You can't compete with these prices | Running a Gardening Business
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- Опубликовано: 21 окт 2023
- I run my gardening business, my lawn cutting round and set my prices to what I see fit. My minimum grass cut starts from £20 and I increase it accordingly but sometimes you come across situations where someone is charging so much less that you just cant compete.
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I am a self employed gardener and run my own gardening business. I offer gardening maintenance packages, hedge cutting, grass/lawn cuts, driveway cleans and much more. This video will explain how I set up on my own and how you can start your own business, so don't hang around!
The main goal of my RUclips channel is to help like minded people on their way to running their own gardening business and help them in terms of pricing jobs, equipment, real life stories and general hints and tips along the way.
So, if that sounds like its for you, hit subscribe and welcome to my channel :) 
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A man who works for free,will never be out of work.
That's why she's still looking for a gardener, I always tell people you get reliability with my price
Very True.
Never good if clients had lots of gardeners before you, unless they are really unlucky
I always explain there are 3 kinds of gardener....1 the old retired guy who doesn't charge much but doesn't do much either 2 the ones that promise everything but then disappear from the face of the earth then 3 me. Same day and roughly time every fortnight and I'll remind you the day before and call if not coming( weather)...its the old saying" buy cheap buy twice"
Great video mate. £10 Jesus it's not worth you even putting your mower in the van. So many times this year customers have said they have been let down....its unreal. Keep up the good work mate and know your value.
😊
Thanks mate 👍
You don't need to compete with those prices. Those gardeners will go out of business quickly.
Gotta have a minimum charge mate, its the getting there with all the kit not so much the lawn cut time sometimes. £10 per cut people soon disappear or put theor rates up soon enough unless its a hobble for beer money. Cheers 👍
100% mate, it's not the time it takes necessarily, its all the rest
I gave a price for a small grass cut and a little fortnightly tidying up in the spring. Didn't hear back and thought nothing of it. Got a call 2 months later to ask if I could do the work, after a little chat with the customer at the end of the first visit it turns out they had someone coming for FREE as they liked doing gardening! Turns out they weren't happy with the standard of his work and his timekeeping so they called me back...! I'm not sure which is worse, working for free or complaining about someone's work when you're not paying them...
I actually shook my head in disbelief reading that 😆 crazy
I wouldn't of worked for someone like that unless it was winter and work was quiet
Few years ago i did a long grass job in a garden. He was a neighbour of a garden i do regular. We agreed a price, so spent 1/2hr or so chomping through long grass untill it was down to a reasonable level. He came out all over the moon saying how good it looked, blah blah blah. Then came the bargaining. I had about three wheelie bins full of grass plus bags from other gardens. It was only when i said to him, I'll deliver all this back again if you don't pay what we agreed on that he paid. I can never get over how people treat gardeners. You wouldn't treat a plumber, spark or a carpet fitter like that. I hate doing one off jobs because of the likes of this. Lots of medium gardens that are in and out within the hour, all close together, all nice people. Thats what I've got after 30yrs of trying to see the good in everyone. Most people take the piss and want stuff done on the cheap and nasty.
Yes had same problems do the work then don,t want to pay !! or add on work just do that little bit !! Now if big job ask deposit or won,t book only way.
Well quite simple if told my last gardener was £10 ph I say “ I suggest you go back and find him “ as regards to garden clearance I give a price and stick to my guns and don’t budge, great video as always
Well put lad
I quoted for a customer earlier this year for a rear lawn cut and edge and some border tiding for £25 every fortnight, too cheap really but early in my first year, she hesitated and said her previous gardener who had retired charged only £10, but I have the job now because not easy to find gardeners for smaller jobs and she is happy now.
i had a customer who used me until school holidays, then she asked if i cud just come strim around cos the kids dont have a strimmer. obv she not a customer now.
I have a weekly customer. She hired me to replace a retired but who done 3 hours a week at the quid an hour to tidy up and do some weeding. She wanted me to do what he done plus cut the grass. At the time (2017) I was twenty quid an hour. She said "oh, just do an hour and a half a week. Couldn't believe it. She wanted me to do more than the last guy for the same money. I still have her as a customer. Whenever I raise my prices I just knock some time off.
£10 per hour, she's having a laugh. I had an existing customer 2 weeks ago, (been going for 2.5 years), charged between £20 - 35 depending on how much weeding and shrub work I did, and consistently went fortnightly in the growing season. She said that she had someone to do it for half the price. Later discovered it was the neighbour's gardener, who lived on the same street as the clients. Guess they'll be wheeling the mower down the street, doing 2 for price of one, with no overheads, van, website, equipment etc Good luck to them!!
