Scottie Floyd Builds on Past Successes

For 30 years, Scottie and Tina Floyd had built a successful independent landscaping business along the Louisiana and Mississippi border. However, like many other independent landscapers have found, the business become built around them, dominating their time and resources, as well as limiting the business’ growth.

Scottie says, “If I wasn’t out there doing the labor myself, the work didn’t get done and the bills didn’t get paid. I wanted to get out of the field and hand off the labor to someone else.”

Ten years ago, a long-time family friend, Ken Beasley, also in the landscaping business in their area, became a U.S. Lawns franchisee. “We had the opportunity to purchase our market, but the timing wasn’t right for us. We passed on it and Ken took it. Over the years we have seen Ken do very well, scaling his business in ways we could not do with our independent business model,” Scottie observed.

Building a Legacy

With their son, Scottie Jr. and his wife living a few hours away in Shreveport, Louisiana, the Floyds wanted more flexibility in their lives. They also wanted a legacy they could pass on to their son. “My son had just finished college at Louisiana Tech and was asking himself what he should do now. I wanted nothing more than to have something we could build together,” says Scottie.

Recently, when Beasley approached the Floyds with a proposition to buy out their landscaping business, the family sat down and compared books with their friend. “We started talking numbers and revenue. It really got me thinking. During the meeting I could see the wheels start turning in my son’s head too. When my son finally turned to me and ‘Dad, we need to convert to U.S. Lawns!’ I was jumping up and down on the inside, I was ecstatic,” recalls Scottie.

This time around, the timing was right, and the Floyds were not going to pass up on the opportunity again. In February of 2018, Scottie and Tina packed up their home of 37 years and moved a few hours away to Shreveport, closer to their son, to build their business as U.S. Lawns franchisees.

Starting Over

While it might seem like a daunting task to start over from scratch, the Floyds have hit the ground running. In less than a year, they have rapidly expanded their business to include five trucks.  Scottie explains, “The systems and process were already in place, all we had to do was implement them. The resources available to us as part of this network have accelerated our growth.”

Crediting the brand’s robust support systems as a contributor to their success, Scottie says, “No one can do it this way without this kind of support.  It’s been a blessing. We would not have been able to get where we are today, let alone this quick, without the home office, staff, our franchise advisor, and other U.S. Lawns owners. Good things are happening for us.”

He adds, “The team culture here is incredible. Franchisees share ideas amongst each other and any issue that arises, there is someone to help us work through it. We are not alone in it like we were as independent owners.”

For Scottie, becoming a franchisee has been well worth it. “Our business has grown exponentially, and I no longer have to be out there doing all the work myself. We have more flexibility with our time. And most importantly, Tina and I get to build this with our son.”

Words of Wisdom

After a successful first year with the brand, Scottie has this to say, “Our experience so far has been everything that we expected. Any questions that we’ve had have always been just an email, phone call, or visit away. We are very excited about our future with U.S. Lawns.  My advice to others is this: trust the system and follow the program with faith and patience.”

And he has this to say to someone who may be considering making the decision to take their business to the next level, “There is no time to waste so invest in yourself.”

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