The Wes Nichols story

Michael Hornung has been a client and friend since the early 2000s. He is the president of Valley Green Companies, a lawn care and holiday lighting company in the greater St. Cloud, Minn., market. Mike has successfully implemented my pricing system and specifically my general and administrative (G&A) overhead recovery system. Mike has now reached out to fellow entrepreneurs in his region to assist them with the financial side of their businesses. Here’s how he has helped improve the systems and bottom line of a tree care company in his market.

How Michael Hornung helped Wes Nichols improve Pro Tree

Pro Tree was founded in 2014 with nothing more than a pickup truck, a trailer and a dream to offer better tree care services. Wes Nichols, the founder, was passionate about arboriculture but lacked business acumen. That changed in 2019 when he met Mike at a conference. During their first meeting, Mike asked Wes about his business numbers and profit margins. Wes realized he did not know how to track them. Mike told him about budgeting and my G&A overhead recovery system tools that would later prove crucial in scaling the business while maintaining a healthy net profit margin.

The transformation through budgeting and job costing

After returning home, Mike invited Wes to his office to create Pro Tree’s first budget, projecting $765,000 in annual revenue, a $90 per man-hour rate and a 20% net profit margin with a team of six. By 2025, the company’s budget had expanded to $4.4 million in revenue, a $185 per man-hour rate and a 26% net profit margin. The team grew to 16 employees with plans to reach 23 by year end. While creating the budget was an important first step, Mike taught Wes and his team that a job was not worth doing unless they could job cost it afterward to determine the net profit margin. Wes and his team began job costing daily, analyzing each project to identify strong margins and where they were losing money to adjust bids accordingly. This approach led to immediate improvements in profitability. Over time, they invested in software to automate the tracking process, making it more efficient and accurate.

Becoming a businessman

Wes never set out to be a businessman. He simply wanted to do better tree work. While he became a skilled arborist, he realized expertise in the trade alone would not sustain the company. He had to become a great businessman, too. His journey in the green industry started at a young age. Aside from a brief winter selling pizzas, tree care is the only job he has ever known. Through trial, error and many late night phone calls with his consultant, Wes built a thriving enterprise. These calls were spent discussing numbers, metrics and how different decisions in the business would impact financial outcomes. Wes gained a deeper understanding of how each move affected profitability and long-term growth. 

Smart investments and financial discipline

In 2023, Pro Tree made a major investment by purchasing a grapple saw crane truck for $775,000. Since Wes and his team understood their numbers, they were confident in the equipment’s ability to become a strong profit driver. The Pro Tree team has leveraged this equipment to capitalize on strong market conditions, helping them maintain a solid foothold in their region. Mike also taught the team the importance of not being over-leveraged. Much of the equipment and assets Pro Tree has acquired over the years were purchased with minimal debt, allowing them to maintain strong cash flow and strategically use debt only when absolutely necessary.

Building a strong team and culture

Wes has learned hiring is not just about skills; it is about finding people who align with the company’s core values. This patient and deliberate approach to hiring has helped Pro Tree cultivate a dedicated team that shares its mission. Two key individuals in the company’s success are Tanner Walker and Ashley Nichols. Tanner is a key player in Pro Tree’s success, acting as Wes’s integrator to his visionary mindset. As Operations Manager, Tanner has been with Wes from the beginning, driving daily operations and using financial data to improve decision making. Together, they form a strong partnership, with Tanner executing the vision while Wes focuses on long term growth. Ashley, Wes’s wife, has been his biggest supporter through the challenges of entrepreneurship. 

A vision for the future

Pro Tree plans to keep growing with a focus on profitability and a company culture that attracts top talent and helps employees thrive. Wes Nichols has transformed Pro Tree from a small operation into a thriving, multimillion dollar business. His journey proves with hard work, discipline and the right people, the American Dream is alive and well.

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.