Start a Landscape Design Company

Monday, July 15, 2013

Start a Landscape Design Company

Landscape designers are primarily involved in the design aspects of residential and commercial landscaping projects, but you may also offer installation services through subcontractors or with your own crew and equipment. Starting your landscape design business follows protocols of other businesses, but requires specialized design training usually obtained by formal education or practical experience on the field. Landscape designers differ from landscape architects in their formal education level and state licensing, with architects generally involved in large commercial, industrial and municipal projects.

Step 1

Obtain a landscape design certificate or equivalent experience working for a designer. A combination of formal education and experience will add to your credibility as a landscape designer.

Step 2

Write a landscape design company business plan listing all aspects of your business. You may take advantage of free business plan information from the U.S. Small Business Administration website, contact your local Service Corps of Retired Executives office or hire a professional business consultant experienced in the landscaping industry.

Step 3

Purchase necessary office and design equipment. Your needs will vary, but will include a drafting table and art supplies for creation of maps and sketches, computer with landscape design software, fax machine, telephone system and office furniture.

Step 4

Prepare an office or workspace in your home or rent office space in your town. Professional office space will add a level of professionalism for visiting clients.

Step 5

Obtain local business permits from your town hall, a tax certificate from your state taxation division, and a contractor license from your state's license division (if required).

Step 6

Purchase marketing aids from your local printer, including business cards, stationery, brochures, presentation materials and other necessities. Your printer will advise you as to what you will need to make a favorable impression on prospects and clients.

Step 7

Pass out or mail brochures and sales letters to businesses and homes in your service area, and place classified or display advertisements on local publications to raise awareness of your new landscape design business.

Step 8

Open accounts with local nurseries and contact local contractors to assist you in your landscaping business. Partnering with local businesses can also result in mutual referrals and will support your local economy.

Things Needed

Landscape design certificate or equivalent experience
Business plan
Office and design equipment
Office or workspace
Business permits, tax certificate and contractor license
Marketing ads

Tips

Join industry associations and subscribe to landscaping magazines and websites to keep up with trends, business news and ideas.
Take photos of your finished work and maintain a physical or online design portfolio to showcase your work to prospects.

Warnings

Obtain all necessary permits, insurance and bonds before starting contracting work. Failure to do so may result in fines and penalties.
Your landscape designs are considered intellectual property and are owned by you until they are released to the customer under contract. Always use landscaping design contracts and only release your designs when payment terms have been met by the client. Failure to use contracts may result in clients using your design or a modified version without payment.

References (6)

Resources (3)

About the Author

Matt McKay began his writing career in 1999, writing training programs and articles for a national corporation. His work has appeared in various online publications and materials for private companies. McKay has experience in entrepreneurship, corporate training, human resources, technology and the music business.

Photo Credits (3)

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Easy Tips and Ideas to Start Business

Although anyone can start a business, many people fail because of a bad product or improper research. If you want to start your own business, you can improve your chances for success before you even begin. In order to make your business successful, start strong and make sure that your idea will hold out for the long haul.

Have a Good Product

Ensure that you plan to sell something useful. Although you may think that your product is important or special, that doesn't mean the general public will agree. Ask friends, family and strangers what they think of your product. If they don't seem that interested, ask them why. With their suggestions, you can either improve the product or scrap the idea completely. According to Brad Sugars of Entrepreneur magazine, most small businesses fail because they sold a product that didn't have an adequate market. This also applies to small businesses that provide a service. A lawn-care business might be useful for part of the year in a northern state, but it is in-demand year-round in the south. Consider whether people will actually want to use your service and get constructive advice from those not afraid to give their opinion.

Research Local Businesses

Research local companies before starting up your own business. This will not only give you an idea of the amount of competition you will have, but it will also help you price your product or service. If you're looking to start a wedding photography business, you may find during your research that the market is over-saturated in your area. If not over-saturated, you should contact each business and ask them for a price list. Alter your prices so you can stay competitive with the competition in town. Researching similar local businesses will also help you decide where to locate your business location. Try not to start up a store or office close to another business of your type. If your small business is located away from similar business types, this will cause locals to choose you over businesses that are farther away from where they live.

Get Professional Advice

You may know someone who has started their own successful business. Ask him for advice and listen to his stories of how he started his company. You may gain useful advice on the good and bad ways to start a business. Local entrepreneurs can also introduce you to local product providers or advertisers that you may not have met without their help. Accept any advice with open arms, especially if the advice is coming from someone successful in the area.

How to Calculate Business Start Up Costs

Starting a business in no easy endeavor. It takes a great deal of research, perseverance and hard work. While sweat equity will make your small business more successful, you will most likely need real capital to get the business started. Before you start raising capital and/or investing your own funds, the first thing you need to do is determine the total start-up costs.

Step 1

Determine your costs of sales. For most small businesses this means inventory, the cost of raw materials, manufacturing equipment, shipping, packaging, and warehousing. However, not all businesses sell products. In this case, the cost of sales is primarily the direct labor involved in making the sale. For example, to open a small shoe business entails purchasing enough inventory ($10,000) to stock the store.

Step 2

Determine professional fees. Planning your business structure, i.e., limited liability corporation or general partnership, means hiring an attorney. There may also be the need to pay an attorney for help with establishing trademarks, copyrights, and patents. In this scenario, that puts total professional fees at an estimated $20,000.

Step 3

Determine technology costs. Technology can greatly reduce the cost of labor for small business if used effectively. Most small businesses require computers, printers, cell phones, website development, Internet access, software applications, information security, data storage, and outsourced information technology (IT) consulting. If the cost of technology is $10,000 to start, add an additional $5,000 a year for maintenance (hint: maintenance is not included in start-up costs).

Step 4

Determine administrative costs. This varies with business types and may include items such as business insurance, office supplies, product packaging, parking, rent, express shipping, desks, chairs, fax machines, phones, or anything else necessary to operate the business daily. A good estimate for start-up administrative costs would be $5,000 for the first six months.

Step 5

Determine initial sales and marketing costs. Now that you have your product, you need to let folks know about it. Sales and marketing costs generally include marketing materials for presentations, printing stationery, business cards, advertising, trade show events, and public relations. These initial sales and marketing costs can add up to $3,000.

Step 6

Determine the wages and benefits needed to secure a staff. This includes employee salaries, benefits, workers compensation, and payroll taxes. Let's put the cost of wages and benefits estimated at $20,000 for the first three months of business.

Step 7

Add all costs associated with starting the business for a total. Be sure to only include business start-up costs that will be incurred in the first three to six months of operations. For this example, the calculation is: $10,000 + $20,000 + $10,000 + $5,000 + $3,000 + $20,000 = $68,000.

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Monday, July 15, 2013