{ "slug": "landscaping", "name": "Landscaping & Grounds", "in_level_book": true, "scores": { "resilience": 68.9, "leverage": 80.9, "trade_ai_score": 74.9, "quadrant": "race-to-modernize", "quadrant_label": "Race to Modernize", "quadrant_desc": "Big AI upside but exposed to disruption. Move now — the operators who modernize win.", "resilience_rel": 24.5, "leverage_rel": 78 }, "subscores": { "resilience": { "physical_core": 84, "disintermediation": 58, "entry_barrier": 55, "switching_cost": 70 }, "leverage": { "coordination_drag": 84, "operating_leverage": 86, "revenue_expansion": 72, "data_amplification": 78 }, "basis": "Physical, but highly fragmented and low entry barrier. Recurring maintenance contracts help lock-in. Crew-productivity + design-build job costing = large AI upside. Level customer vertical (Prestige)." }, "research": { "labor": { "median_hourly_wage_usd": 18.31, "median_wage_source": "U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook (https://www.bls.gov/ooh/building-and-grounds-cleaning/grounds-maintenance-workers.htm)", "median_wage_year": "2024", "us_employment": 1192500, "employment_source": "U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook (https://www.bls.gov/ooh/building-and-grounds-cleaning/grounds-maintenance-workers.htm)", "projected_10yr_growth_pct": 4, "growth_source": "U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2024-2034 Projections (https://www.bls.gov/ooh/building-and-grounds-cleaning/grounds-maintenance-workers.htm)", "labor_shortage_note": "70% of landscaping companies report difficulty in filling open positions, with an estimated 300,000 job openings in the industry each year.", "labor_shortage_source": "National Association of Landscape Professionals (NALP) Green Industry Workforce Report (https://www.landscapeprofessionals.org)" }, "market": { "industry_revenue_usd": 176700000000, "revenue_source": "IBISWorld, Landscaping Services in the US Report, 2026, https://www.ibisworld.com/united-states/market-research-reports/landscaping-services-industry/", "revenue_year": "2026", "num_establishments": 556238, "establishments_source": "IBISWorld, Landscaping Services in the US - Number of Businesses, 2026, https://www.ibisworld.com/us/bed/number-of-businesses/561730/", "fragmentation_note": "The US Landscaping Services industry has low market share concentration and is highly fragmented, with most operations run by small local operators and the largest industry player (BrightView Holdings, Inc.) holding a minor market share.", "fragmentation_source": "IBISWorld, Landscaping Services in the US Report, 2026, https://www.ibisworld.com/united-states/market-research-reports/landscaping-services-industry/" }, "economics": { "gross_margin_pct": 23.3, "gross_margin_source": "BrightView Holdings, Inc. SEC Form 10-K (FY2024, ended September 30, 2024), https://www.sec.gov/ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/1734713/000173471324000043/bv-20240930.htm", "net_margin_pct": 2.4, "net_margin_source": "BrightView Holdings, Inc. SEC Form 10-K (FY2024, ended September 30, 2024), https://www.sec.gov/ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/1734713/000173471324000043/bv-20240930.htm", "labor_pct_of_revenue": 35, "labor_pct_source": "Aspire Software / National Association of Landscape Professionals (NALP) 2025 Benchmark Data, https://www.youraspire.com/blog/labor-cost-percentage-for-landscaping", "revenue_per_employee_usd": 141179, "rev_per_employee_source": "BrightView Holdings, Inc. SEC Form 10-K (FY2024, ended September 30, 2024; calculated as $2,767.1M revenue divided by 19,600 employees), https://www.sec.gov/ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/1734713/000173471324000043/bv-20240930.htm" }, "cash_cycle": { "dso_days": 54, "dso_source": "BrightView Holdings, Inc. Form 10-K, 2025, https://www.sec.gov", "retainage_pct": 5, "retainage_source": "Levelset National Construction Payment Report, 2019, https://www.levelset.com", "days_to_payment": 63, "days_to_payment_source": "Levelset / Sageworks DSO Study, 2019, https://www.levelset.com", "cashflow_note": "According to the Levelset 2022 Construction Cash Flow & Payment Report, only 12% of construction companies report always getting paid on time, and fewer than 40% are paid within 30 days on average despite standard Net-30 payment terms.", "cashflow_source": "Levelset 2022 Construction Cash Flow & Payment Report, 2022, https://www.levelset.com" }, "ai_exposure": { "ai_resistant_work": "Physical