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Bill Hildebolt, president and owner of Nature’s Select in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, takes growing his business from the ground up literally. His lawn care company, founded 11 years ago, separates itself from the competition by offering a biological approach to turf care, one that has both environmental and performance advantages by improving the soil. “It all starts with the soil,” says Hildebolt, referring to a lush green lawn. “Healthy grass plants require a healthy soil that promotes a deeper root system and a more extensive grass system.”

If success is any indicator, this owner has a convincing story to tell. With only 80 customers after the first year in operation, Nature’s Select now services 1,500 customers, the majority of whom sign up for the company’s biological-based fertilizing program. This is despite the fact that the fertilizing program is upward of 50 percent more costly than many conventional programs on the market.

“When you explain to customers the difference between conventional or synthetic fertilizers and our select program, they usually go with the latter,” says Hildebolt. His company also offers a conventional program, and both are formulated to fit the customers’ needs. “It all starts with the soil,” he reemphasizes. “You feed the soil first, and the soil feeds the plant.”

After being raised on a family farm in Ohio and graduating from college with a degree in food science, Hildebolt went to work for Campbell Soup Company. He spent 16 years there before being hired on to head up a tobacco company’s research and development department. During this time, a partner who experimented with renewable farming techniques was working the family farm. “He was so successful,” Hildebolt explains, “that I left the tobacco company to help market the biological enhancements he used on the farm to the turf and golf course industries. I quickly found out, though, that you had to be able to show results to sell the product. So, we started Nature’s Select.”

The rest, they say, is history, or almost, anyway. Through the years, the company has added services to bolster its lawn care repertoire, including lawn renovation, plant health care, and spring-sports turf aeration.

“We have carved out a pretty good chunk of business in the area of lawn renovation,” relates Hildebolt. “During a two-and-a-half-month period in the fall, we bring in approximately one-third of our total dollar volume for the year.” During that time, Nature’s Select crews renovate 600 properties using equipment the company has modified. One piece in particular can aerate, seed, and rake in one pass. “This tool not only saves us one or two laborers on every lawn,” says Hildebot, “but when you drop seed on freshly aerated ground, the germination rate increases dramatically and you get superior results.”

Aerating sports turf in the spring, particularly soccer fields, has been a nice add-on business for Nature’s Select. Aerating is not only another income source, it also allows the company to get double use out of equipment, especially small tractors, that normally would be unused for nearly 10 months out of the year. Tree and ornamental shrub care has also been a natural add-on for the company, offering current customers another service.

Nature’s Select employs 15 full-time people who provide year-round lawn care services, including seven fertilizer applications. Another five employees help with fall aeration. The company currently has two branch locations and is looking to grow new business opportunities.

What has contributed to the company’s success in the highly competitive lawn care market? “I believe that no matter what business you are in, you build it with people and by having a product or service that differentiates you from the competition,” says Hildebolt. “We have some incredible employees who are very knowledgeable. In addition to offering a unique product, we also provide exemplary service, performing soil tests and a customized program for all of our customers’ lawns.

He continues, “In the lawn care business, customers want to see a nice green lawn. When they understand that what a company is providing is both environmentally sound and outperforms other lawn care programs with a straight chemical base, they are willing to give it a try.”

The irony? Hildebolt started the lawn care business to show customers the value of using a biological-based product and, ultimately, to help market it. In the process, he helped grow a successful company that leaves little time to do anything but manage its growth and operation.

4/05

By Rod Dickens, PLANET Contributing Writer