"I need to make a profit, but I don't need to get any bigger." Sound familiar? It should. That's a tune many small and medium-size contractors play over and over again as they work to keep the lid on both growth and the jar that holds the profit.

It is part of our company culture to celebrate. We celebrate reaching a milestone, company goal or achievement. In the earlier years the company supplied a special "snack" during Friday afternoon break for everyone when another 100 mowers had been produced- it used to take several weeks. Today, we celebrate hitting our production goals every other week on Friday afternoon.

Not every city in the country can lay claim to being plumb in the geographic center of the country. Belle Fourche, South Dakota, can. Not every city can look at its public grounds and know they're being maintained with the same vigor and expertise as a proud homeowner would give his or her lawn. Again, Belle Fourche can.

Cemeteries are not often thought of as a place to test mowing equipment, unless you happen to be a member of the grounds crew that is responsible for its maintenance.

That’s a question Burdette Mills asked himself 15 years ago when he started his landscaping company, Top Notch Services in Granville, Illinois. He wanted a niche. He wanted to provide the best service possible to select customers.

Ask virtually any lawn maintenance contractor in the country what his or her major challenge is and the answer will be... labor? With nearly every state having the lowest unemployment rate in decades, and the call for landscaping and maintenance on the rise, contractors large and small are looking for innovative ways to solve their labor dilemma.