Greenscape
Greenscape's President and CEO Daniel Currin jokes that he's been a part of his family business since the moment he was born — now, he's trying to take the business to national relevance.
1979 was certainly a big year for Daniel's father, Michael Currin, who founded Greenscape in February. Daniel was born in October. And over the last 45 years, the family has focused on growing its business in North Carolina markets like Durham, Raleigh and Charlotte.
But over the last few years, the family has watched other companies grow in the hot mergers and acquisitions marketplace. So, Daniel has created Green Leaf Group to help expand the company into a more national brand. The platform started by acquiring Environmental Enhancements in Virginia earlier this month. Created by Fred Peratt in 2001, Environmental Enhancements currently employs 50 people and is hoping to reach the $7 million mark in revenue this year. Now, Daniel says that team has the systems and processes support to help both companies mutually grow. It was also just a fit that he felt came naturally: Daniel remembers walking in to their office to see many of the core values listed on Greenscape's walls were posted on Environmental Enhancements' walls, too.
"I think there's the technical side to acquisitions and then there's the real strategy, gut side of finding the right fit and working through that process and being okay if it's not the right fit," Daniel says.
Daniel says the decision to create a platform named Green Leaf Group came down to several factors, but one major one is that it allows each team to retain their respective brands after acquisitions. Plus, Daniel jokes that when his dad started the company in the 70s, "Greenscape" was an original brand name. Now, there's a Greenscape in just about every state, so as the company grew nationally, it needed a different name.
This doesn't mark Greenscape's first acquisition — it's found other local North Carolina businesses and tucked them in over time. Recently, the company acquired Coastal Cuts Landscaping of North Carolina and Edison Landscaping in Charlotte.
But now the Green Leaf Group is eyeing a more national presence. Daniel says he's looking at other major cities in the Southeast like Nashville or Atlanta for future expansion. The platform is not currently backed by private equity.
"We're doing this through our own resources and it's family-backed, which is great because it gives us some flexibility and allows us to look at things differently," Daniel says. "That's what the plan is right now."
The goal is to grow the company to $100 million in 10 years, and while he admits it's ambitious, Daniel also calls the strategy methodical.
"Big goals create a lot of clarity in a vision, but it's not an overwhelming, too fast growth. It's real methodical with heavy organic (growth), looking to add the right partners to the group over time," he says. "At the end of the day, our ability to hit that vision comes down to leadership."
