Masonry Magazine December 2017 Page. 84
more, make more and offer more by partnering their talents, products and
.
services.
One of the most natural (pun in�tended) expansions for masons whose work includes a significant amount of outdoor hardscaping projects is to offer landscaping services alongside exterior improvement jobs. Pairing hardscaping with landscaping offers customers a one-stop kind of shop with the convenience of dealing with one contractor for all their outside property enhancements. But, while the initial idea of adding landscaping services may be appealing, there are many factors to consider if it's a good match for the long-term.
LANDSCAPING OVERVIEW
"Statistics from the July 2016 IBIS�World market report show that the landscape services industry has annual revenues of $78 billion, annual growth of 3.9%, employs 969,257 people and represents 474,237 businesses." [www.landscapeprofessionals.org] According to Lawn & Landscape 2017 State of the Industry Report, for 2016, 86% of respondents turned a profit with these being the best performing service segments:
Landscape maintenance like mowing and trimming ................................ 30%
Design/build services ................... 25%
Lawn services such as chemical ap�plication ........................................ 15%
Snow and ice management............ 9%
Trees and ornament installation
and care.......................................... 5%
Landscape lighting ......................... 4%
Waters features ............................... 3%
Other .............................................. 8%
Source: lawnandlandscape.com
The future of landscape services looks bright as the country continues to slide toward a service economy and the Baby Boomers continue aging. This huge demographic is reluctantly tiptoeing into their 70s, and it still remains the wealthiest generation in
U.S. history. Their deliberate indepen�dence means more are staying in their own homes and willing and able to pay for services that include exterior property maintenance, improvement and management. The millennials are making good money and value services so they can embrace social events, recreation, travel and personal career advancement. They are further characterized by being team players, questioning the status quo [like Baby Boomers?!] and being financially savvy. Many are first-time home buy�ers.
The landscape design and mainte�nance industry is closely linked to the housing market, and as house construction continues to rise, landscaping services will follow. Residential services are abundant, but think outside the subdivision as well to places which all must make an excellent curb appeal first impression, which can make or break a new client or customer and build confidence in the brand.
hospitals, medical centers, doctors, veterinarians county schools and college cam�puses
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