Opening a new branch in Muscatine Iowa

[PTS]

Opening a new branch in Muscatine Iowa. Bought out a local company. With the buy out I have a bunch of duplicate equipment so if anyone around here is in need of anything let me know.

Also, I am in search of quality employees for this area to include a Manager/arborist to run the office. I am excited for the possibilities of this community. We offer Full Benefit packages and great pay. If anyone is interested let me know.

 

[Treeinnovator]

what's "great pay"?

 

[PTS]

We pay our employees based on experience capabilities, knowledge and arborist certifications. Management gets wage plus % of profit.

 

[TexasTreemonkey]

I need a 4x4 f550!

 

[mckeetree]

We pay our employees based on experience capabilities, knowledge and arborist certifications. Management gets wage plus % of profit.

I think you got that line from me. I learned from the best as how to not exactly quote pay scales. But I can show you how to make it much more convoluted than that even.

 

[Treeinnovator]

ok this is a perfect example of why i asked about the small towns vs. the metro areas business models in the other thread.

first, Kyle, you have a great operation up there and we all wish you the best of luck with your expansion.

back to the point... i looked up Manchester, IA on the satellite maps. there's hardly any trees there (compared to other cities). it's mostly farm areas. the population is 5,000 and has declined slightly over the last 6 years which generally means people are looking to get out usually from a tough local economy = wallets are tight.

yet there are several tree companies in the yellow pages and Kyle says he has 15 full-timers. i don't think there's more than 5 tree companies in South Florida (3 million population) that have 15 full-time employees.

and those trees in Manchester are taller and wider than most buildings meaning bucket trucks and heavy equipment are a must = large revenues needed for purchases and maintenance.

what am i missing? on the surface it seems like a typical tree service wouldn't fly in a tight market that has it's growth limits.

unless his 15 employees multi-task in his repair shop, lawn service, etc. i don't get how this works. or maybe south florida's tree companies follow an entirely different business model all together.

i'm stumped as to how these small town business models work.

in South Florida... lots of wealth and millions of people allows everybody to stay busy, but most of you would cringe at the rediculous cut throat pricing that goes on her because of the immigrant labor.

?

 

[PTS]

ok this is a perfect example of why i asked about the small towns vs. the metro areas business models in the other thread.

first, Kyle, you have a great operation up there and we all wish you the best of luck with your expansion.

back to the point... i looked up Manchester, IA on the satellite maps. there's hardly any trees there (compared to other cities). it's mostly farm areas. the population is 5,000 and has declined slightly over the last 6 years which generally means people are looking to get out usually from a tough local economy = wallets are tight.

yet there are several tree companies in the yellow pages and Kyle says he has 15 full-timers. i don't think there's more than 5 tree companies in South Florida (3 million population) that have 15 full-time employees.

and those trees in Manchester are taller and wider than most buildings meaning bucket trucks and heavy equipment are a must = large revenues needed for purchases and maintenance.

what am i missing? on the surface it seems like a typical tree service wouldn't fly in a tight market that has it's growth limits.

unless his 15 employees multi-task in his repair shop, lawn service, etc. i don't get how this works. or maybe south florida's tree companies follow an entirely different business model all together.

i'm stumped as to how these small town business models work.

in South Florida... lots of wealth and millions of people allows everybody to stay busy, but most of you would cringe at the rediculous cut throat pricing that goes on her because of the immigrant labor.

?

Although I applaud your babbling BS. I would be happy to say KISS MY ARS. I talk crap about no one on here and I understand that the majority of people on here have smaller companies than I but I refuse to talk smack. I started small like everyone else. So for you to assume anything makes you out to be the fool we all assumed. The problem is in that tiny little mind of yours you only can see the possibilities confined within lines. In small town rural areas we are forced to cover large territories. The problems with this is transportation expenses, and being forced to tackle virtually any job that we are asked to do. This forces us to do one of two things go big or go home. If you want to do it all you have to have all the equipment and all the staff. The little can't make it and the big have to be able to take on everything. So when the pansy companies say that they don't want to do it. The good ones just get it done. So basically if you want to make it in a place like this you have to have multiple crews and someone without their head up their ass who can make everything function. For us we have two full time office staff, two mechanics, 15 tree care professionals full time. We cover an area of about 60 miles in all directions. So when you think you are tough and want to go mouthing off about someone, maybe you better get all the facts straight.

