Enbretien Jacques Levesque has operated his lawn maintenance business for only five years, yet already he knows what it takes to be successful. “Time is money in this business,” tells Levesque, who maintains 125 properties in and around Sainte Terese. “If you can reduce the time you spend on properties, you can either grow your business or grow your bottom line. Right now, I’m doing both.” Levesque says he started seriously growing his business a year ago when he purchased a 20-hp Walker equipped with a 42-inch deck and high-lift system. “I tried out a Walker for two days,” he recalls. “The first day I hated it; I couldn’t get accustomed to the steering. After the second day, I became comfortable with its operation.” Comfortable indeed! Today, he uses his Walker on 75 of his properties, and overall. the compact rider has reduced his mowing time by 25%. On many of his properties, he adds, the Walker has shaved between 15 to 20 minutes off the mowing time. The time savings has allowed him to double his business over last year. And because he has maintained his pricing structure, more money falls to the bottom line. In fact, the Walker paid for itself in less than a year. Levesque employs two people. Approximately, 1/3 of his customers are commercial and 2/3 are residential. What Levesque doesn’t mow with his Walker is completed with a Toro 21-inch trim mower. During an average day, his team will mow 30 properties. During an average week, they will log somewhere between 50 and 60 hours maintaining properties. “I think the biggest challenge for any landscape contractor like myself is finding employees who will stay with you,” he relates. “The second biggest challenge for me and other operators my size is growing the business to the point where you don’t have to work so many hours in it.” Of course, he notes, the two challenges are interrelated. A mower like a Walker will help you grow. But just how much one grows ultimately depends on having the people resources to manage the growth. In the meantime, Levesque takes advantage of the single most important advantage being a small operator affords. Since he is on site on every one of his properties, he can provide the all-important personal touch. That’s one more advantage to operating a Walker — he has more time to spend with his customers. |
Même si la compagnie d’entretien Jauques Lévesque opère depuis seulement cinq ans, son propriétaire sait déjà ce qu’il faut faire pour réussir avec succès. « Le temps, c’est de l’argent dans ce domaine », dit M. Lévesque, qui entretient 125 propriétés dans la région de Ste-Thérèse. Si vous pouvez réduire le temps que vous passiez sur le terrain, vous pourrez soit faire croître votre compagnie, soit encaisser les profits. En ce moment, je fais les deux. M. Lévesque dit qu’il a commencé à croître sa compagnie sérieusement il y a un an lorsqu’il s’est acheté un Walker, (20cv avec une tondeuse de 42 pouces et une dompteuse de hauteur) chez CLOUTIER PRO MINI MOTEUR INC. à Ste-Thérèse. « J’ai fait l’essai d’un Walker pour une période de deux jours. La première journée je n’étais pas confortable avec la machine, elle n’avait pas de volant. Dès la deuxième journée, j’étais un adepte. C’est le cas de le dire ! » Aujourd’hui il utilise son Walker sur 75 de ses propriétés et son Walker lui a permis de réduire son temps de coupe de 25%. « Sur plusieurs terrains », ajoute-t-il, « mon Walker a réduit de 15 à 20 minutes le temps de coupe. » L’économie de temps lui a fait doubler le nombre de ses contacts au cours de la dernière année et par ce qu’il a maintenu sa structure de prix, plus d’argent est réinvesti dans la compagnie. La valeur du Walker a été retrouvée en moins d’un an. M. Lévesque a deux employés. Environ le tiers de ses clients sont des clients commerciaux et les deux tiers des clients résidentiels. Les coins qu’il N’atteint pas avec sont Walker sont laissés à une tondeuse commerciale de 21 pouces de marque Toro. En moyenne, son équipe tond trente terrains par jour et passe de 50 à 60 heures par semaine à entretenir des propriétés. « Je crois que le plus grand défi des entrepreneurs paysagiste comme moi-même est de trouver des employés fidèles », explique-t-il. « Le deuxième plus grand problème des PME est d’accroître la compagnie au point où on a plus besoin de travailler autant. » Il remarque également que « les deux défis sont inter relié. Un Walker peut vous aider à faire progresser votre entreprise, mais ultimement il faut avoir les ressources humaines pour faire le travail si on veut obtenir des résultats. » En attendant, M. Lévesque profite du principal avantage d’avoir une petite entreprise, c’est-à-dire sa présence sur chaque terrain et la possibilité d’ajouter sa touche personnelle. Voilà un autre avantage du Walker : on peut passer plus de temps avec ses clients!!!! |
Saving Time and Growing the Bottom Line in Quebec
Posted by
Walker on Jan 1, 2002 1:00:00 AM
Filed under: User Profiles, Stories, Canada, Walker Talk 19
Filed under: User Profiles, Stories, Canada, Walker Talk 19
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