Forum Discussion
Looking to scale, need advice
Hello, I am just seeking advice, I am a one man crew (with 1-2 helpers when available) for Lawn care, Parging & Snow removal (all insured).
I am getting a large quantity of calls, bookings & deposits. But how can a sole proprietor scale up from me, to a crew of 5 and pay $25 an hour and be able to keep them working for months, or years to come? I cant see the "vision" of how to achieve that, sure I can get more clients. But its definitely tough with the massive undercuts of prices.
Just some friendly advice will do, thanks all!
Matt
1 Reply
Hello Matt,
Hope all is well, I recently started working on my family's cleaning business and in many ways sounds similar to your industry/business. If new clients are not an issue, I would say focus on the relationships that you build with your clients and the quality of your work. We have raised our rates over the years and some clients might cancel services, however most of them continue services. These are clients that have been with us for up to 20 years and see my parents are friends. Many will express their thoughts on rates going up and not being happy however they do express that the quality of our work, reliability and long-time friendship is worth it.
We don't advertise, aside from our company cars, yet we get new clients almost daily. The business has grown to almost 70 employees at its peak and over 300 clients. This has allowed the business to invest in new software, new management and focus on its company goals.
