Business Barometer August 2009

These responses came from a July 2, 2009, survey and originally appeared in the August/September issue of Water Garden News.

Small, Disappearing Projects Up
Pond builder in Rossville, Ga.
Business actually is better than a year ago. People are not taking vacations are willing to spend a bit of money to have a mini-vacation in their back yard. If homeowners do have money, they are willing to spend it in their back yards and homes. We’re doing more disappearing walls and fountains, and smaller patio features.

Struggles with Saturated Market
Pond builder and landscaper in Sturgeon Bay, Wis.
People are holding back this year because of the economy. We even see this in our landscaping work.

In the last few years I’ve noticed more beginners working in landscaping and lawn care businesses. People loose their jobs and decide to do landscaping and lawnwork without the knowledge or experience. This hurts those of us who have the license and experience.

Sales Remain Steady
Full-service pond builder and designer in Orlando, Fla.
Business is going well; I’m not complaining. Installations have gone down in the last year and a half, but I have huge maintenance contracts with Disney and some major resorts. Those keep me busy.

New installs come along about once a month or every other month. The big jobs are like a bonus check for me. I’m not six or eight weeks out on projects like last year; I’m about two weeks out right now.

Business Benefits as People Spend
Owner of a full-service retail, aquatic plant and installation business in Columbus, Texas
Business is doing surprisingly well this year.  Sales are equal to other years for retail and installs. It seems that people are not traveling as much and are putting that money toward their yards.

We are doing basic pond features, some disappearing fountains and many streams, especially the disappearing ones. We also do some stone/patio installations, often as an add-on after building a water feature.

Most of our retail sales are from pumps and plants. Because we propagate our own plants, we sell a lot of them.

Much of our business comes through referrals from satisfied customers. If you have a good product and are honest with the customers, it seems to pay off in the end. We also advertise on local radio, newspapers and billboards, but word of mouth is the best advertisement.

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Business Barometer August 2009

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