Landscape Management, June 2010

JUNE 2010 LANDSCAPEMANAGEMENT NET S19 R D Landscape Irrigation Dooley Pyne Landscaping Co Recession proof Not every landscape business can say it increased sales each of the past three years Jacksonville FL based R D Landscape Irrigation can R D increased sales 9 in 2007 30 in 2008 and another 5 in 2009 Since 2006 R D has boosted its annual sales almost 50 from 256 million to 383 million As weve started to grow Ive stopped wearing so many hats says Tom Rowand Jr R Ds president 2008 was the fi rst year we had a dedicated full time sales rep and non coincidentally we added 850000 in sales that year R D also reduced its contract fees with homeowner associations HOAs 15 to 20 to keep their business Many of these HOAs saw their budgets shrink and some of their members cant pay their mortgages never mind their association fees Rowand says So we worked with them and our suppliers in turn worked with us on pricing We would have surpassed 4 million in sales in 2008 if it werent for the fee cuts with HOAs but well get there soon enough and with our client base fully intact 68 growth in 2009 Most landscape company owners would be happy with a 68 revenue gain in 2009 Not William Pyne owner of Exton PA based Dooley Pyne Landscaping Co which boosted its annual revenue by 68 in 2009 from 25 million to 42 million The company increased its snow removal revenue tenfold to 725000 thanks to a few storms and the restructuring of one third of its snow removal contracts to a fi xed season fee based on each clients number and size of properties and the areas average snowfall the past 25 years in exchange for three year service agreements In addition to a 25 increase of hardscaping work Dooley Pyne also bolstered its landscaping build installation and maintenance work 50 to 295 million Were going gangbusters this year too Pyne says Were on track to do more than 8 million in sales this year with a doubling of build installation maintenance and snow removal work a 20 increase in hardscaping and the launch of our in house lawn fertilization business Pyne attributed 70 of the companys success to a partnership with Lipinski Outdoor Services a Marlton NJ based company among the elite LM150 No 24 In an industry where organizations can be so competitive the good people at Lipinski have gone out of their way to guide us and push us on so many levels Pyne says The partnership began in 2004 with Dooley Pyne handling a few local snow removal jobs for Lipinski Since its blossomed to include landscape build installation maintenance and hardscaping Theyre kind of our big brother Pyne says Were fortunate to learn from and assist Lipinski and were both growing signifi cantly because of our give and take Best quarter ever In business 72 quarters 18 years Pomona CA based CentreScapes had its best quarter ever from October to December 2009 Last years fourth quarter push more than made up for a slow fi rst nine months says Mark Marcus CentreScapes CEO We ended the year with a 14 increase in sales