Garden Clearence

imared

Been rattling my brains for a while now about a business idea, Yesterday I was asked to do someone a favour and cut back their overgrown garden. When I mean overgrown I mean more like a jungle. Weeds and brambles up to 6 ft etc.

Whilst doing this I got thinking. I have done various things like this as favours for people mainly the elderly and I thought wouldn't it be great if I could somehow make a living out of this and turn it into a business.

My idea is simple, Start off small with general overgrown garden clearance and weeding. I would then like to move into things like hedgerow trimmings, Power washing patios and paths etc and work all the way up to lawn maintenance etc. I would like to get to the point that one day I can employee and train my own staff. The staff I would look for is the kind that need a helping hand, Ones who have had a troubled life and have little qualifications and prospects in life. My reasoning's for this is due to my background I have seen many waste their life and I would like to offer some an alternative way of life. Everyone deserves a chance but many are not fortunate to receive that chance.

Now so there is the idea, The problem I have is implementing this idea. What is required? I have no capital, Major stumbling block! I have just started claiming JSA but I am now at the point where I want to do something with my life and help others do something with theirs.

Next stumbling blocks I would say is transport. Vans can be hired but unsure if that will be cost efficiant.

Tools such as shovel, Rack, Sledge hammer etc wouldn't be a problem to get hold of.

Power tools such as petrol strimmer, Lawn mower etc could also be hired if cost effciant until finances allowed to purchase own power tools.

Winter months I imagine could be a little slow but could offer services such as leaf clearance, And upkeep during the winter months where no one really wants to get out there in the rain to look after their garden. Following Christmas my focus would be on marketing about the up coming summer. Promotions such as garden clearance in the winter months and we will come back prior to the summer for a touch up for a discounted price.

To start off with a simple website plus advertisements in local shop windows and a leaflet drop would be a good way to drum up business. Approaching small organisations I think could also be beneficial.

Now a few questions,

I know the country is in financial trouble but there must still be some grants out there somewhere? Is the job centre able to help in any way?

Would I need any sort of insurances?

Waste disposal I would be looking for it to be environmental friendly considering the nature of the business would be in the environment, Where would one dispose of this waste and what is the costs?

As you can imagine in an overgrown garden you may find anything from washing machines to bikes, Any metal found would also provide extra revenue.

I feel I can be really passionate and committed to this idea as I grew up doing this sort of thing. I think even tho there is many companies out there already offering this service I could bring something different to the table.

My goals would be to offer a outstanding service by working with the client and deliver exactly what they want by working to high standards. This includes an initial consultation, Keeping their premises clean and tidy and try to carry out the job with as little disruption as possible. A simple note or a knock on the door on near by neighbors would come as standard service just to make them aware so they could take in there washing etc.

Thanks for taking the time to read, I'm now looking to how I can take this idea to the next level.

martindow

What do you do with the jungles that you clear? You are likely to be charged for disposing of this at your local tip which could make your charges greater than people would want to pay.

WLM21

I would suggest you visit your local Business Link office, for general advice on all aspects of business start up. Their website is here: http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/home

Regarding the idea, there was a similar thread a few weeks ago on here .. maybe worth looking for it. The chap had a simialr idea and had been considering using his clients' own tools, which is pretty well a no no.

Good luck in your venture

imared wrote: »

Been rattling my brains

Is that why you posted this in the middle of the night ?

patman99

You should be looking at a start-up budget of £5k.
Essential tools for the job would be -

Waste Carriers license (this is needed if you don't want to get a huge fine from the EA).
Tipper-van with cage (so you can fit loads of waste in before needing to tip).
Public Liability Insurance (legal requirement)
Employers Insurance (legal requirement)
Commercial vehicle insurance.

When obtaining PLI, get quoted as 'Handyman', then requoted as 'Gardener' and go with the cheaper of the 2 (handymen do do gardening as well as painting, shelf fixing etc.)

As a sideline, you can clear scrap metal like the !!!!!! do. Just drive round the roads ringing a bell and look for people coming out and flagging you down.
Don't forget to research where your nearest green waste centre is. These will take any green waste such as grass for little or no cost unlike taking it to the tip where you will get charged a small fortune.

imared

martindow wrote: »

What do you do with the jungles that you clear? You are likely to be charged for disposing of this at your local tip which could make your charges greater than people would want to pay.

Well currently cos I only do it from time to time as a favour I am able to take any waste to a local sort it centre or the people I do it for dispose of it themselves. I think waste disposal to be the biggest issue here.

DCodd

I would firstly check your competition. Garden maintenance / clearance is a very competetive business with some reasonably large companies operating within this sector.

I haven't done this sort of work for years but I know we found it cheaper to hire a skip than to dispose of the rubbish ourselves (we only really did largeish projects), it also meant we didn't need the waste carriers licence or a large van. Also you should make a decent shreader one of your priorities as far as tools are concerned as they will dramatically increase the amount of waste you can fit in your van or skip. Alternatively many one man band operations agree to leave the grass cuttings etc (for maintenace works) with the customer for composting / recycling.

Anthonis

well waste disposal wouldn't be huge issue if you had any place where you could recycle them and use it back on clients space who needs some.... and you could make money from that too

s_b

i think if you only have green waste you are exempted from needing a waste licence

Savvy_Sue

Anthonis wrote: »

well waste disposal wouldn't be huge issue if you had any place where you could recycle them and use it back on clients space who needs some.... and you could make money from that too

I think there could be issues, if I was paying for someone to bring compost in I'd like to know there weren't any pernicious weeds still 'alive' in it, plus the 'balance' of it can vary according to what's gone into it. You'd need quite a lot of space to generate enough to be worthwhile ...

s_b wrote: »

i think if you only have green waste you are exempted from needing a waste licence

possibly, but I'd almost be prepared to bet money that you'd need a few bits of paper to establish that you were only processing green waste - recycling is a nightmare these days!

Anthonis

yeah there is always guys like you who knows everything, but mainly lots of people don't care or don't know what type of compost must be. You have to understand that this is real world and in real world there is always something not like it should be. And there is always people who would like to buy something cheaply and understand that cheap mean cheap quality so i don't think that somebody would be bothered what type of compost you sell, important that its cheap. So I think if that guy has head on his shoulder's he will figure out how to get rid of that waste. Everybody says how it should be, but we all know how everybody does.... Good luck

Savvy_Sue

Depends whether the OP wants repeat business or not, doesn't it?

Re-reading the first post, I also noted this:

imared wrote: »

I would like to get to the point that one day I can employee and train my own staff. The staff I would look for is the kind that need a helping hand, Ones who have had a troubled life and have little qualifications and prospects in life. My reasoning's for this is due to my background I have seen many waste their life and I would like to offer some an alternative way of life. Everyone deserves a chance but many are not fortunate to receive that chance.

That is a fantastic way to think, and if you can make it work then that's great, but you have to be realistic here. I know someone who's been working for a charity which tries to get ex-offenders / former addicts / homeless people into work, and it's an uphill struggle. There's a huge variation, of course, but sometimes their productivity isn't that high, sometimes they need more supervision than you'd expect, sometimes you have to make sure that there's no temptations in their way.

It makes costing jobs difficult: you know how long it would take you, so you think with an assistant it should take a bit more than half the time, but actually it still takes almost as much time as when it was just you, because Fred's concentration wanders and you have to keep going back and checking what he did.

Having said that, when the time comes to take someone on, see if there's an organisation like Business in the Community operating something like their Business Action on Homelessness programme in your area, and see what you can learn from them!