Business Proposal Joe Leveke
Greener Alternatives
The service that I am providing is eco-friendly landscape service and construc- tion. More and more people today want to preserve our natural resources, organic fruits, vegetables and dairy products are one example of eco-friendly products that have been growing in popularity in the past few years. By trying to keep harsh chemicals out of lawns, we set out to accomplish the same goal. Not only will natural fertilizers and pest controls be used, but equipment used in maintenance will also be “green”. Instead of diesel or gasoline mowers, much cleaner burning propane will be used to fuel mow- ers. Instead of gasoline string trimmers and leaf blowers, battery operated ones will be used instead. An eco-friendly lawn starts with good construction, permeable pavers, drainage tile, and recycled materials are some examples of eco-friendly landscape con- struction practices.
The primary market for our service is people that are looking to reduce their home’s impact on the environment with lawn maintenance. If people want to pay a little more to be eco-friendly with fertilizer applications and mowing they will chose us, I think it might be difficult to convince the average person to go “green” with their lawn. The secondary market for our service is homeowners looking to do either some new land- scape construction or improve their existing landscape. This will appeal to a wider vari- ety of homeowners because generally when constructing a landscape, an eco-friendly landscape is lower maintenance, and in the long run costs less money to keep up. The benefits of building a low maintenance landscape sells itself while paying more for eco- friendly maintenance service is not monetarily beneficial for the homeowner. Both the construction and maintenance would be marked more towards single family dwellings, most businesses that are either looking to have the cheapest service or the best looking service, would most likely not be interested in an eco-friendly landscape.
The extent of the market for eco-friendly landscape related services and materi- als could be determined by looking at eco-friendly landscape companies in other cities, and how much the organic food market has increased in the Des Moines area. If both trends are increasing, it would appear that there is a significant market for eco-friendly landscape services in the Des Moines area. If people are willing to pay more for organic foods, they will be willing to pay more for organic nursery stock and eco-friendly land- scape services.
The landscape market in Des Moines is different the market found in other larger cities. In larger cities such as Chicago, most landscape companies are commercial maintenance based. Most of the housing is apartment and condo style, unlike Des Moines which is single family dwelling based. The type of landscape businesses typical- ly found in Chicago maintains smaller plots of land, and their focus is on standard turf- grass maintenance and annual flower bed enhancements. While in Des Moines there are larger plots of land that are individually owned, lending landscape business that construct retaining walls, patios, water features and other construction based landscape enhancements. In Des Moines there are also landscape companies that specialize in commercial and residential turfgrass maintenance. This coupled with the increase of or- ganic sales in super markets, gives Des Moines good market potential for eco land- scape service in the area.
As stated previously, with constructing an eco-friendly landscape they save mon- ey in the long run by having lower maintenance costs. While from the lawn mowing and fertilization services, customers would gain the piece of mind that they are trying what- ever they can to preserve our planet.
The service will be delivered just like any other landscape company does it. Small crews will travel to their homes or businesses and will mow, fertilize and weed their landscapes; larger construction crews will travel to their homes of businesses and construct their landscapes.
My competitors are every other landscape service out there. Some companies may have a cheaper service, or because they use harsh chemicals and non recycled products their services may look better then ours. Our two selling points to compete with them are being environmentally friendly and less maintenance time. Most people don’t want to go outside to pull or spray weeds or edge beds; our construction services cut down on the time clients will spend doing these things, or cut down on the time and therefore money a service would take to maintain the landscape. As of now in Des Moines there is not a mowing company that provides eco-friendly service (or at least I’ve never heard of them), there is a company that does natural fertilizer applications, but they are rather small. Our company is the only one stop shop to decrease a land- scape’s impact on the planet.
Obviously with the state of the economy in our country starting any small busi- ness might not be the ideal time. However with economic stimulus package debates in congress, the economy is expected to make a bounce back. Homeowners will be look- ing to invest in their homes to increase value, landscaping can fill that need. By starting a business now, we will be ready to get into market right away, rather than reacting to the change in the economy.
My name is Joe Leveke, I am a senior in Horticulture at Iowa State and have many years of experience in the area of landscaping and the environment. In high school I took an internship with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources at Field Office Five. We monitored many different environmental concerns in central Iowa such as monitoring wells, waste confinements, and other water quality related research. I started my career in landscaping working a local nursery, a landscape construction company and mowing services. I believe that all of these experiences add to my ability to successfully create an eco-friendly landscape business.
I am looking for people to assist me in creating and carrying out my eco-friendly landscape business. A turfgrass specialist would be beneficial to properly understand all of the requirements for a healthy lawn. A person who has experience in plant propaga- tion would aide in starting the organic nursery. If possible, a student in the ecology de- partment would be beneficial to understand our environmental impacts. Any student trained in other aspects of plant related agriculture will also be considered.