I spent some time talking with Nick Staples—Co-Owner of Staple Landscapes and PJC customer since fall 2023—to feature as our customer spotlight. We discussed Nick’s professional journey, business development, and journey with organic land care. Buckle up for a great conversation summarized below.
How did you get started in the landscape industry?
It’s kind of that classic story. When I was younger, I was knocking on people’s doors, asking them if they wanted me to shovel in the winter or mow their lawns in the summer. After graduating high school, I started my business as a sole proprietor doing basic maintenance: mowing, cleanups, etc. I’ve since added a business partner, and over the past 9 years, we have grown to 30 employees and evolved to where we are now.
What services do you offer?
Our business is still all maintenance, and about 5 years ago we added lawn care. Over time, you need to get more and more focused in order to keep growing and provide a good service. So, we focus on landscape maintenance, lawn care treatments, and plowing. Right now, 1/3 of our company is mowing. Then, the rest is mulch, cleanups, lawn care programs, and shrub trimming. Last year, lawn care [fertilization and weed control] was just under 10% of our business, which we’re hoping to grow to 15-20% this year. That’s kind of how we landed with you guys [PJC Organic].
When we first started doing lawn care, we just did a traditional 5 step lawn care program. Now, we have two options:
- Our Traditional Program includes synthetic & organic fertilizer, lime, crabgrass prevention, and grub control.
- Our Organic Program includes soil testing, PJC ProHealthy Turf 6-0-6, BOOST+S3 and lime. Fiesta for broad leaf weeds and cedar cure for grub control.
Since we started working with you guys, we now have the ability to upsell both of those programs to 8 applications using the soil tests PJC provides. We are creating a system for clients to understand why they should be doing those additional applications. PJC’s soil testing is honestly part of the reason I was so sold on working with you.
Why offer organic lawn care?
There are a lot of reasons. From the personal side, I don’t like to have our employees do something I wouldn’t like to do and am always asking ‘What can I do to lessen chemical exposure?’…Obviously we’re safe; we wear PPE, we do all the things you are supposed to do, and that is effective when you do it right—Although, if you can use less chemicals, that is even better because you are mitigating risk.
From the customer side, most people ask, “Is this safe? How long do I have to stay off the lawn? What stuff do you use?” I am committed to full transparency with my customers. When I first got into the industry, I was shocked by the lack of transparency in how information is presented…and I think if more people knew what actually was going on, they wouldn’t want to do it. There’s an underlying want from people; they don’t want to do things that are bad for the environment or bad for their health. So, when companies disguise it and wrap it up in a certain way with only what you are legally obligated to say, then most people are so busy they don’t even question it. So, that was my observation from the client-facing side.
It’s also great from an environmental perspective.It allows us to use more organic products. We’ve seen first hand the healthier a lawn is, the less weed control/chemicals you need to use. Disease used to be an issue, and now it isn’t. So, even in our Traditional Program, we’re not going to use as many chemicals, and that’s important to us. One of the greatest things working with you guys is you are a resource for information and education (blogs, newsletters, accessible, etc.).
How has your approach to organic turf care changed?
Earlier, what was presented to me as an ‘organic option’, is not what we do now. There was no focus on soil health. The actual products were misconstrued, that if there were no pesticides it was ‘organic’, which is not the true distinction of what organic lawn care is. That understanding has been an evolution. This past year, we have been focusing on soil testing as a tool to inform how we treat the lawn. With the soil testing tool, we can understand how each product affects the turf, and how likely crabgrass or different weeds and diseases are to come in…it’s just a matter of learning and figuring out how to incorporate it into our program. In 2025, we are going to soil test all our customers for free, which we’re excited about.
What is one of your main challenges in your day-to-day?
One of the hardest things is expectation setting for your customers and communication. Trying to deliver a service and then, throughout the year, keep a customer in the loop with what is going on and communicate seasonal and other changes – that’s one of the hardest things of this business in general. If you don’t do a good job of that, you end up with a lot of issues and complaints that were avoidable.
Something you would want someone reading this to know?
If you own a landscape company and you want a more profitable service to add — rather than doing big projects and things like that — become that organic niche. Especially with the way you guys [PJC Organic] recommend doing it, it’s a no-brainer. It’s such a good lead magnet…It’s recurring revenue, you don’t need a license, it’s profitable, and nobody else is doing it.
This month’s customer spotlight, Staple Landscapes operates out of Plainville, Massachusetts. For more information on their lawn mowing, seasonal cleanups, lawn care, mulching, aeration, shrub trimming, and snow plowing, visit their website, or follow on Instagram! PJC Organic and Staple Landscapes connected through Instagram.
Additionally, read PJC’s past customer spotlight with Minuteman Landscaping.
