When Simon Padgett moved to Marco Island, Florida, from England to start Multiskill Lawn and Garden Services, he had a few surprises in store. Back home, landscapes are not bombarded by hurricane salt spray, and spiral white flies couldn’t infest palm trees that don’t grow there. He didn’t expect to see so much competition in the marketplace. And doing business here? Well, in his words, “You have an incredible bureaucracy that creates all sorts of obstacles.”
Yet, six years after purchasing a small company for $250,000, this entrepreneur has established a great reputation in nearby Naples where a few of his 160 properties are among some of the most iconic along the Gulf Coast.
“I didn’t know a pine tree from a palm tree when I bought the business,” exclaims Padgett, who moved his family to the U.S. on an E-2 Visa. “Fortunately, I have no ego and served up many questions to contractors who were more than willing to help me out.”
He says he was a bit lucky in other ways, as well. One of his first customers introduced him to an individual who owned a few upscale properties. Padgett won the accounts, and word of mouth gave his young company a nice boost. The new contractor also inherited a Walker Mower from the previous business owner.
“Back in England, gardeners would likely use a reel mower to maintain the kind of lawn you see around here,” he emphasizes. “But not in Naples where properties are too big. I have four Walker Mowers, including a model Super B and a MT that deliver a mowing job as close to a reel as one can get with a rotary mower.”
The Super B, faster than the MT and equipped with a 52-inch rear-discharge/ mulching deck, gives him the ability to efficiently mow wide areas. The MT, with a 42-inch deck, is perfect for more tightly landscaped areas and backyards where gates can be problematic for larger decks.
“We mulch everything,” he adds. “The Walker Mowers are compact and they are not as heavy as most mowers on the market, which is good because we get so much rain here. The deck doesn’t bounce, but floats instead, and the machines are reliable. Like most contractors, I cannot afford downtime.”
Beach Party
Multiskill provides full-service landscape management with only three employees and a few subcontractors who provide irrigation and lawn care services. Not all of the company’s 100-plus properties require maintenance service every week, which allows employees to work four 10-hour days.
Their schedule depends on the weather and client expectations. Says Padgett, “Last year, one of our clients hosted a big birthday bash. She asked us to rake the beach so it would look like a huge sand trap. We did, but it was no small task, especially since the stretch in question was quite long and the beach was open to the public.”
Despite some of the challenges, including a restriction on fertilizer use from June through October, Padgett enjoys working in this country and the opportunities it presents. “In England, I worked for my father’s property renovation firm. It was interesting work, as we renovated buildings that averaged somewhere around 300 years old. After working for him 16 years, I started a small development company and bought and sold homes.”
He eventually tired of the country’s high tax rate, roughly 70 percent of his income, and the weather, which he called “dreary.” Having vacationed several years in Marco Island, he and his wife, Victoria, decided to make a more permanent move to the area. The E-2 Visa gave them the opportunity, allowing nonresidents to obtain temporary residency as long as they are business owners.
Padgett notes that the E-2 Visa, which has to be renewed every two years, comes with strict requirements that put additional pressure on business owners who have to work a little harder and smarter.
Quality, Not Quantity
The company’s original business model called for multiple crews, a strategy that now takes a back seat to a focus on quality. “I believe there’s an opportunity here for detail-minded landscape contractors,” says the owner, looking around the fouracre property his crew is tidying up. “So my plan now is to be more of a gardener and less of a typical landscape contractor.
“I enjoy the detail work, and the jobs are slightly less competitive,” Padgett continues. “In fact, I’ve lost contracts for as little as $10 a month. “It’s a matter of quality or price. If a customer wants quality, then price generally becomes less of an issue. The best customers, of course, are those who appreciate your work and understand the value they receive for their dollar.”
Upscale properties come with their own sets of challenges, he adds quickly. “It’s very difficult in this climate to get every element looking great at the same time. With so much landscaping, any issue can be a big deal. For example, the spiral white fly infestation required every palm tree on site to be injected. You also need veteran employees who are familiar with the landscape. One cannot put casual labor on most high-end properties without having issues.”
Multiskill’s maintenance supervisor, John Gordon, has been with the company three years. “Employees are motivated by money and praise,” Padgett emphasizes. “I believe I’m fair in both areas. It also helps to have the company owner working alongside. Although I’ve always enjoyed the physical aspect of this work, it can become taxing, especially during the hot summer months.”
In some ways, this English gardener has the best of both worlds. The family still enjoys their home in Marco Island, and they can stay there year-round as long as Multiskill remains in the black. Talk about having a profit incentive, one that gives Simon Padgett just one more reason to have a solid business plan and work it effectively
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