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In the first issue of 2009, LCN wanted to get the pulse of the landscape industry from those who have a proven track-record of success. The new year brings with it a landscape strewn with uncertainty and fear, in large part due to an ever-changing economy. But, in the midst of all this negativity many companies are not merely surviving; they are thriving. Forced to look at the way they do business from a fresh perspective, companies are focusing on unique areas within the industry and exploiting any advantage that they can find. To shed some light on how successful firms are handling the current situation, LCN spoke to five major companies from across the country and got their input.
San Jose, Calif.
For nearly 40 years, Jensen has served Northern California?EUR??,,????'???s landscaping needs. Established in 1969 by Fred Jensen, the company began with only 3 employees.
Today, Jensen has grown to nearly 400 employees and provides award-winning expertise in the landscape construction and maintenance industries. Jensen Corporate Holdings, Inc. is comprised of 3 wholly-owned subsidiaries?EUR??,,????'??+Jensen Corporation Landscape Contractors, Jensen Landscape Services, Inc. and Jensen Landscape & Construction Company. As an Employee-Owned company, Jensen prides itself on quality work in the commercial, public works, and custom residential markets.
LCN spoke to Quang Trinh, Chief Financial Officer.
LCN: What are the strongest aspects of your company right now?
Trinh: First, we put great emphasis on customer service and customer loyalty. We invest heavily in training our managers, superintendents, and office staff with that goal in mind. This makes us stand out from the industry in general. Our network is also very strong, and we work with the bigger players in the local industry. Jensen?EUR??,,????'???s work this year on the 5-story green roof at the California Academy of Sciences garnered industry achievement awards and worldwide recognition. We rely heavily on our networking relationships who know Jensen?EUR??,,????'???s work, and we deliver what our customers expect.
Second, we invest a great deal of resources into process improvement. While we strive to maintain the family-feel of our company, we also recognize that we can?EUR??,,????'???t do things the old fashioned way. This past year we have put a great deal of time and money towards improving Jensen processes and making us more efficient.
LCN: What is the most profitable division in your company heading into 2009?
Trinh: Construction makes up two-thirds of our business, with the remaining one-third being our recurring maintenance business. While our construction jobs can vary dramatically in scope and costs, our maintenance work is more dependable and consistent. We are also experiencing far more players bidding jobs nowadays, particularly on public works jobs in the Sacramento region where we have recently opened another branch office.
LCN: When do you see a positive upturn occurring in the industry? Trinh: Predictably 2009 will be a pretty slow year, with a rebound towards the end of 2010. The positive aspect for us is that currently there are many strong superintendents and horticulturists out there looking for work. There are still good people are out there to be hired, good projects to work on, and good businesses for us to acquire. As part of our overall initiative to be nationally recognized for landscape excellence, we recently expanded operations into the Sacramento region and will be expanding into Southern California in the near future. At the end of the day, the opportunities are still out there.
Stamford, CT
Francis A. Bartlett founded The F. A. Bartlett Tree Expert Company in 1907. By 1927, Bartlett had enough scientific work in progress to warrant the establishment of the Bartlett Tree Research Laboratories, located first in North Stamford, Connecticut, and, since 1965, on a large property in Charlotte, North Carolina. The permanent laboratories staff consists of Ph.D?EUR??,,????'???s in disciplines such as plant pathology, entomology, physiology and soil science.
Today, their knowledge of arboriculture, soil science, root systems and pest management are respected worldwide. Bartlett innovations such as hand-held diagnostic field computers and The Bartlett Tree Research Laboratories are unique in arboriculture. LCN spoke via email with Company President, Greg Daniels.
LCN: What are you doing to prevent customers from abandoning their tree care?
Daniels: There is a segment of the market that will likely either put off tree care or reduce their programs. We are working closely with all of our clients to prioritize the work that cannot be put off and then giving them a program that is tailored to their budget. It is important to keep an open dialogue with clients and provide solutions that work, especially in situations where hazardous tree conditions exist. There are some things that should not be put off because of the potential threat that a tree may present.
LCN: Which segments of the industry will the economic downturn have a greater impact?
Daniels: Most tree care companies are facing reduced allocations for tree work in the commercial and residential market. Commercial work may suffer the most because a lot of that work is subject to budget approvals. With residential clients you have the opportunity to discuss work options that could lead to good sales. In both the residential and commercial sectors, client satisfaction -in terms of budget and work completed ?EUR??,,????'??? is key to retention and sales.
LCN: With the economic slowdown, will it be easier to find qualified employees?
Daniels: Most employers will hold on to their best people. However, hiring for entry-level positions may yield a better choice of candidates since many companies are not hiring.
Sanford, Fla.
Girard Environmental Services (GES) is a recognized leader within the green industry and a full-service company that provides a wide range of services. Founded in 1998 and located in Central Florida, the company offers design/build, construction, irrigation, arbor care and maintenance, just to name a few. To find out what they are doing to be so successful, LCN spoke to Rick Girard, CEO.
Girard: We are making a transition from construction to management services, and that has been very profitable for us. We started the transition in 2007, and we expect to be more profitable in 2009 than in 2008, which has been our most profitable.
LCN: What is the most profitable division in your company?
Girard: The maintenance market is very strong. We got out of the residential (landscape) construction business in 2004, seeing where the industry was headed. We did not think (the economy) would be as bad as it has been, but we were fortunate in making the business decisions that we made.
LCN: When do you see a positive upturn occurring?
Girard: I expect construction to be slow for the first six months of 2009 and then pick up. I think the landscape side will continue to feel the effects of the economy through 2009 before coming back in 2010.
