let's all get our heads together and make a business plan

[MadJack]

I started my own lawn service many years back..there is good and bad..

the good is fresh air..good money..excerise.

the bad...200 customers...7 days in a week and most lawns should be cut wed. thru sat.People willing to pay for the service don't want a lawn that looks like shit on the weekends..75% WILL DEMAND WED orTHURS orFRI- or Sat.
surely a person who doesn't mind busting their ass can pull it off..keep in mind there is overhead..good machines are expensive..PM on machines is time consuming and ain't cheap fellas ..trust me ..help disappers in july and august when temps are 95-110 with heat index..

math end of the deal...210 cuts a week divided by 7

30 cuts a day...best case 3 people ..30 minutes a yard..and that is cut- blow and go..which actually is weak at best from a service viewpoint.That doesn't leave time for Round-up app. and picking the stray weed out of the flowerbed

15 hour day..NOT COUNTING TRAVEL TIME.

10 bucks an hour for decent help...

competitive business..we have crews on the street doing 4,000 square for as little as 35.00 a visit..

smaller yards for as little as 15.00


so add another crew?..yea it works too...as long as you can be sure the ramrod on the crew will make sure the works gets done..even when his helpers layout drunk..

been all through this over the years..


oh and the most fun...

3 day RAINOUTS...

and ...hope like hell they dry early that morning..

ZERO'S are sweet...but they rut a yard like a tank when ya cut damp or wet..

try 210 lawns in 4 days...

now we are having big fun..

forgot to mention bagging...

those pristine lawns...

nothing like 60 bags bags of grass in the back of the F-250...:mj07:


again..there is nice $$$..but be prepared to work ..and work your ass off..

forgot something else..

Fall....nice.. we are having even bigger fun..

210 yards...average 10 bags of leaves a visit..

OCT..NOV..will get a weak man..

:director: have fun..

kurby kurby

 

[Morris]

OS , I agree it can be a ball-busting adventure.

I'm semi-retired and looking at it as an income supplementing venture.

 

[Old School]

then do it small..

good Zero...38" will get it most backyard gates..around 3 grand..

22" Honda around 400.00 for walk behind is fine if you don't mind rear drive..don't like them myself but they last..front wheel drive get a craftsman.Toro's suck ..have shit-canned 10 or more over the years..

weedeater 189.00..echo's work good for me..

build the business close to home if ya can bunch up the accts. to cut down on travel time...

wed..thurs..fri...

figure 5 a day max..lets you wait on dew to dry in the mornings so ya don't cut wet and rut..and gets ya home at a decent hour..

gives ya sat and sunday for rainouts or weekend off..

it will snowball and ya end up telling people ya can't provide the service but that is ok..ya weed out the shit yards and end up w/nice yards that way..

any questions feel free to get my e-mail from Jack and will give ya a call..

there is fun and $$$ if you do it the right way..

which is...SERVICE..SERVICE..SERVICE...

the only thing one should believe they are selling.

 

[djv]

When retired I agree all you need is 3 lawns. You should get about 75 bucks a week. Cash. .
AS for my friend he told me about pit falls. Right now it,s him and his kid and another fellow. Just hired another part timer. His wife helps when rain gets in way. He does the old lady up the block from me. He pull,s up with a nice ride on dear in tow. Backs that of tralier and does that 5000sqft so fast. I don,t think he,s there 25 minutes. He was careful from start in size of lawns he quoted. He didn,t want to get to big he said just cutting lawns. The side angles for extra cash was part of his goal. He stopped taking customer a week back I didn,t know that. But he said with gains coming so fast he may need another guy.
I just put this info up to help process some ideas.
THe thing that really surprise me is no mention of anyone in our paper doing window washing. THey alll must be silent business.

 

[dawgball]

Old School - great info, man. Thanks for sharing your experience with everyone.

I'm pretty sure most people going into a lawn care business don't have all of the knowledge we just read on here.

Thanks

 

[layinwood]

I've started two companies and bought one. I will never start another business from scratch because buying one that was established was so much easier. From day one I was making good money, I didn't totally skip the hard times but I hurried them along. When you start a business from scratch you have to be willing to not take a paycheck for a good while and that's not any good if you ask me. I look on bizbuysell every month for new opportunities.

Of course if you're not looking for a money maker from day one then the headaches of starting one from scratch may be worth it.

For a business idea: There is no better business right now then nurse staffing and it will only get better. The best business to be in for that is contract nurse traveling. This takes very little start up money but can be very profitable and stable in any economy.

 

[gardenweasel]

i started a company as a side-venture about 15 years ago..... tried to market a new,intriguing option to "extra virgin olive oil".......


but,for some reason "whore" never really took off as a class of olive oil......:shrug:

 

[vinnie]

Seriously, Swoopo may be the most genius way of making money on the web that I have seen.

It reminds me of the quarter drop game at the carnival.