Oh yeah when you find yourself in need of work give me a call, I could use a good brush dragger!!!!

 

[limbwalker54]

Whoa! Now I call that tellin' it how it is! Glad to hear of your purchase, and I wish you well! As for Mr. Innovator, I think you have made him move onto less suspecting targets.


Congratulations on the purchase!

 

[arbor pro]

I feel as though I've walked in PTS' shoes at one point in my career. Many years ago, when I was one of the 'small guys' looking to become one of the 'big' guys, a really big job came along requiring me to take a leap of faith in buying more equipment and hiring more employees. I took the leap and did the job. In the span of 3 months, my company grew from 6 employees to 12 and my capital investment quadrupled. It was a big leap for my 5-year-old company but it forced me to go after bigger fish in order to keep my new investment alive. I agressively pursued other accounts and soon became a tri-state tree service - one of the biggest in the area. It wouldn't have happened without initiative, caculated risk and potential for growth.

So, the question was posed - 'how can a midwest tree service grow so much that it can support 15 employees and all that equipment'? Well, growth isn't as much about market location as it is about market potential. Potential is as much a state of mind as it is a geographic location.

Because the population in the midwest is so strung out across areas, you generally have to be willing to diversify and do a bit of traveling if you want to grow. And there is a lot of potential to grow in the midwest if you're willing to take some calculated risks. PTS sounds like someone who's willing to take some calculated risk in order to grow his company. I only know the guy from reading some of his posts on this site, but, he's probably grown up his whole life with a strong worth ethic and with strong moral character - someone who knows how to treat his customers and his employees with a lot more respect than some of the other blokes on this forum.

There's a heck of a lot more to starting, maintaining and growing a successful business that just owning a chainsaw in an area where there are a lot of big trees. It takes ambition and character in addition to 'know how' if you want to succeed and grow in this business. It's the 'magic 3' that any good businessman has to have if he's going to survive and even find growth potential in what others see as a 'slowing' economy.

It's an old adage but, some see the glass as half full, some as half empty. My guess is PTS is a half-full kind of guy where treeinovator is just a bunch of bitter suds...

PTS, good luck with the growth. I hope you find the right person for the job and wish you the best...

 

[Bigus Termitius]

I see the trollminator is still on the louse.

No trees??? There are plenty of trees in your area PTS, as you well know.

I do line clearance in exclusively rural areas and I get enough side work to almost start my own gig full time.

If you are covering a 60 mile radius, you are busy.

Now then, there should be plenty of work around Muscratine with the river valley and all. I imagine you are going to be on both sides of the river as well.

I lived in the Rock Island area for about a year and my wife is from Andalusia, IL. just up the river from Muscatine. I spent plenty of time running around there as a result.

Didn't know if you knew it or not but there is probably still plenty of storm work to be done on both sides up river from the winds they received a couple of weeks ago.

I'm thinking about heading up with my gear this weekend. I have a couple of removals scheduled for my father-in-law anyway, but there may still be more to do for others.

Congrats and God Bless the acquisition.

PM me your info and I'll pass it on if I get more work leads than I can deal with on a weekend.

Can I get a list of what all you're selling and some ballpark pricing?

If ever I find myself in the area again on a permanent basis, I'll come drag your brush around the trollminator.

 

[PTS]

Short on Sleep working on storm clean-up and he got my goat, please forgive me.