Been in the garden maintenence game a fairly long time working for myself, seen many guys come and go from one year to the next. Know your worth, theres loads of work out there. I havent really taken on any new work for 2 or 3 years now, ive just been too busy. If you do a good job and are reliable, it will be you who says to the customer you cant or dont have time for the job anymore not the other way around. Theres always the new old guy who's retired, and thinks gardening is an easy pass time or the guy who doesnt work or lost his job trys to take it up for a month or 2. Dont let it annoy you, it is what it is. Every industry which offers services is the same.
Pretty much my thoughts on it too. Great comment 👍
@TheGreyGardener1990 yep and I'm now that guy who only does it part time after working my bollocks off doing it for years. Everything moves on as they say
@@gregnichol8290 that's the thing, there will always be competition and that's virtually for every trade, business, job. You just have to make sure what you're doing is right, back yourself and make sure your prices are firm but fair. And I'd probably add be adaptable as well if needs be.
Nice Video , Yes just quoted for hedge that was 150 feet both sides working on ladder !! Would take good days work. Customer said I did it 4 hours easy job !! Why don,t you do it then I was thinking ? New strait away not want to pay money so said £300 no answer then said think about it kept getting message saying cheaper price !! I not answer as done one like this before and then customer not want to pay had problem getting money.
I had 1 customer who had 5 gardeners she used, which I was one of them and whenever she wanted something doing in the garden, whoever picked up the phone and could come the quickest got the job
Think we all have had customers like this. Don’t know any other trade where some people think you’ll do work so cheaply,it’s crazy. Know your worth and keep up the good work mate
100% mate
Adam. Firstly, hope the house move went as smoothly as it could? Family all settled. A tenner! Having a laugh! That is insane. Absolute minimum of £20. Really does not reflect well on the professional gardening businesses. Have a good week. And thank you for insight.
Still waiting on the date for the house. Taking ages! Just trying to pack bits and pieces to get a head start. Yeah, 20 minimum for sure.
I know a contractor who used to charge £45.00 to cut a village green,with a ransomed triple, admittedly this was about twenty years ago, but it was still cheap then
Some old people are stuck in the past I don’t mean that horribly but they do sometimes need to be told what’s involved with running a business in 2023 ie running costs and insurances etc
Nice chat mate I’d have walked away
These people charging so little do make life very hard for pros trying to earn an honest living
We speak on email and have a few interesting conversations.. a customer wanted the whole border of her garden dug out, old shrubs everything taken out, slate put in the border, jet washing the front garden which was huge along with removal of old shrubs and adding slate in front. Massive job a ‘gardener’ charged £100, making my £400+ quote seem overpriced. (When it wasn’t) people will work for buttons
Crazy man
£100 Jesus that really is crazy
Personally I love these situations. My very quick response is...where is this gardener now? Usually they disappear as its not worth their while or go out of business. Love these situations as the6 actually justify our pricing.
Lets be honest though, cutting grass is a minimum wage level job. Its easy. Add on a few more £ to cover buying and maintaining equipment and fuel and insurance.
Always agree a price before you do a job
Definitely. Only 1 customer where I don't but they're spot on
Good comments...but how long would it take to cut her lawns?
After watching some of ur videos and working with a few other gardeners on larger job of theirs ive started to thinkni need to be charging more per hr and on quote jobs
Seen one advertised on parenting network £5 for front gardens and £10 for front and back, the problem with them prices is it’s often a junkie with a £50 quid lawnmower and a ryoby strimmer and there checking out what’s to steal while there doing it.
This will be my 33rd year as a self employed gardener,my minimum price for a strim and cut is now £13,as ive just put it up £1 this year.
A little bit judgy mate. Probably someone topping up there pension.
Mate do not try to compete with the cheapest, compete with the best. The ones undercutting prices will not last as they are not making any money.
@@MikesManCave 100% mate yeah
I went to quote a job, and she had a ride on mower, I thought it would be quicker, job turned into a nightmare, £40 was my price, any who, her previous gardener charged £20, if I knew then what I know now I would have said £70 minimum, two large lawns and 3 smaller lawns, used to take on average 3 hours, with a standard mower, even when I used their ride on in took an hour and half,
Sounds a nightmare. I haven't done any ride on stuff yet
There was a guy who used to pop up on any garden pricing video and moan that he could only charge £11.50 per lawn because there was too much competition where he lives. That's working for well below minimum wage, however long it takes per job. Not sure I really believed him though.
