A company that pairs up landscape contractors with clients in need of service has secured an oversubscribed $12 million Series B financing from a number of investors, including MTD Products, which manufactures Cub Cadet mowers.
While the partnership between Cub Cadet and TaskEasy is still being worked out, TaskEasy Founder and CEO, Ken Davis, says there are a couple of ideas in the works.
One would allow TaskEasy contractors to use a smartphone to find an MTD service center nearby to make an appoint if equipment breaks down. The other would be a lease/purchasing program where contractors would receive help getting an equipment loan.
“Whether it’s MTD funding the load or it’s another banking source, having the debt service payment guaranteed by a flow of real work is a big deal,” Davis says.
“As the preferred equipment and service provider for TaskEasy, we believe this is a great way to leverage our nationwide network of product and service dealers to TaskEasy’s impressive system of contractors,” MTD CEO Robert Moll said in a press release.
To be a TaskEasy contractor you have to pass a background check and have general liability and worker’s comp insurance. TaskEasy also scores its contractor’s work and feed jobs to the highest scoring companies. Contractors will also be asked for an inventory of equipment.
“That allows us to appropriately sign work,” Davis says. “If we get a job to mow a park, we don’t want to send a contractor who just has a push mower. We want to send somebody with a larger mower.”
TaskEasy prices the project, takes 14 percent of the final sale, and will bill the customer as TaskEasy. The company also allows contractors to move customers not found by TaskEasy, under its umbrella to help with back office work including billing. TaskEasy also pays the contractor whether it’s received payment from the homeowner/renter or property manager who is in charge of the property.
“Even though they (customers) might not pay us for 30 or 60 or 90 days, we still pay our contractors usually NET 3-5,” he says. “There are some exceptions where we go 14 days, but it’s usually NET 3-5.”
TaskEasy hit its first $10 million in lawn mowing transactions a few months ago and will hit the second $10 million next month. The company’s snow service started 18 months after its lawn services, but Davis says it’s on the same pace for growth.
The $12 million in financing was led by Delta Electronics Capital with participation from MTD and other new investor. Moderne Ventures. The existing investors include Grotech Ventures, Access Venture Partners and Kickstart Fund.
