Brian Burton came from a 30-year career in the hotel industry, ranging from positions in operations to sales and property management. Then, the COVID-19 pandemic began, upending the entire industry and forcing everyone to stay home. For Burton, it was time for a change. Tired of being cooped up at home, he was craving a job outside in nature. A quick online search led him to find the franchise opportunity at NaturaLawn® of America. By Kelsi Trinidad
Growing a Greener Future
Brian Burton came from a 30-year career in the hotel industry, ranging from positions in operations to sales and property management. Then, the COVID-19 pandemic began, upending the entire industry and forcing everyone to stay home. For Burton, it was time for a change. Tired of being cooped up at home, he was craving a job outside in nature. A quick online search led him to find the franchise opportunity at NaturaLawn® of America.
Burton loved that the company was family-owned and that it focused on organic-based lawn care, not using any harsh, environmentally harmful chemicals.
“For me, the natural piece of it – organic-based lawn care – that was really important to me,” said Burton. “That’s a pretty critical element here in the Madison area. We’ve got very earth-conscious folks, lakes and lots of people on wells. I think, pretty universally, people with kids and pets want to be able to enjoy their lawn safely, but I think it’s a little bit more pronounced here in the Madison area, so that was really important to me. It works for me on a personal level too, but I thought that would be a business differentiator for sure.”
The Madison, Wisconsin, location was available, and after having a more in-depth conversation with NaturaLawn about the opportunity, Burton decided to move forward. He opened his location at the start of 2022, with strong training and support from the corporate team. He trained on operations as well as in the field, so he had strong knowledge of every part of the process.
Burton was also assigned a Franchise Business Consultant who came out to his location several times in his first year of operation to observe and help make corrections where needed. Even when his FBC wasn’t onsite, he was always reachable by phone for questions about everything from how to handle a tricky plant to how to figure out a ledger entry while balancing the books.
While Burton didn’t have any professional experience in the lawn care industry, he found that his service skills translated well to the growth of his new business.
“I think our approach to the business and to our customer base is one of service,” said Burton. “So that really helps me. I can speak to that in a way that seems to resonate with the crew.”
This past year, Burton’s location became financially viable – a year ahead of schedule – and he made headway in the community through giving seminars on organic lawn care and attending trade shows. Burton’s past in service is evident, with his location having one of the lowest cancellation rates in the company. This year, he’s focused on locking in his core team of employees.
“I worked for somebody else for 30 years, and I think I had a high drive,” said Burton. “I had a work ethic and wanted to be successful for them and certainly to be successful for myself, but there is something very satisfying in knowing all the effort that you are putting forth is benefiting the company that you are building. It’s super satisfying just knowing that the work we do and that the company that we’re building hopefully supports many families in the future, long past me for sure.”
Kelsi Trinidad