Landscape Management, November 2016
Stronger Scotts Landscaping recovered and grew after a fire three years ago Could you November 2016 LANDSCAPEMANAGEMENT NET 45 Photo ScottS lAndScAPing Y ou are sitting at a Sunday dinner with your wife and friends when you get a notification from your security provider The smoke detectors at the headquarters of your landscape business are ringing You think its probably a false alarm so you dont worry This wouldnt be the first time the alarm has gone off especially on a windy day Ill check it out after dinner you think Then you get a call Three smoke and heat detectors have been triggered and alarms are sounding at your business ADT is wondering if youd like them to call the authorities If all three detectors are going off you know its not a false alarm Yes you say Call the fire department You leave the dinner and drive to your office three miles down the road When you arrive smoke is billowing out of the windows Youre smart enough not to go in You make a difficult call to your wife Its real you say You feel helpless as you wait for the fire trucks to arrive and watch the orange glow of flames grow in the night Dont think this could happen to you Until Nov 10 2013 neither did Scott Burk president and CEO of Scotts Landscaping in Centre Hall Pa five miles from State College At that point there was never a thought of giving up but I didnt know what the future held Burk says Will we be half the size Is our company going fail Scotts Landscaping couldve been one of the 40 percent of businesses that shutter in the wake of a fire according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency Instead it grew by 20 percent the year of the blaze This year the company which draws 40 percent of its revenue from construction 30 percent from erosion control 20 percent from maintenance and 10 percent from its nursery and serves a 60 percent commercial 40 percent By Dillon Stewart Disaster Multiple fire companies with 13 tankers and aerial support fought the fire at Scotts Landscaping for more than six hours before it was manageable than ever
You must have JavaScript enabled to view digital editions.
