Local Landscaping Business Sees Massive Growth
The weather in The Valley in 2023 was not ideal. We had a late freeze, and then we had a very bad drought that took a toll on the vegetation in The Valley. There are countless dead trees all around The Valley. Also, the late freeze and drought took out the landscaping trees and shrubs for thousands of residents. Last year was a tough year especially for the farmers, but it has also provided a huge opportunity for some businesses.
Greenleaf Landscaping & Tree Cutting Co., owned by Gary Greenleaf, is seeing massive growth currently. Greenleaf’s company has been in business for about 15 years, and he is well respected in The Valley. Greenleaf said, “I’ve done pretty well over the years, but the current environment is the best I’ve ever seen by far. We are blowing and going right now, and I think we’re just in the 1st inning. Everybody needs new landscaping, trees cut down, and a lot of people need both. Nobody wants to do that kind of thing themselves anymore, so that’s why my phone is blowing up.”
In the past, Greenleaf has had 4-5 employees at any given time. Currently, he has 40, and he plans to add more. “Greenleaf said, “I’m starting guys at $50 per hour, and I’m hiring people from all walks of life. I’ve hired 7 guys that were in college; a couple were at MSU and a couple were at Ole Miss. I even had one guy quit medical school to come work for me. I about fell out when he said he wanted to come work for me, but he said he could make a killing and he wouldn’t have any college debt. I also had a CPA quit accounting to come work for me; I guess he thought he might like landscaping over the ledger.”
Greenleaf said, “A lot of my guys are going to make 6 figures doing landscaping and cutting trees. That ain’t bad! Plus, we got years of work ahead of us. I plan to double my workforce over the next few months. There’s a ton of demand for our services, and I gotta have the manpower to get the work done.”
With this massive growth, there has been some growing pains for Greenleaf. He said, “I don’t even know all my guy’s names now. I don’t have a training program for guys cutting trees and running chainsaws, and I guess I need to create one. I’m basically just telling them to watch a couple Youtube videos on how to run saws and cut trees. Some of the landscapers don’t know the names of the different types of plants I like to use. I got to hire another HR person too. I hired one, but she wasn’t on board with me paying my guys in cash. So, I had to let her go. But, we’ll figure it out.”
I asked Greenleaf what he attributed to his company’s recent growth, and he named multiple factors. Greenleaf said, “There is a ton of work, and a lot companies can’t find good workers. I don’t have a problem with that. I pay all my guys in cash. Cash is king! They know not to deposit more than $10K at one time. Also, we do good work, and we’re dependable. This year, we started offering a 10 year warranty on all our landscaping. If a plant dies within 10 years, we replace it. I figured that drought last year was a once in a lifetime kind of drought, and it shouldn’t happen again for a long time. Plus, if we keep blowing and going like we are, I’ll be retired in 5 years living in The Bahamas.”
Young men and women looking for a good career path should consider Greenleaf Landscaping and Tree Cutting Co. according to Greenleaf. He said, “Forget college and come make $50 per hour out of the gate. Work hard and be dependable, and you’ll be a supervisor in no time making $75 per hour or more. Be smart, save your money, and you’ll have a great start on life. You won’t waste four years, and you’ll have no college debt.” If you’re interested in joining the Greenleaf team, call 1-800-50P-HOUR.