If everybody was like me that place wouldn't get a second look :shrug: SUCKERS :sadwave:

 

[The Sponge]

I started my own lawn service many years back..there is good and bad..

the good is fresh air..good money..excerise.

the bad...200 customers...7 days in a week and most lawns should be cut wed. thru sat.People willing to pay for the service don't want a lawn that looks like shit on the weekends..75% WILL DEMAND WED orTHURS orFRI- or Sat.
surely a person who doesn't mind busting their ass can pull it off..keep in mind there is overhead..good machines are expensive..PM on machines is time consuming and ain't cheap fellas ..trust me ..help disappers in july and august when temps are 95-110 with heat index..

math end of the deal...210 cuts a week divided by 7

30 cuts a day...best case 3 people ..30 minutes a yard..and that is cut- blow and go..which actually is weak at best from a service viewpoint.That doesn't leave time for Round-up app. and picking the stray weed out of the flowerbed

15 hour day..NOT COUNTING TRAVEL TIME.

10 bucks an hour for decent help...

competitive business..we have crews on the street doing 4,000 square for as little as 35.00 a visit..

smaller yards for as little as 15.00


so add another crew?..yea it works too...as long as you can be sure the ramrod on the crew will make sure the works gets done..even when his helpers layout drunk..

been all through this over the years..


oh and the most fun...

3 day RAINOUTS...

and ...hope like hell they dry early that morning..

ZERO'S are sweet...but they rut a yard like a tank when ya cut damp or wet..

try 210 lawns in 4 days...

now we are having big fun..

forgot to mention bagging...

those pristine lawns...

nothing like 60 bags bags of grass in the back of the F-250...:mj07:


again..there is nice $$$..but be prepared to work ..and work your ass off..

forgot something else..

Fall....nice.. we are having even bigger fun..

210 yards...average 10 bags of leaves a visit..

OCT..NOV..will get a weak man..

:director: have fun..

Hilarious ur post. I was waiting for someone who did this to post something like this. Guys act like this work is easy. I bet u came home almost dead tired each day. This isnt the easiest of jobs. brutal work.

 

[The Sponge]

DJV,

In college I hung 300 boards in a day, came back the next to do finishing mud and then the next for clean up.

http://www.bestloghomes.com/scripts/picture.cgi?dir=rawls

I would like to start a company that would like to see u do 300 boards in one day and we can bet on it to see if it is bullshit. There is no freaking way u could do 150 boards let alone 300. 70 from a college kid would be a stretch and this is with a partner.

 

[The Sponge]

Been working on my Vinny plan. Finding a rich wife. Just have to get her thru a few more years of schooling and i think i will succeed.
Rich Wife < Being single
Rich wife > Being single

:shrug: :00x32

 

[The Sponge]

Here is a way to make money and it isnt that hard to get an idea. Do ur daily task and when something screws up find a way to make it easier. For instance when i do my yard in the winter and have to dump my leaves from the mower into those brown recycle bags that collapse, I built a little rig that keeps them open and i don't sit there cursing all day when they close up and the chipped up leaves fall all over the ground.
Ideas like that. You would be surprised at what u think of during the day if u keep ur mind on making a screwup easier.

 

[Woodson]

I would like to start a company that would like to see u do 300 boards in one day and we can bet on it to see if it is bullshit. There is no freaking way u could do 150 boards let alone 300. 70 from a college kid would be a stretch and this is with a partner.

... Done responding to people who add no value...

 

[dawgball]

If everybody was like me that place wouldn't get a second look :shrug: SUCKERS :sadwave:

No doubt. You don't see a lot of non-suckers playing the quarter drop game at the carnival, either, but I bet it's a freaking gold mine!

 

[The Sponge]

Excuse me Mr. prick, WE hung 300 in a day. Don;t call me a liar.

Doesn't even sound like u were a carpenter just a kid trying to pick up extra bucks on the side. 300 boards? U should have ur own show. You and superman couldn't put up 300 sheets. Its neat talking on the internet :mj07:

 

[The Sponge]

No doubt. You don't see a lot of non-suckers playing the quarter drop game at the carnival, either, but I bet it's a freaking gold mine!

dawg what is the quarterdrop?

 

[Woodson]

Doesn't even sound like u were a carpenter just a kid trying to pick up extra bucks on the side. 300 boards? U should have ur own show. You and superman couldn't put up 300 sheets. Its neat talking on the internet :mj07:

Done responding to people who add no value...

 

[Bob Stoops]

How about tv screens on gas pumps that advertised products in the store or other goods/services.

 

[The Sponge]

My point is I don't appreciate being called a liar.

Now let me ask you. Do you think I'm lying to you? Is there a chance that it was 292? Yes. But again, you appear to be calling me a liar on what I stated as to what I remember some 11 years ago.

Are you calling me a liar?

If u think u did over 200 then yes im calling u a full blown bull shitter. Sorry, but i think u are confused here.

 

[hedgehog]

How about a dvr that does not record commercials:shrug: