After being in business 41 years, Erv Denig, a registered landscape architect, knows the people of Fort Wayne, Indiana, and they know him. In fact, prospective homeowners are so familiar with his work that many of them call him even before they buy a lot.

Members of the private Garden of the Gods Club located in Colorado Springs, Colorado, experience one of the most beautiful natural settings in the country. The exclusive resort overlooks the Rocky Mountains, Pikes Peak and Garden of the Gods Park. When not taking in the view, they enjoy deluxe accommodations, a 27-hole championship golf course, a fullservice spa and fine dining, among other amenities.

Some individuals start mowing lawns with the intent of one day operating a huge, successful operation. Others are very content to hang a shingle as an owner/operator and stay that size forever. Others still search for a halfway point; not too big and not too small. In Twin Falls, Idaho, young T&M Mowing owners Tyler and Matthew Shropshire have another goal.

Carl Polite, owner of Polite Lawn Care in Aiken, South Carolina, started his business in a rather unusual way. One summer afternoon, two of his four sons approached him and asked if they could borrow the mower. They came back later that day and asked to be taken to the gas station to fill the gas can. Finally, his sons asked the key question: “Dad, could you give us a hand?”

For 21 years, Bob Vickery, owner of The Planter’s Touch in Easley, South Carolina, put on a suit and tie in the morning and went to work at a bank. That began to change the moment he handed in his notice on October 1998 and two months later walked out the door for the last time.

Les Coates, owner of Lawns by Les, has been in business 24 years. He has a beautiful family, nice home, and operates a successful landscape maintenance business in the Phoenix suburb of Litchfield Park. Yet, he’s not bashful about saying success didn’t come easily, nor was it originally built on the right predication.