As a consumer, you have many choices when hiring a landscaper for your home improvement project. Landscape companies come in many shapes and sizes. From small companies, where the owner is on site every day and plays an integral part in the process, to a large company, where the company is spread thin on so many projects that the owner is not present in the day-to-day tasks and decisions. Maybe you never even meet the owner at all.
I like to think of Designing Eden as a small fish swimming in an ocean of sharks. Over the last 20 years, we’ve remained a small company by choice. We are constantly competing with the “big boys” for landscape projects, and surprisingly, we are many times awarded the contract. So why would a consumer choose us over them?
At Designing Eden, we always put quality in front of quantity. We do one thing, and we do it well. We design, install and maintain stunning landscapes. We don’t cut lawns, install masonry projects or perform tree work. After we design the project and install the landscape, we bring in the specialists for the rest. If a client project involves masonry work, we sub this specific part out to the professionals, the ones who dirty their hands with cement and stone all day, every day. Why? Because they are the experts in their field, and they will deliver unbeatable quality.
When large companies continue to build upon their services, the owner and the heart of the business gets farther and farther away from the mission of the company and the success of each individual project. They become the jack-of-all-trades and the master of none, and in the process, they lose the face behind the name.
In my own personal life, I only deal with small, family-owned businesses because, as learned through much experience, I know the job will be completed to the best it can be. Having the owner involved from start to finish is a guarantee of that because their name and reputation are on the line. We receive much of our work through referrals. The feeling of a job well done is strongest when our clients are so happy with our work that they pass our name along to family and friends. This is a sign of a job well done.
I find that clients love to talk and work directly with me, the owner, rather than a project manager or crew leader who maybe can’t supply an answer or who does not have the authority to make a change without approval from their supervisor. Any organization that makes you jump through hoops, speak to too many people, and leave a handful of messages before being able to talk directly with the owner is an organization that I wouldn’t hire.
At Designing Eden, we are a hands-on company. I make sure to always be available to my clients. I have been running this business full-time since 1989, and I know the importance of small businesses to a community. This is why I’ve made a conscious decision to remain small.
Though we are small, we can expertly handle any size project. I am on site multiple times per day to answer questions from crews and clients, and to handle quality control, because no one cares about the details as much as the owner. Whether it is moving a shrub three inches or spinning a tree so a better “face” presents itself, I want your project to be done right. Finished projects become my proud offspring, and I’ll do anything to make sure that project is a success and my clients are happy.
At the end of the day, it is my name on the project, so I must strive for perfection.
