Landscape Gardeners in Berkshire

9 Comments

Comment by Richard Lilley on 6 February 2009 at 5:53pm

How are landscapers in Berkshire finding the current business environment? Difficult?

Comment by BGS LTD on 6 February 2009 at 6:55pm

No problems just yet but I have a fairly large client base but gut feeling is that we will see the downturn a little later in the year.

I have always found Wokingham a hard area to crack and tend not to travel to far towards Reading.

I will be more than happy to pass on any hard landscaping requests I may get.

Comment by Richard Lilley on 6 February 2009 at 7:37pm

Thanks for the reply. Where are you based then? My feeling at the moment is that there are quite a few "quote collectors" and general time wasters around now.

Business is slow so far this year but what with the snow as well it is hardly surprising. I have reasonable expectations for the year but would appreciate any leads that don't suit you.

Why is Wokingham hard to crack? I haven't found that so far
Richard

Comment by BGS LTD on 6 February 2009 at 8:34pm

We are based in Sandhurst and have our main "yard" in the West End.

This snow hasn't help but getting a lot of work stacking up.

Not too sure why Wokingham has been so hard for us. Maybe because the business model we operate and the type of services we offer. Last year I found that the client requests I picked up for Wokingham we wouldn't be able to get a fair price when compared to other surrounding areas. My guess is that these people were mortgaged up to their ears and our service was a little luxury they could do without.
I believe window cleaners are the 1st to go then the gardeners followed by the cleaning lady.

Comment by Richard Lilley on 6 February 2009 at 8:46pm

I agree with the comment regarding being mortgaged to the hilt. I try and adhere to a definite client profile which i know is dependable e.g. legal profession, possibly 2 incomes.
I do a lot of work in SW London and am interested in seeing how that pans out in 2009. I suspect I will see a downturn in those postal districts

Comment by BGS LTD on 6 February 2009 at 8:56pm

Regardless of what area we cover it will be a hard year and we need to up our game. Hopefully this will be my most profitable year based upon confirmed bookings for the coming year. Just hope the banks continue to support me. Credit availability will be the make or break for us.

Comment by Richard Lilley on 6 February 2009 at 8:59pm

Good point. Cash flow is so important and access to credit will have a huge impact. I have plans to grow the business and the question of finance is always on my mind.

Comment by laara copley-smith on 12 February 2009 at 11:20am

Hi Berkshire Landscapers ,

Just joined , Garden & Landscape designer , Also involved with providing a maintenance facility to clients . Do check my profile and my website out .

Laara Copley-Smith

Comment by Robert Stoutzker on 2 March 2009 at 4:24pm

Hi, I run a design, landscaping and maintance business in North London. Looking forward to becoming active on the Juice network

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