There is a sense of overall optimism about where the industry is and where it’s headed, at least according to the results of Landscape Management’s 2024 State of the Industry Report.

According to the report summary, “Despite some challenges, more than 60% of respondents to the magazine’s annual survey said that the landscape and lawn care market in their region moved in the right direction in the year that just concluded — and nearly 20% of those said their local markets were up significantly. That positivity only increased when they were asked about their outlook for 2025. Over 80% of readers said they were either very optimistic or slightly optimistic about what this year promised for their businesses. They cited everything from macro issues like a stable national economy to more micro reasons, such as strong customer retention efforts, for their bullish outlook.”

Landscape Management’s reporting by its Editor-in-Chief Scott Hollister shared feedback from both equipment dealers and manufacturers, reviewed the challenges ahead that respondents know will be forthcoming, and shared an overview of the changes in increasing role of mergers and acquisitions. That report is summarized here with excerpts from Hollister’s reporting on the 2024 Survey.

Hollister noted, “The picture in north-central Indiana is similarly bright, according to Brian Hoffman, CEO of Hoffman’s Nursery and Landscaping in Wabash, Ind. He says that after settling into a ‘new normal’ in 2024 following the COVID years and the new year will be a good one. On the manufacturer side, the coverage on LM’s State of the Industry Report shared comments from Shane Coates, vice president of dealer sales at JCB North America.Coates described last year as a “challenging” one that still yielded positive results for the company, thanks in large part to customers in the landscape industry. “The landscaping segment was the most favorable industry segment in 2024 and showed remarkable resilience,” Coates says in the report, adding, “That sector maintained steady demand as homeowners and commercial property owners continued to invest in outdoor spaces that enhance functionality and aesthetics.”

Necessarily, the report also focused on some of the challenges industry professionals see in the year ahead. The authors noted, “Among the potential trials and tribulations that could face the industry in 2025 are rising costs and inflation, regulatory pressures and labor and staffing issues, all commonly cited by respondents to the State of the Industry survey as hurdles that will need to be cleared this year. Not surprisingly, labor topped that list — 64% of respondents indicated they had experienced labor challenges or had difficulty finding reliable workers.”

The breakdown of survey participants included every region of the country, according to Landscape Management’s summary news item, which noted 34% from the Northeast and 27% from the Midwest accounting for half of the total responses. The article added: “The companies those respondents worked for came in varying shapes and sizes. A full 60% of the companies had less than 20 employees, while on the flip side, nearly 15%of respondents were from companies with teams of 100 employees or more. Services offered by those companies included mowing and maintenance (79%); weed, disease, insect control and fertilizer applications (65%); hardscapes (64%); design, build and construction (62%); and irrigation (59%). Thirty-eight percent described their companies as ‘full service.’”

Zeroing in on the industry further, the LM State of the Industry Report overview also shared that respondents were open to the consistently increasing number of mergers and acquisitions, as well as private equity funding. It noted, “Just more than half said they had been approached about selling their businesses in 2024, and a similar number said they would entertain offers from private equity if they were to come in 2025 and beyond.”


Click here for more Industry News.