 

[Cbrexdogg]

Also being from a company in Iowa, I can tell you there is no shortage of tree work. The company I work for is a lawn, landscape and tree service, and fluctuates from 15 - 30 employees depending on the season. We typically have 5 guys working tree care daily. We could probably sustain 8. We typically stay in a 15 mile radius. If we ventured to a 60 mile radius, I don't think there would be any trouble keeping 25 employees doing tree work daily.(at least in the summer). There is also about 10 other tree services working in our 15 mile radius. So I don't see where someone would find a company of 15 serving a 60 mile radius that mind boggling.

I will say that in a larger market there is probably a lot of low balling and migrant workers to bring the market value down. Increased competition = decreased prices. Simple economics.

 

[(WLL)]

I feel as though I've walked in PTS' shoes at one point in my career. Many years ago, when I was one of the 'small guys' looking to become one of the 'big' guys, a really big job came along requiring me to take a leap of faith in buying more equipment and hiring more employees. I took the leap and did the job. In the span of 3 months, my company grew from 6 employees to 12 and my capital investment quadrupled. It was a big leap for my 5-year-old company but it forced me to go after bigger fish in order to keep my new investment alive. I agressively pursued other accounts and soon became a tri-state tree service - one of the biggest in the area. It wouldn't have happened without initiative, caculated risk and potential for growth.

So, the question was posed - 'how can a midwest tree service grow so much that it can support 15 employees and all that equipment'? Well, growth isn't as much about market location as it is about market potential. Potential is as much a state of mind as it is a geographic location.

Because the population in the midwest is so strung out across areas, you generally have to be willing to diversify and do a bit of traveling if you want to grow. And there is a lot of potential to grow in the midwest if you're willing to take some calculated risks. PTS sounds like someone who's willing to take some calculated risk in order to grow his company. I only know the guy from reading some of his posts on this site, but, he's probably grown up his whole life with a strong worth ethic and with strong moral character - someone who knows how to treat his customers and his employees with a lot more respect than some of the other blokes on this forum.

There's a heck of a lot more to starting, maintaining and growing a successful business that just owning a chainsaw in an area where there are a lot of big trees. It takes ambition and character in addition to 'know how' if you want to succeed and grow in this business. It's the 'magic 3' that any good businessman has to have if he's going to survive and even find growth potential in what others see as a 'slowing' economy.

It's an old adage but, some see the glass as half full, some as half empty. My guess is PTS is a half-full kind of guy where treeinovator is just a bunch of bitter suds...

PTS, good luck with the growth. I hope you find the right person for the job and wish you the best...

:agree2: all makes good sense

 

[memetic]

Congratulations!

And hey, there's nothing wrong with dragging brush. I do a lot of the lowbrow work myself (dragging, chipping, cleanup, etc) and let my partner and crew do the cool stuff most of the time.

Maybe you could hire him on as the water boy. Or all around fetcher of stuff. I think that's as low as it can get - working in the field for a tree company and not even doing any treework.

 

[Treeinnovator]

Although I applaud your babbling BS. I would be happy to say KISS MY ARS. I talk crap about no one on here and I understand that the majority of people on here have smaller companies than I but I refuse to talk smack. I started small like everyone else. So for you to assume anything makes you out to be the fool we all assumed. The problem is in that tiny little mind of yours you only can see the possibilities confined within lines. In small town rural areas we are forced to cover large territories. The problems with this is transportation expenses, and being forced to tackle virtually any job that we are asked to do. This forces us to do one of two things go big or go home. If you want to do it all you have to have all the equipment and all the staff. The little can't make it and the big have to be able to take on everything. So when the pansy companies say that they don't want to do it. The good ones just get it done. So basically if you want to make it in a place like this you have to have multiple crews and someone without their head up their ass who can make everything function. For us we have two full time office staff, two mechanics, 15 tree care professionals full time. We cover an area of about 60 miles in all directions. So when you think you are tough and want to go mouthing off about someone, maybe you better get all the facts straight.