on-site tasks requiring fine motor skills, craft judgment, and site-specific physical adaptability remain highly resistant to AI automation. These tasks include intricate hand pruning, edging near tight obstacles, tree climbing and arborist care, hardscape construction (paving, masonry, wall builds), plant health diagnosis, soil amendment, and custom plant installation. Furthermore, a Brigham Young University study presented via the National Association of Landscape Professionals (NALP, 2019) analyzed 117 landscape properties and found that 70% were not robotic-mower friendly due to physical obstacles, fragmented lawn zones, and perimeter barriers that necessitate human site management.", "automatable_work": "Administrative, pre-construction, estimating, and operational planning tasks are the most highly automatable. Key areas include automated property takeoffs (using AI and aerial imagery to map and calculate square footage for turf, mulch beds, hardscapes, and tree counts), automated proposal and bid generation, route optimization for field crews, dynamic job pricing based on historical production rates, automated client scheduling/invoicing, and predictive maintenance alerts for equipment. AI takeoff platforms report reducing property measurement and estimate creation time by up to 90–95%, removing the primary administrative bottleneck for contractors.", "adoption_examples": "1. AI Aerial Takeoffs & Management Integration: Landscape Management Network (LMN) partnered with Attentive.ai (2025) to integrate computer vision AI aerial takeoffs directly into field management software, allowing contractors to instantly generate material takeoffs and quotes from satellite imagery. 2. Fleet Autonomous Mowing: Contractors featured by the National Association of Landscape Professionals (NALP, 2026)—such as Mow Bot Ltd (using Scythe mowers) and Florida Image Landscaping (using Kress mowers)—deploy autonomous mowers as labor multipliers. Mow Bot Ltd reported that one senior technician can oversee two autonomous mowers processing 1.5 acres per hour each. 3. Agronomic Turf Research: A 2026 University of Florida (UF/IFAS) study led by Dr. Bryan Unruh evaluated autonomous mowers on warm-season St. Augustine grass, documenting that continuous daily micro-mowing increased turf density and pest resistance while reducing crew labor and carbon emissions.", "sources": [ "Landscape Management Network (LMN) & Attentive.ai Strategic Partnership Announcement (2025) - https://attentive.ai", "National Association of Landscape Professionals (NALP) - How Autonomous Mowers Are Reshaping Operations (2026) - https://www.landscapeprofessionals.org", "University of Florida IFAS News - Study Finds Robotic Mowers Improve Florida Lawn Health (2026) - https://ufl.edu", "National Association of Landscape Professionals (NALP) / BYU Lawn Accessibility Study (2019) - https://www.landscapeprofessionals.org", "Attentive.ai - Automated Takeoff Software and Landscaping Bidding Guide (2024) - https://attentive.ai" ] }, "ma_consolidation": { "consolidation_activity": "The US Landscaping & Grounds maintenance sector is experiencing high private equity roll-up and consolidation activity. The market is highly fragmented—comprising an estimated 640,000 to 700,000 small, local operators where the top 50 companies control only about 20% of the market. PE sponsors are actively pursuing 'buy-and-build' roll-up strategies driven by the sector's high cash conversion and predictable recurring revenue streams (commercial maintenance contracts, lawn care subscriptions, irrigation, and snow removal).", "typical_ebitda_multiple": "Small local operators and tuck-in targets ($500k–$1M EBITDA) typically trade at 3x to 6x EBITDA (or 2.5x to 5x SDE). Scaled lower-middle-market companies and platform candidates ($1M–$10M+ EBITDA) command multiples of 7x to 12x EBITDA, with high-performing commercial maintenance platforms achieving 12x to 15x EBITDA upon exit.", "multiple_source": "Livingstone Partners ('Commercial Landscaping Industry PE Trends', 2024) and First Page Sage ('EBITDA Multiples for Private Landscaping Companies', 2025)", "notable_acquirers_or_deals": "1. Yellowstone Landscape: Acquired by Harvest Partners in 2019; received a major recapitalization investment from Neuberger Berman Capital Solutions in December 2024.\n2. SavATree: Acquired by Apax Partners from CI Capital in 2021.\n3. BrightView Holdings (NYSE: BV): Public commercial leader originally built through private equity consolidation (KKR/Brickman/ValleyCrest).