Houston, Texas
BIO Landscape and Maintenance, Inc. is recognized as a premier landscape services company in the greater Houston area.
The firm began as a liquid fertilizer company in 1982. Since then, they have expanded to offer a full range of commercial, and institutional services. They currently have over 325 on-going contracts and operate 45 crews daily.
LCN spoke to Caryl Coronis, the Chief Financial Officer at BIO Landscape and Maintenance Inc. to get their company?EUR??,,????'???s perspective on the current state of the industry and what they see for the year ahead.
Coronis: One of the strongest aspects for us is that we are in Texas, which is a very good thing. We haven?EUR??,,????'???t seen the Texas market erode like we?EUR??,,????'???ve seen in other parts of the country. Also, another strong aspect of our company is that we are not in the residential market too strongly. The commercial market still continues to need our services in both construction and maintenance. We also do quite a bit of work for the government, which is steady. We are looking at 2009 with caution and hoping that will continue to be the case. Also, we recently become a member of the Yellowstone Landscape Group, which has provided additional strengths and opportunities for us.
LCN: Are you finding the market is being flooded with companies bidding on jobs?
Coronis: We are finding that some companies that we used to bid against four or five years ago?EUR??,,????'???and we aren?EUR??,,????'???t sure what they did in the interim?EUR??,,????'???are re-entering the market.
On top of that, general contractors are starting to do our kind of work as well, which is taking a little bit of business. What I?EUR??,,????'???ve found is that everyone is trying to protect their base as best they can.
Coronis: The construction work, when it is available, can be highly profitable?EUR??,,????'???especially in those areas where we have developed a good track record. We know what the costs are going to be and we have developed efficiencies and methods to do particular kinds of jobs. These jobs can be profitable?EUR??,,????'???they can be homeruns. But the maintenance work is very steady and we appreciate that about it. It doesn?EUR??,,????'???t go up and down nearly as much as the construction side.
LCN: When do you see a positive upturn occurring in the industry?
Coronis: I think that we are waiting and watching right now. This came up on us quickly. Of course, we are very optimistic about things, but in terms of predicting when the upturn will be, I think it is anyone?EUR??,,????'???s guess.
I?EUR??,,????'???m starting to see that everyone we talk to has taken a guarded philosophy. What that translates to is inactivity, which can be a bad thing. A lot of people are waiting and not making any bold moves until we see where this is heading.
Recent news is bad on top of bad with jobs and things like that. In Houston, however, we are not seeing that much of that. We are still very cautious but we are not making any changes. We have not, at this point in time, lost any work. Because we are continuing to get work we haven?EUR??,,????'???t had a situation that has caused us to make any changes.
Portland, Ore.
Teufel Nursery originated in 1890 as a small landscape gardening business in the west hills of Portland, Oregon. Owner, Gustav Teufel?EUR??,,????'???s love of plants led him to start a small nursery next to his home that eventually grew into his main business.
Today the company comprises 4 major divisions including: Nursery Production, Wholesale Plants and Supplies Sales, Retail Plants and Supplies Sales, and Landscape Construction and Maintenance. They employ over 300 people and serve customers throughout the Pacific Northwest.
LCN spoke to Rick Christensen of Tuefel?EUR??,,????'???s Oregon Residential Design & Landscape Division.
Christensen: I would say I always look to put together the absolute strongest team. One benefit of a down economy is you can do recruiting. It?EUR??,,????'???s a chance to strengthen the team.
While I?EUR??,,????'???m not aware of any of our competitors going out of business, I do know that there is less work going around. With less work available, so many companies are downsizing, people are becoming available.
Christensen: We do primarily large-scale commercial landscape installations. That?EUR??,,????'???s the majority of our work. We certainly do landscape maintenance and we enjoy that from a cash flow perspective but it?EUR??,,????'???s not where most of our profit comes from.
We also do high-end custom residential work, which is fun but only a small part of what we do. The majority of our profit comes from large-scale commercial landscape construction.
We are a nursery and we are known for large specimen-size quality plant material. We are drawn to projects heavy in plant material. While we do all functions within the landscape industry, large soft-scape projects are where we tend to excel.
LCN: Have you seen any shifts in the marketplace?
Christensen: There are far fewer new projects breaking ground in both the commercial and residential markets. It?EUR??,,????'???s very common for people to say that there is more government work or prevailing-wage work in a down economy. But I don?EUR??,,????'???t know if that?EUR??,,????'???s the case or if it?EUR??,,????'???s just what?EUR??,,????'???s left (after residential work goes away) or if it?EUR??,,????'???s simply what gets publicity.
I also have found prevailing-wage government work will have many contractors bidding on it?EUR??,,????'???sometimes 30 contractors submitting a price on a public job. Who do you think will get the job? The one that forgets the most.
That makes it tough for us. So, it?EUR??,,????'???s not likely we are going to be picking up a lot of public sector work. But it?EUR??,,????'???s something you hear a lot in the industry: ?EUR??,,????'??We are going to public work.?EUR??,,????'?? Well, good luck.
LCN: When do you see a positive upturn in the market occurring?
Christensen: My crystal ball is pretty cloudy. I?EUR??,,????'???m probably not one to do a prediction. One common indicator I have found is by keeping in touch with landscape architects. When you see plans hit their drawing boards, you will see work in our future 6-9 months down the road.
Landscape architects do have work though. Not a lot, and not a lot ready for permitting. But I use them as my gauge. I don?EUR??,,????'???t have other means of prediction.
Francisco Uviña, University of New Mexico
Hardscape Oasis in Litchfield Park
Ash Nochian, Ph.D. Landscape Architect
November 12th, 2025
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