Oh yeah when you find yourself in need of work give me a call, I could use a good brush dragger!!!!

who kicked your cat?
i wasn't putting you or your business down. i admittedly said i had no clue on how a small town model worked. you did, however, answer my questions in that (1) your territory encompasses a 60 mile radius and (2) you can shut the little hacks from lowballing you with large equipment they don't have.

ok. understand that us South Florida metro boys work all year without ever stepping outside a 2 mile radius. i don't even advertise in the yellow pages because it would waste time and money quoting jobs outside my 2 mile zone. my landfill is no more than 3 miles away at any jobsite. travel time is non-existent in our business model. so when i looked at the satellite photo of Manchester... i was looking at it close up and not from a 60 mile view. but that's what we are used to. thanks for anwering my questions. it's exactly what i wanted to know.

i'm still fuzzy about the economy end of it. if times are tough on folks, how can they afford large equipment based tree services? it's not like there are hurricanes that blow across the state each year with 100+ winds that span miles and miles of tree damage to justify it as a priority each year. and tornados will knock out a tree whether it was trimmed or not.

 

[treemandan]

who kicked your cat?
i wasn't putting you or your business down. i admittedly said i had no clue on how a small town model worked. you did, however, answer my questions in that (1) your territory encompasses a 60 mile radius and (2) you can shut the little hacks from lowballing you with large equipment they don't have.

ok. understand that us South Florida metro boys work all year without ever stepping outside a 2 mile radius. i don't even advertise in the yellow pages because it would waste time and money quoting jobs outside my 2 mile zone. my landfill is no more than 3 miles away at any jobsite. travel time is non-existent in our business model. so when i looked at the satellite photo of Manchester... i was looking at it close up and not from a 60 mile view. but that's what we are used to. thanks for anwering my questions. it's exactly what i wanted to know.

i'm still fuzzy about the economy end of it. if times are tough on folks, how can they afford large equipment based tree services? it's not like there are hurricanes that blow across the state each year with 100+ winds that span miles and miles of tree damage to justify it as a priority each year. and tornados will knock out a tree whether it was trimmed or not.

its your sense of humour that have people on the defense. Buck up and give some back, I think you are a riot and I have no real evidence that you are what they say you are. They don't either.
Its always babbling BS when you deal with the straightlaced.

 

[ropensaddle]

Opening a new branch in Muscatine Iowa. Bought out a local company. With the buy out I have a bunch of duplicate equipment so if anyone around here is in need of anything let me know.

Also, I am in search of quality employees for this area to include a Manager/arborist to run the office. I am excited for the possibilities of this community. We offer Full Benefit packages and great pay. If anyone is interested let me know.

Someone should jump on that, I would but am too vested into my own to work for a wage and move rent etc. I have often wished I would have found this site before diving into my own business with all the hacks and cheapskate price shoppers but then I love it too. I have thought of working in management capacity for another company however the wage required to stay the same or in other words keep everything paid is too much for a company to consider. I don't want to lose my forty acres or other assets
and rent less and not be able to deer hunt.

 

[PTS]

Treeinnovaitor, I apologize for being testy. I took your question as a kick between the legs. We are putting in 16 hour days 7 days a week right now with 100 degree index which we are not use to and high humidity. So you have my apology. I dream of a location where I don't have to travel and I think I have found that here in Muscatine. 30,000 population two other services one of reasonable size a bucket chipper, grapple, couple dumps and stump grinder so average to decent small company. The big kick is that they brag about their topping ability to put them in perspective. No one here other than us climbs and it is a river town so tight houses in a landscape that doesn't allow for buckets in many situations. So a potential local monopoly on climbing work. Has great potential.

Out here in rural America we have to think about all kinds of weird things. Nothing is easy, accessable, flat or hard. It seems to be always in a bad spot, where you can't get equipment to it, on the side of a bluff and the size of a semi and they want you to magically make it disappear for a case of beer.

That's the challenge.

In Manchester alone we have a 50x100 building 40x60 building and two large "parkinglots" to house our equipment and there is no room for more. The thing that is hard out here is that you get 1000 say for a trim and I get 200 and yet I have to have all this overhead. So the secret is in numbers if every crew makes some and shares the specialty stuff you can make ends meet. It is a scheduling nightmare and a stressful lifestyle but it does have its rewards.