Also some customers bend the truth. She may have been taking about 15 years ago!
I had someone phone me once and I went out and quoted the job for £30 and he said I have just been quoted £6 I just looked at him and said £6 can you give me the person's details and I will give him a job.
Can't believe they wanted a second quote haha
Let them take the risk. Di they have public liability? Do they clean down tools after jobs...ie could transfer ground elder, marws tail etc...and would they have the 'knowledge' from proper experience to spot potential problems?
Im my experience let it go and the 'right' customers know what is right.
Trouble is our world is now full of comfortably-off, early-retired part-timers & “hobbyists” who’ve set themselves up in every neck o’ the woods. Not easy to compete on price with this crowd. Quite a lot of them haven’t got a clue. They don’t even know their plants, how to care for them or how or when to prune…and some of them seem positively proud to admit it. One of these characters told me recently…and I quote : “I don’t do gardening. Don’t know a plant from a weed mate. Just mow grass, strim and cut hedges”. It’s like a plumber boasting that he doesn’t know how to solder! People like this give the whole trade a bad reputation and devalue the rest of us who are trying our best.
I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing to mow, weed and strim, a lot of people want just that.
If you want to be more of a horticulturalist and work in borders / pruning / planting what works best for a given orientation to the sun / soil pH etc then absolutely no problem but if you do work on just a basic lawn and path garden, just strimming and mowing so long as it's tidy is totally fine.
Agreed. In fact I spend a lot of my time doing all 3…outdoor cleaning basically! But I was just trying to point out that there are a lot of so-called “professional gardeners” charging ridiculously low costs…because they’re comfortably off, have time on their hands and some have laughably little knowledge about plants.@@smvsspould
Must have been a ten year old kid that was cutting it for her!
Ah mate, these people are wrecking professional gardeners. I can't help but be infuriated by it. In my local town there must be 4 people who everyone raves about. Literally taking up most of the custom in the town. And why? Because they are charging themselves out at £10 - £12 an hour. Everyday there is a post on Facebook or Nextdoor about how great these people are, it's getting infuriating I must admit
It sounds tough if there are multiple ones in your area. Have they been there a while?
@@TheGreyGardener1990 I'd say in the past 2 months these guys have been on the go. There must be about 10 posts a day from customers recommending them.
They must be charging peanuts.
I have seen their work on the posts and it is absolutely terrible as well
@@kai_johnsonn they'll get found out mate. 2 months isn't that long and if their work is crap, people will become wise to it
@@TheGreyGardener1990 what if they're cheap though? The people raving about them seem to be happy with their work and it is absolutely sub par
If they're cheap they'll have to becutting a lot of lawns to make any sort of money. My bet is that they will give up. Could you widen the area you work in?
I not going to go over old ground again. But this further proves my point. You encourage more people in to our industry and eventually those very same people will be competing against you and taking money out your pocket with there £40 market place mowers, no insurance, no tax etc
People will do this whether or not I have my youtube channel though mate. We were all new once and i know people charge peanuts and its just the way it is so I'm not moaning, it's just a little story again. The fact is gardeners have been around long before youtube.
@@TheGreyGardener1990 True enough. I guess I'm just passionate about protecting my lively hood. But we both know where we both stand on this topic. So it's not worth getting in a huff over it. We both agree to disagree on this, and that's fine.
Definitely mate. Another side of it is this channel. I see it as an extension to the business and a large part of people who like it are new starters and potential new starters so naturally I post videos that would interest them from time to time. But yeah we both know we sit on opposite sides of the fence on this one 😆
did you not say so why is the other guy not coming anymore?
It was all over messages but yeah it's always temtping to say that 😆
A funny one I heard (for a £30 fortnightly cut) was I will pay you £10 and cook you a hot meal no thanks I am not a Hobo
😆 brilliant
You should of asked " does that include a cup of tea and a slice of cake"
Im on 18.50.an hr . I do 8 hrs . Get £150.00 and a sit down meal in the dinning room . Not only her gardener but now a friend . Beem working for her for nearly 19yrs . Still think i need a rise
@jamestastic70 not for me I'm afraid, but if that works for you good luck to you 👍
@hillbillyjohn230 really need to put my hr rate up still . Nxt April . Cheers for replying chap. 👍
Semi retired gardeners charging peanuts, always is
I mean pricing is all down to what area your covering aswell I charge £30 an hour flat rate in the south where as up in the north your rates can afford to be lower but £10 an hour is ridiculous 😂
30 pound an hr ,c how long u can charge that in the next couple of yrs , so u telling me u got customers who pay u £250 for a 8 hr day
@@PaulMills-ue9eg correct but they get what they pay for knowledge and qualifications level 4 sports maintenance
Horticulture is a dying trade. Hardly many peaple train in this field anymore. A lot more other tradesmen around compared to competent qualified horticulturist.
