David Wright’s business card speaks volumes. After the catchy name of his company, Wright Way Lawn Care, comes this teaser: “A firstclass cut is measured by the yard.”
The card also spells out service offerings and service intervals, highlighted by four images: a lawn mower, chain saw, rake and handyman’s bag. Now, the latter would be unusual for most any lawn maintenance contractor, but not for this 64-year-old entrepreneur. Wright says he will provide nearly any service for a customer. True to his word, his crews also do roof jobs (approximately 30 a year), install fences and other hardscape elements, hang gutters, repair siding, fix sprinkler systems … and the list goes on. What his company lacks in expertise it will subcontract out.
“I guess one of my weaknesses is that I can’t say no,” says Wright, who worked more than 20 years in heavy construction before starting his lawn care company in Casper, Wyoming. “No matter what I’m asked to do, I tell customers, ‘I’ll fit you in’.”
From Pipe Fitting To Mowing
Wright’s construction career took him all over the country. He spent most of his time supervising welding and pipe fitting crews that were working on power plants and factories. He was introduced to Casper while working on a soda ash plant. Later, when asked once again to relocate, Wright chose to return to Casper and launch a new career.
“I moved to Casper in 1991,” Wright recalls. “The first item on my agenda was getting a four-year degree, which I did by attending Casper College for two years and then spending another two at Colorado State University in Fort Collins.”
For income, Wright started to provide a part-time handyman service. He then added lawn care after a mowing contractor who suffered a stroke asked him to maintain a few of his yards. “I told you I couldn’t say no,” Wright adds. “I didn’t even have a mower, yet I made a deal with one of my customers, offering to mow his lawn for free if he would lend me his mower.”
That was the inauspicious beginning for the Wright Way Lawn Care company. It wasn’t the equipment (or lack thereof) that helped pave the way early on for Wright’s second career. Instead, it was his passion for lawn care and providing a quality service.
“I believe that to be a success in this business you have to out-service your competition—and always stand behind your work,” Wright emphasizes. “I’m also detail-oriented by nature, and commit to leaving every yard in better shape than I found it in originally.”
The Walker Way, Too
Wright’s first big project was the Rustic Ridge housing development. With 68 homes and lots of landscaping, he knew there had to be a better way to mow the property than trudging behind his Toro mid-size walk mower all day long.
Wright recalled seeing a Walker Mower while going to school in Fort Collins. He purchased his first one in 2002, a 26-hp model with a 48-inch GHS deck. With the nearest Walker dealer more than 100 miles away, he purchased a backup unit the next year. Today, Wright operates four Walker Mowers, three with 48-inch GHS decks, and his most recent purchase, a 31-hp unit with a 52-inch deck.
“I believe I’m the only contractor in Casper with a Walker Mower, and the first to use a zero-turn rider,” Wright says proudly. “The Walker Mowers are truly unique up here. They turn heads, let me tell you.”
The Walker Mowers also give Wright a competitive advantage. He relates the story when, during an HOA board meeting, one member stood up and said, “Finally, we have a professional doing our lawns. He has a Walker Mower.”
Wright Way Lawn Care now has about 100 customers, including five HOAs. Wright’s mowing crew takes upwards of six full days to complete its mowing rounds. During winter months, the same crew does snow removal with a truck plow and John Deere skid-steer loader. When the weather is decent, crew members will also install and repair fences.
“We have high winds here that wreak havoc with fences and roofs,” Wright notes. “If you’re willing to work, there’s plenty of work up here. I pride myself at my age to be able to outwork most 16-year-olds. It’s not because I’m in better shape than they are. It’s because I have a passion for what I do.”
This mowing/handyman contractor is not slowing down, either. He and his wife Judy, who is retired from the Air Force, recently purchased a threeacre property on the outskirts of town. The acreage houses a huge, recently constructed warehouse, ideal for setting up shop, with plenty of room for storing equipment and staging crews. It will be convenient for Judy, as well. As office manager, she does all the invoicing and scheduling, and the shop will only be a stone’s throw away from their home, also located on the property.
Wright looks around the interior of his warehouse, pointing out locations for shelving—all the time in wonderment about all the room he now has for mowing equipment, trucks and trailers, and his handyman tools. “As a handyman, I should be able to do anything,” he muses. “With this space, I can store absolutely everything I will ever need to get the job done.” He might add, the Wright Way, too.
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