Amongst friends

So, there I was back at the V-Cut (bourbon & cigar) Lounge in Nampa, Idaho, with five good friends and fellow entrepreneurs. Clients Gabe Dean, president of Daystar Excavation, was sitting to my left and Hans Ellis, president of Blue Ribbon Landscape, sat on a stool to my right. Tim Wangler, owner of the V-Cut Lounge, was standing behind us. Ritch Wheaton, owner of Wheaton Grading and Landscape, was on a stool beside Hans.

The conversation that evening centered around fall elk hunting, Hans’ recent Flaming Gorge fishing trip on the Green River in Utah, Tim’s refurbishment project of a 32’ 1972 Airstream trailer that was to be a mobile cigar bar and — of course — business. It was a great evening.

How it works in the real world

Earlier that week, I had worked with Gabe. You may remember him from an article I wrote about him and Daystar Excavation one year ago. I met Gabe and his wife, Michelle, at the V-Cut Lounge in April of 2022. He, Hans, Rich, Tim and their wives are all good friends. I was fortunate to know them and share in the camaraderie.

The first time I worked with Gabe for a full day in 2022, we created a budget for that year, costed out all of his trucks and equipment (some of which cost in excess of half a million dollars), and then priced all of his excavation work. This time we only needed half a day to do his 2024 budget and update his pricing. The other thing that we did was to price out gravel that he delivered to jobsites. This was a bit tricky as the cost per cubic yard for the gravel varied depending on its source. However, with a little creativity and an MS Excel worksheet, we were able to compensate for the diverse variables.

Essentially, I was helping Gabe do a more accurate cost-benefit analysis of his services and products. Calculating an accurate cost per hour to run his various dozers, graders, excavators and so forth was essential. Once we did that, costing out the operator to run the equipment was straight forward.

Because Hans had decided to go fishing, he and I did not meet. However, he did allow me to park my 25’ 2019 Flying Cloud Airstream at his office where I camped for five days. I told Hans that I would provide “security” for his property while I was there and he was gone. A few years ago, Hans had purchased 20 acres on a prime transportation route in Caldwell, Idaho, that had excellent access to the Greater Boise market. He has great plans for those 20 acres: he’d include an office building, operations facility, rental units, etc. This facility will greatly enhance Blue Ribbon Landscape’s footprint in the market from both a marketing and an operations aspect.

While camping at his office complex, I had an opportunity to talk with Danny Talich, Blue Ribbon Landscape’s operations manager. We discussed how he could implement performance pay for his irrigation service technicians and lawn care (chemical) applicators. One way is to first calculate the daily amount to bill for the irrigation technician’s labor (usually from $900 to $1,000 per day) and the average amount to bill per day for the lawn care applicator (usually from $1,200 to $1,500 per day). If they hit these amounts for five days in a row in a given week, I like to pay the technicians 1% to 2% of the revenue billed. That could easily amount to an extra $100 per week or $400 to $500 per month. For the right technician, it’s a pretty good motivator.

Conclusion

What we did was monumental for the individuals involved. Not only did we share great camaraderie as we discussed our sporting adventures (past and future) and business lessons learned, but we also made some significant improvements in our business operations. This kind of robust collaboration is essential for all of us to flourish and overcome the daily obstacles that get in our way and try to prevent us from running a successful enterprise. Bourbon and cigars may not be your thing. If it’s golf and iced tea, poker and beer, church and pot luck, whatever; surround yourself with good friends, camaraderie and people who will challenge you to be better. We’ll all be better for it if you do.

Travels with Jim follows Jim Huston around the country as he visits with landscapers and helps them understand their numbers to make smarter decisions. He can be reached at: jhuston@jrhuston.biz.