LAWNCAREPRO
LM ’S OPERATOR OF THE MONTH » BY RON HALL
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Darrel Nail takes care of the details. “He’s a systems guy
and thrives on staying abreast of what’s the newest and
the best,” Gary LaScalea, the founder/owner of GroGreen Lawn Care, says of his vice president. “We’re
opposites in many respects, and I’m convinced that’s why
we’ve been successful.” Nail shares what he learned from
LaScalea to help him run a successful operation.
What led you into a career in
lawn care? While I was in
high school in Mississippi, I
was a member of the FFA and
worked for a local hay farmer.
I worked for the Smith family
for three years and really liked
the farming. After graduating,
I moved back to Tucson, AZ,
and attended school. I moved
to Dallas in 1982 and worked
in fast food management,
working 60 to 70 hours a week
for not very much pay. In the
spring of 1984, I applied for
and got a job as a lawn care
specialist with ChemLawn. I
enjoyed being outside, seeing
the results of treatments, talking with customers and educating them about turf care. I
fell in love with the industry.
directions for a short while,
Gary and I stayed in touch.
Jumping forward to October
1996, Gary, who had started
GroGreen, his own company,
a year earlier, asked me to help
him implement his new software and computer system.
That winter, we converted
his customer base to the new
software. In January 1997,
he asked if I wanted to come
and work with him. I sold my
small mowing business and
went back into lawn care.
more trucks, more training.
Today, I oversee all company
operations, training, customer
service, employee relations
and employee motivation. I
also keep pushing for continuous improvement.
What do you like most about
your job? What do you find
most challenging? I get
great satisfaction watching
employees grow in their posi-
tions. I enjoy being part of a
fast-paced, growing company,
and helping it grow. The most
challenging aspect of my job
is staffing, especially the job of
making decisions that affect
employees and their families.
That can be difficult.
COMPANY: GroGreen Lawn
Care, Plano, TX
FOUNDED: 1995
PRINCIPALS: Gary LaScalea,
founder and owner; Darrel Nail, vice president
and general manager
NUMBER OF OU TLETS: 2
EMPLOYEES: 30
SERVICES OFFERED: lawn care,
tree and shrub care, pest
control, aeration, grub
control, fire ant control
BUSINESS OUTLOOK: “
Regardless of competition or
pricing issues, we’re not
going to backpedal on
the quality of products or
services.”
FAMILY: Darrel is married
to Debra: three children,
Melissa, Rachael and Anthony; and two grandchildren, Anthony and Aiden
HOBBIES: trout fishing and
riding his Harley-Davidson
Ultra Classic
WEB SITE:
www.grogreen.com
Describe how your relationship
with the company has changed.
Throughout my career with
GroGreen, Gary and I have
been very involved with the
operation of the business.
The first couple of years we
How and when did you join up spent most of our time out
with GroGreen and its owner, spraying lawns and returning
Gary LaScalea? In 1986, Gary to the office, usually to find
LaScalea transferred to our a bunch of curled up faxes
ChemLawn branch as branch that had fallen to the floor. As
manager. As the company the company grew, our roles
began to change, Gary took matured — more employees,
me under his wing, and I
worked various management
positions supporting his
role as branch and regional
manager. Even though
we both went in different
“THE MOST CHALLENGING ASPECT OF MY JOB IS
STAFFING, ESPECIALLY THE NECESSARY JOB OF
MAKING DIFFICULT DECISIONS.”
In light of the economy, what
kind of a spring is GroGreen
having? We are having a good
spring. The weather has been
nice and we’re doing better
than last year. Last spring it
warmed up; then got cold,
and it took a long time for
the grass to green up. I have
a theory on lawn care and the
economy: When the economy
is depressed, people still want
lawn care because it isn’t a
very big expense compared to
other things they do to keep
their properties looking nice.
