A landscape contractor can build a $6,900 pond in one day and in doing so, can earn $4,000 gross profit.
This is an example of the pond that can be built in one day:
Pond size; 8 feet x 12 feet with a 4 feet stream
Pond Price: $6,900
Pond equipment: $1,450
Rock and gravel: $600
Bark and extras: $100
Delivery: $100
Labor 5 men: $650
Total expenses: $2,850
Gross Profit: $4,000
The gross profit refers to the total price of the job minus the direct costs of building the job, such as materials and labor. This is not the same as net profit, which refers to total revenue minus ALL expenses, such as rent, phone, etc., plus the cost of building a job.
The labor above is broken down into $200 for the lead man, $150 for the deputy and 3 helpers at $100 a day.
A lot of small landscape companies work all month and after paying themselves a good wage they only have $4,000 to $5,000 in profits left over. If that was the case for you, and you then put in one pond on the last day of the month you could double your profits for the month!
Building ponds and waterfalls, also called water gardening, is one of the fastest growing businesses in America today. Just as outdoor lighting took off 10 years ago, so is water gardening just starting to take off. Now is the time to learn for yourself if this is something that you should invest your time and energy in.
Pacific Outdoor Living Pro Division (www.pacificoutdoorlivingpro.com) specializes in introducing new contractors to the water gardening business, in showing contractors how to expand their businesses, and in helping our contractors learn to sell and market ponds. We feel there is a huge upside in the pond business and 2008 is going to be a breakout year.
The next question that contractors always ask is "OK so I learn how to build a pond in a day. But how can I sell a pond in a day?" Well to start with you don't sell a pond in a day, but you sell one a month while you do your regular work. Then you sell a pond a week, then a couple a week and eventually you will sell a $6 to $7,000 pond a day. But that's later and it can be done. There is room for a lot of pond contractors selling in that volume. And yes even in a "recession".
Remember just as there is a technology on how to plant a tree and how to put in an irrigation system, so there is a technology on how to promote and sell ponds. One aspect of that and only one aspect is having a pond to show your customer.
A landscape contractor's first step is to come to one of the Build a Pond Day events that we hold periodically throughout the year, and see how easy it is to build a pond, and get the reality that you could do this a one day and make the kind of profits we are speaking of.
Your next step after that is to join our Apprenticeship Program that will thoroughly train you not only how to build the pond, but how to promote and sell the ponds. We are dedicated to help you grow your business one pond at a time.
