Lawn Masters owner, Jim Dubberly, was on the cover of Walker Talk, Volume 6. He was in business in Sebring, Florida, for eight years and maintained 250 properties with five Walker Mowers. Now, 61 years old, this lawn maintenance veteran is celebrating 30 years in business, and the same formula that worked for him 20-plus years ago is still his ticket to success.
Although growing Lawn Masters isn’t part of a strategic plan, if it were, labor or lack thereof, would be a difficult obstacle to overcome for this father and son team, Jim (left) and Chris Dubberly (right).
One of his first accounts was a large residential development, and developments are where the bulk of Dubberly’s business is today. He can reach them within a 5-minute drive, towing a 30-foot enclosed trailer. The trailer doubled as a storage facility, transport vehicle, repair shop and break room when Walker Talk first visited him and it plays the same role today.
“Homeowners in developments are not only within proximity to one another, but they also get their lawns mowed at the same height and yards are maintained similarly,” Dubberly noted. “I still use my Walker Mowers, and will always have two or three, even though I don’t have a dealer close anymore. To make sure I have parts on hand, my shop almost looks like a mower shop.”
Probably the biggest challenge for this veteran is something that is echoed throughout the industry—labor. “I don’t know what I would do without my best employee ever, my son, Chris,” said Dubberly. “Since his first ride on a Walker Mower with me as a toddler, he has become an expert in mowing and has worked with me for more than 12 years. He cares as much about my business as I do and is the only employee with a work ethic like mine.”
Although growing his business isn’t part of a strategic plan, if it were, labor or lack thereof, would be a difficult obstacle to overcome for this father and son team.
Read the original story, Finding a Better Way in Florida
Site Search
