Mergers and acquisitions are a hot topic in the landscaping industry right now, and I know one that brings out a lot of opinions. My take: the interest in our industry from private equity groups shows the viability of our businesses, and also provides an off ramp for owners who do want to sell their business. I for one am glad to see PE shine a light on our industry and all the good that we do. 
 
But whether you're looking to sell now, watching the market for the future, or in it for the long haul there's a lot to be learned from the market that can benefit ALL landscaping companies. Here's the trick: the steps that companies who sell for the highest multiples take to prepare for a sale are ones that all businesses should be taking anyways. They make it easier to get a loan, make companies more profitable, and streamline operations to reduce headaches and improve scalability. 
 
So whether you're actively looking for an exit or not, it's smart to spend some time this winter looking at:

Having Organized, Clean Financial Statements

Maintaining your financial records is important - you'll need these to apply for financing and it also helps you have a clear grasp on the company's performance. Proper bookkeeping and allocating costs as they come in is easier than fixing everything at the end of the year. Our recommendation - block out time on your calendar each month to dedicate to this so you never fall behind.

Use a Software

The best software is the one you use, and you should be using one. While small companies can function off of spreadsheets and paper for a while, implementing a software system now will vastly improve scalability. At Grunder Landscaping Co. (GLC), implementing Aspire Software was a catalyst for growth. It erased unnecessary administrative tasks, allowed us to become much more efficient, and has provided a framework that new team members can easily work within as we grow. We implemented Aspire 6 years ago this month and in that time have more than quadrupled our revenue - the software made that doable. 

Hire for Growth

Sometimes you have to take on overhead before you need it if you're trying to grow. We try to add a new maintenance crew when we know that we can fill at least half their schedule, and then we ask our sales team to step up to fill the second half of that crew's week up. This sometimes means crews working lighter hours for a little while, hanging on to old trucks longer than we'd like so we can add a crew, or carrying extra overhead while a salesperson gets ramped up.

Growth is scrappy - it's a lot of push and pull and risk. But getting the right people into the right roles - sometimes by hiring externally and other times by moving around existing team members - has enabled us to go after the growth that our systems supported.

Whether you're looking to sell or not, focusing on the steps you can take to make your business more valuable to a potential buyer can be a smart way to approach creating a project list for the year ahead. This helps ensure you're leveraging all your assets to maximize profit, which sets you up for success in the long term.

At GROW! 2026, Jennifer Murray, one of our executive coaches involved in our ACE Peer Group Program and an expert in company valuations, will share additional areas of focus for companies who want to improve during her breakout session, How to Create More Value in Your Business: Top drivers for Increasing Your Valuation. If you aren't already signed up to join us in Dallas, TX on February 10-12, check out our agenda to see all that we have planned and reserve your seat today! The discounted hotel block expires on January 19 - don't wait to sign up or you'll miss out. 

I'll talk to you next week!

GLC&GGHeadshots_083Marty Grunder
Founder & CEO
The Grow Group & Grunder Landscaping Co.
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