\n4. Elevation Landscape Group: Commercial landscaping platform launched by Trinity Hunt Partners in May 2026.\n5. Exscape Group: Commercial landscape platform backed by BHMS Investments executing regional add-on acquisitions.", "sources": [ "Livingstone Partners (2024), 'Commercial Landscaping Industry PE Trends': https://www.livingstonepartners.com", "First Page Sage (2025), 'EBITDA Multiples for Private Landscaping Companies': https://firstpagesage.com", "PR Newswire / Harris Williams (2024), 'Yellowstone Landscape Receives Minority Investment from Neuberger Berman Capital Solutions': https://www.prnewswire.com", "Landscape Management / Main Street Wealth (2026), 'U.S. Landscaping Industry Overview & M&A Activity': https://www.landscapemanagement.net" ] }, "tech_stack": { "dominant_fsm_software": "reached by market segment: Jobber and LMN (Landscape Management Network) dominate the small-to-midsize business (SMB) segment for landscape contractors, providing estimating, scheduling, and job costing. Aspire (a ServiceTitan company) is the leading enterprise platform for large commercial landscaping operations with 50+ crews or $1M+ revenue requiring advanced multi-entity job costing and purchasing. Other heavily used trade-specific platforms include SingleOps, RealGreen (WorkWave), Service Autopilot, and Yardbook.", "common_accounting_software": "QuickBooks (QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Desktop) is the overwhelming accounting standard and financial source of truth across US landscape contractors. Nearly all major green-industry FSM systems (Jobber, LMN, Aspire, SingleOps) prioritize native two-way integration with QuickBooks to sync customer records, invoices, payments, and class-tracked service revenue. Enterprise-tier landscape contractors additionally utilize Acumatica or Sage.", "adoption_or_integration_note": "According to the Aspire 2025 Landscape Industry Insights Report (surveying over 1,000 US landscape professionals), 93% of landscaping businesses use digital software in daily operations. Key functional adoption rates include accounting software (77%), invoicing software (72%), and estimating software (61%). Furthermore, 51% of landscape contractors actively prioritize all-in-one FSM platforms to bridge the operational gap between field time-tracking/dispatching and back-office accounting.", "sources": [ "Aspire Software, 2025 Landscape Industry Insights Report (2025), https://www.youraspire.com", "Field Service Guide, Best Landscape Software with QuickBooks Integration (2026), https://fieldserviceguide.com", "TeamEngine, Best Landscaping Business Management Software (2025), https://www.teamengine.io" ] } }, "market_structure": { "permits": [], "seasonality": [], "size_tiers": [], "top_states": [] }, "reputation": { "available": true, "source": "Public business-review listings (aggregated April 2026). Aggregate only; no individual business identified.", "n_businesses": 20019, "avg_rating": 3.68, "rating_p25": 3, "rating_median": 3.9, "rating_p75": 4.7, "avg_reviews": 13.65, "reviews_median": 6, "reviews_p90": 28, "claimed_pct": 67.5, "closed_pct": 4.7, "top_states": [ { "state": "CA", "n": 4153 }, { "state": "TX", "n": 1507 }, { "state": "FL", "n": 1336 }, { "state": "IL", "n": 833 }, { "state": "WA", "n": 825 } ] }, "firmographics": { "available": true, "source": "Aggregated public business firmographic records (multi-source SMB dataset). Revenue/employee/age/employer-rating distributions per trade. Aggregate only; no individual company identified.", "n_companies": 4771, "revenue_usd": { "n": 1718, "p25": 6100000, "median": 10760825, "p75": 21431927, "p90": 36500000 }, "employees": { "n": 1015, "p25": 35, "median": 50, "p75": 94, "p90": 194 }, "founded_year_median": 2004, "employer_rating_avg": 3.71, "employer_rating_n": 892, "top_states": [] }, "level_published": null, "comps": [ { "ticker": "BV", "name": "BrightView Holdings, Inc.", "return_6m_pct": 2, "return_1y_pct": -2.3, "gross_margin_pct": 21.97, "ev_ebitda": 6.2, "market_cap_billions": 1.37 }, { "ticker": "SITE", "name": "SiteOne Landscape Supply, Inc.", "return_6m_pct": -28.7, "return_1y_pct": -28.9, "gross_margin_pct": 34.94, "ev_ebitda": 14.88, "market_cap_billions": 4.55 }, { "ticker": "SMG", "name": "The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company", "return_6m_pct": -2.3, "return_1y_pct": 11.9, "gross_margin_pct": 32.49, "ev_ebitda": 10.89, "market_cap_billions": 4.13 } ] }