How to Start Up as a Landscape Gardener?

Entrepreneurialism is a virtue in today’s England, with the health of the nation built off the backs of new enterprises. More than half of the UK’s business population comprises sole traders, with small businesses accounting for well over 90% of the total business population.

These businesses are not just financial department services or tech-led enterprises; they are businesses in every trade, illustrating well the sheer possibility a new business can offer. As someone who works with their hands or outdoors, you might have an interest in starting a landscaping business; what steps should you take to make this a reality?

How to Start Up as a Landscape Gardener?

Skills First

Before putting any money behind your new landscaping endeavours, you should seriously consider your credentials for the work. Landscaping is not a hugely gatekept industry, but there are some base skills and abilities you should have in order to provide a core quality of service – let alone compete against more established businesses in your area.

For one, you should have the strength and stamina to give your all across a busy workday. Much landscaping is hands-on and heavy lifting, from the felling of trees to the removal of leaves and debris and to the shifting of soil mass. Landscape gardeners with a USP tend to outperform those without, meaning the ability to specialise could do you well. With this in mind, you might take a course in a specific skill, whether horticulture, tree surgery or even landscape architecture. These skills would give your career much more longevity.

Business Structure

Through thinking about your skills, you’ll build a clearer idea of exactly what kind of landscaping work you would like to focus on – which, in turn, gives your business direction for the future. With this in mind, you can put together a comprehensive business plan that takes into account your aspirations and abilities.

If you are hoping to take on commercial clients, you will likely need staff; this will require you to register as a limited company, in order that your staff can be enrolled in PAYE. If you are content with smaller-scale work, you may be better off registering as a self-employed sole trader.

Suppliers

Landscapers of any stripe will need a strong supplier network in order to ensure the ready availability of materials for jobs. You need to be able to source fence panels with ease, rather than spend half of your working day chasing up missing materials for an urgent re-boundary job.

With this in mind, investing some advance time in building a positive relationship with local suppliers is a good idea. This should be done for wholesale materials and also tools so as to futureproof your business against emergencies.

Marketing and Custom

Finally, we come to marketing. Launching your landscaping business does not necessarily require much fanfare; instead, you might focus on building up a core customer base slowly but surely. This should be done in two ways. First, you should create a digital presence for your business, including a Google My Business profile. Second, you should invest in physical flyers for your local area to find early business.