else. I since got my saw and climbing tickets which enables me to carry out tree work... legitimately!

Grounds maintenance contracts came along and this became approx 70% of our work. I love a challenge, an adventure and the variety all this gives my work, so there's not a lot we won't tackle. If someone can do something better/more efficiently than us we will sub someone in to ensure high quality and profitability always achieved.

In short, the 'Landscape Services' aspect covers all of what 'Grounds Maintenance' doesn't.

Replies

Gary Hedges March 21, 2014 at 6:59pm

Interesting,I always stress I am a gardener not a landscaper although the general public often don't know the difference between a landscape gardener and a gardener judging by the amount of enquiries I get asking for patio quotes etc.
I think there is a real market for gardeners with plant knowledge and that is where I aim my business, I do cut grass but don't really enjoy it and have over the years built up regular clients who appreciate my knowledge and often they are knowledgeable themselves.
Neil Petrie BSc Landscape Mgt March 21, 2014 at 8:15pm

'Grounds Maintenance & Landscape Services' - I began in horticulture and would refer to myself as a self taught plantsman before beginning a degree in Landscape Management which actually resulted in a move backwards; I feel that during the course of it I forgot more than I ever learned! During a year out of my studies I worked in supervisory roles in forestry and landscape maintenance contracts working for a couple of different companies.

This experience combined with my learned knowledge accounted for us venturing into woodland & tree work in my own business, which I enjoy more than anything else. I since got my saw and climbing tickets which enables me to carry out tree work... legitimately!

Grounds maintenance contracts came along and this became approx 70% of our work. I love a challenge, an adventure and the variety all this gives my work, so there's not a lot we won't tackle. If someone can do something better/more efficiently than us we will sub someone in to ensure high quality and profitability always achieved.

In short, the 'Landscape Services' aspect covers all of what 'Grounds Maintenance' doesn't.
Matt Johnson March 22, 2014 at 6:59am

'Landscape Construction' - By trade i am a fully qualified bricklayer, however i could never adopt the bricky slap em up mentality tho work on site house bashing.. so moved on to something creative and that i really enjoy. Although I have a fair knowledge within the horticultural industry, i have no way near enough knowledge to class my self as a gardener etc. One day maybe..
phil@gardenchief.co.uk March 22, 2014 at 7:56am

Grounds maintenance and domestic gardening, got tree tickets too now but dont advertise it as i dont possess a chipper but tree work still comes my way from regulars, word of mouth etc.

I dont do hard landscaping.
PRO

Simon Land March 22, 2014 at 8:03am

I would have to class myself as a Gardener certainly and I completely agree with Gary when he says there is a real market for proper 'plants people' as there is so few coming into the industry.

My background has been mostly spent working in Grade 2 Listed Historic Gardens with an emphasis on higher end horticulture (where staffing levels permit)

While I aim the business at that sort of client, at this stage I do have to diversify wherever possible into small soft landscaping projects, manageable fencing jobs (for one pair of hands) etc, and luckily some of my background with a grounds maintenance/landscaping firm enables me to have that experience.
Colin Hunt March 22, 2014 at 9:14am

Having split Hard and Soft Landscaping with Garden Maintenance for over 30years, we now concentrate on Garden Maintenance. However, I am going to find it very hard to drop the 'Landscape' element from our name and as 90% of our work comes from recommendation, I don't think I will.
I take Brian's point, that there is a difference between a 'Gardener' and Landscape Maintenance Contractor, which is an in depth knowledge of all things gardening and for an LMC, 'pottering' is out!
Peter March 22, 2014 at 1:48pm

I trained in Agriculture and have worked on farms in the past, a lot of what I learned crosses over to horticulture and even general jobs like fencing. I advertise as a gardener but I don't have much knowledge of plants but then I make up for that in being able to do lots of other things that crosses over to landscaping.

I wouldn't really put myself in one category.
Lawncare-4u.co.uk March 25, 2014 at 11:01am

'all your garden needs', we have a mix but mainly domestic one -offs , regular hedges. small trees.

i do commercial for a few sites and advertise.

landscaping a few a year inc fences.

a marketing mix - dont put all your eggs in one 'basket'.. if you lose that one 'big' contract your in trouble. keep it under 50%