When Juan Berriz’s father Gabriel immigrated to Puerto Rico from Cuba in the early 1960s, the landscaping profession was in its infancy. In fact, Juan says many of the developers on the island attributed his dad’s influence to the growth of the profession, more specifically in helping to meld together the separate disciplines of landscape design and installation. Juan now looks to carry on the tradition by strengthening the natural ties between landscape installation and maintenance.
Juan took over the landscaping portion of his father’s landscape/ design business five years ago. Today, his company, Green Care, employs upwards of 60 people and offers full-service landscape management to commercial and high-end residential properties in and around San Juan. Among its customers are three resort hotels, a couple of large resort communities and several high-end residences.
“Our resort community and hotel customers are especially sensitive to the value of a well-maintained landscape,” says Juan, “and they like the idea of having to write only one check to one supplier. Our ideal client is one who appreciates quality and understands how a beautiful landscape can grow the value of a property.
“Not many of our competitors can bring a full-service menu to clients and guarantee their work,” he continues. “We can. And keeping properties looking nice is our ticket to continued growth and success.” In addition to doing some small design work (Green Care still works with Juan’s father on larger design projects) and providing installation and maintenance services, the company offers irrigation installation and maintenance, landscape lighting, along with interior landscape maintenance.
Juan, who graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in design, admits that providing a high level of service in San Juan can be a challenge. First, there is the environment to consider. Yes, Puerto Rico is favored by a tropical climate where temperatures will vary only a few degrees yearround, and there is plenty of rain and sunshine to go around. Grass, palm trees, flowers, you name it, virtually anything and everything that is green grows — and grows fast. These ideal growing conditions, though, are compromised by excessive winds, the results of which are especially noticeable on properties near the shore, and all landscapes need to be vigilantly maintained to keep growth and the insect population under control.
Then there is competition. “We have five to 10 landscape contractors in the area who are well-established and respected,” says Juan. “Like other communities, we also have our share of emerging contractors who, because of their lack of experience, try to compete on price. Their influence forces all of us to find ways to drive costs out of our operation without sacrificing quality and to spend a little more time educating customers on the value of quality landscaping.”
Looking For Efficiencies
A quarter of Puerto Rico’s four million people live in and around San Juan. Traffic is heavy and congestion is the norm, especially during rains and, of course, rush hour. To avoid wasting time and money in traffic snarls, Green Care targets large properties where crew members can report directly to the job site, instead of driving to the office, to the site, to the office, and then back home. At two hotel properties, for example, three company employees work on-site five days a week, 52 weeks a year.
Juan looks for efficiencies in other areas, too, including his equipment. “We used to operate all Scag riders and mid-size walk-behind mowers until my supervisor Noel Catalan convinced me to try out a Walker Mower five years ago,” Juan recalls. “Noel had used them when he worked for a contractor in New Jersey. He told me they would be the perfect machines for our properties. I guess you could say we purchased our first Walker to keep him quiet; we purchased our second one because he was right.”
As Juan explains, there are few if any straight lines on his properties, which are both relatively small and heavily landscaped. “This is a small island only 30 miles wide and 100 miles long. Even our largest properties are small compared to those in the states. Our two Walkers equipped with 20-hp Kohler engines save time maneuvering and trimming around trees and shrubs. Their 48-inch GHS decks easily handle tough Zoysia grass, which makes up nearly 90% of the turf around here.” Juan adds that the machines’ grasshandling capability ideally matches conditions, noting that the widebladed Zoysia grass builds up thatch in a hurry when clippings are left on the ground.
With Green Care for more than eight years, Catalan points to a couple of other attractive Walker Mower features. “Unlike mowers that are susceptible to scalping, the Walker Mower deck follows the contour of the landscape, he explains. “We get so much rain in San Juan that lawns actually shift. The Walker Mower deck will adjust to these areas without scalping.”
The machines are durable, too, he emphasizes. “Our first Walker mowed literally five days a week, eight hours a day for two years straight. Just like Juan, I also appreciate the machine’s ability to handle clippings.”
For Juan, the cost of the Walkers and his other premium equipment is justified by their durability and performance. In addition to Walker Mowers, nine Green Care maintenance crews can be equipped with Scag walk-behind and Honda trim mowers, depending on the property, and they carry Echo and Stihl handheld products.
As important as his equipment is to delivering a quality product, Juan knows that equipment, like his company’s reputation, is only as good as the people who do the work. Although he does not lay claim to innovative ways to motivate employees, he has developed a loyal cadre of workers, many of whom have been with his company 10 to 15 years.
“Motivating employees yearround can be a challenge,” says Juan. “We don’t do anything extravagant or out-of-the-ordinary in that area. Admittedly, we could be better at it. Still, I think that if you pay your employees a competitive wage, show them that you care about them, and are accessible and keep the lines of communication open, they will respond positively.”
When your goal is to continue to grow a business that provides a broad range of quality services, there is no alternative to having a loyal workforce, the right equipment and the right attitude. As Juan suggests, companies like his can compete on price alone. But then providing onestop, quality service would be more rhetoric than reality. A better way is to target customers who appreciate quality work and deliver on their expectations.
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