With over $153 billion generated in 2024, the US lawn care industry is booming. This massive success creates exciting growth potential for landscaping businesses. However, company owners intrigued by expansion must weigh considerations around either franchising or acquiring competitor brands. For home service sector founders lacking hands-on franchise experience, insight from veteran strategists proves invaluable before mobilizing.
As a consultant formally trained in law with over 20 years guiding brands across the home services spectrum, I break down vital steps landscaping brands must take when building franchise businesses:
Conduct Feasibility Studies
Prior to legal registrations or recruitment, analyze the franchisability of the existing concept. Profitability across multiple sites is a must. Franchisees, even those without extensive plant knowledge, should find it easy to duplicate this successful model. Evaluate what support mechanisms and training programs need development so owners lacking landscape experience can follow turnkey systems.
Vet Franchisor Legal Readiness
Every state governs franchises differently, with regulations around registration, disclosures, and relationship laws between franchisors and franchisees. Working with a franchise lawyer, build out the FDD while cataloging trademarks, supply chain contracts, and other intellectual property, ensuring legal readiness for expansion.
Draft Operations Manual
Document step-by-step protocols around customer lifecycle management spanning lead generation, estimates & proposals, job scheduling, crew management, invoicing, and retention. Manualize best practices around account management, equipment/inventory controls, and tail coverage policies specific to the landscaping trade adopted by top-performing franchisees.
Create Training Programs
For owners lacking prior field experience, create immersive training programs educating franchisees on processes that best mitigate risk and amplify profits. Include field training around securing permits, job costing, choosing plantings, hardscape construction, irrigation, seasonal maintenance, and equipment operation/safety protocols.
Define Support Infrastructure
Outline specific guidelines detailing how corporate marketing, tech platforms, financing partners, and field support staff will directly strengthen franchisee performance post-launch. Whether adopting remote monitoring solutions to ensure service consistency, leveraging consolidated buying power for discounted tools/fleet pricing, or providing professional website development and SEO, define how the parent company will continually add value.
For landscaping brands seeking aggressive expansion, franchising’s merits over acquiring competitor brands include quicker location scalability, built-in semi-passive ownership structures through absentee models, and tapping entrepreneurial franchise partners’ existing professional networks for customer lead sharing. However, founders must first lay operational and legal foundations to uphold brand integrity as networks grow. Leverage Upside’s unrivaled lawn care and franchising expertise today to start expansion.