The horticultal industry is undervalued. Train in this field and you will be successful but you will.never get rich from it.
30 hour me take it or leave in the game 27 year
if you are a 1 man operation, and can only do so many per day, just build a nice customer base.
stick to you prices would gladly pay you 30lbs.for a pro ,who does a nice job, and shows up, plus I pay the minute I get the bill.
I do swimming pool service in New York ,USA..get people's credit cards, and wack en up after 4 visits,,good luck.mate
Thanks mate. Yes, I have myself a nice little round now after a few years building it up. It's good apart from the rain! Haha
What you have to remember, for all the cheap guys their are equal number of expensive guys. When I was ill a few years ago I was paying £25 for a lawn cut which took 20-25mins, I thought that was expensive but was desperate. Cut the lawn myself now and take my time.
These guys go on like its a proper trade they are doing 🤣 the comments are hilarious.
A lot of them complain because they’re to expensive, a lot of scenarios I’ve seen people complaint about on her can be done with a man and a shovel for half the price, no wonder people are paying the man with the shovel to do it. How else does someone start out in the trade? Especially if they come from nothing.
Definitely yeah, I'd agree there's a whole spectrum of guys charging various prices. The time a job takes is only one element of consideration when pricing a job though. Lots of things to consider when running a business. I guess it comes down to how much of a priority the garden being maintained is to the individua. One person would consider to too priority whilst the next person wouldn't. Thanks for watching 👍
@@dt937it is a proper trade….arguably a trade where theres a lot of knowledge to learn…..so don’t be smart
WOW. How can anyone get the mower out of the van for a 10er? I mean look at other trades they got a 30-40 quid call-out fee. I'm right down south my minimum charge is 30 going up to 40 next season. I do have a full-time employee mind you.
So true. I cleared a drain for a customer (I'm a gardener) with my pressure washer. It took about 10mins from start to finish and I charged £30. I kind of cringed when I said it but she ran straight into the house and come out with £40. The local "expert" had a call out fee of £160. You got 1hr work with that. I'm in the wrong business
£40 is expensive, a big increase on the £30.
Maybe so but that's what Its gotta do as I employ a bloke. I'm a ltd company no sole trader. I'm fully insured. And well you pay for good workman ship and reliability!
@@bobbelsekwolmy point proven right there my friend!??
@@HDGardenCare I know.
No way 3 times more….she was trying to get you to come down. Can’t even pay any bills with only making 10
£10 a hour is a joke, i would rather do a easy employed job for £14 an hour.
I've had a successful fully booked gardening service for over 10 years now. Never had to advertise and always by word of mouth. I originally started offer £12.50 an hour but due to the increases of cost and repairs plus overheads of tax and public liability, yard etc. I know £23 per hour, and have had no complaints.
£10 is ridiculous.i bet she wouldn't go out to work for that.people don't understand how much it cost to run a gardening business all the cost van to buy and run tools to buy machines to buy petrol for the machines etc then ni insurance and tax to pay and then they only want to pay £10 is a joke
Someone charging £10, they will be on benefits running a mower and strimmer out their car on the side i bet.
if someones doing it for beer money or customers try it on. stick to your prices . there b & Q mower wont last long …. !!!
This is my 33rd year as a self employed gardener ,ive just put my min grass cut price up to £13.
Ive been in this game 20 years and in my opinion you wont survive that long ,your way to expensive its just greed. you wouldn't get that sort of money in my area.
Definitely not greed mate. My cuts start from £20 which seems to be about right when I compare others, both on youtube and in my area.
Too expensive? Are you having a laugh? Do you expect people to work for peanuts?
Is your area 1950's Yorkshire ? 😂
You're joking right?
You're the £10 man right?
I wish you would do a video on how you sort your diary for the week, im yet to find a way im happy with which makes it look simple.
I've just filmed and edited that yesterday as it happens but it won't be out until dec/Jan I think. All I do though, is write a few months in advance, all me fortnightly and monthly. I have a space once a month allocated for big jobs and small one off jobs I just put into the end of my day. I'll then write the amount, when the jobs done, I'll circle it. When they've paid me, I'll tick it. Quite basic but very simple for me to understand. When rain is due, its a case of scribbling out and re-writing them wherever you want.
What in particular do you struggle with?